GO TELL IT ON THE MOUNTAIN​​​!

Luke 2:16-18​ – Devotional

Luke 2:16-18

“. . . They . . . found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them.”

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A well-produced, short, animated “Christmas movie” is The Very First Noel and features the voice of Andy Griffith narrating. At one point in the video, the shepherds exclaim in excitement, “Who ever thought we’d be invited? . . . We’ll tell it here, we’ll tell it there, we’ll tell it everywhere . . . “ May we be as excited to accept the invitation and proclaim our Savior’s birth.

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Go Tell It On the Mountain

Over silent flocks by night,
Behold throughout the heavens,
There shone a holy light:
Go, Tell It On The Mountain,
Over the hills and everywhere;
Go, Tell It On The Mountain
That Jesus Christ is born.

The shepherds feared and trembled
When lo! above the earth
Rang out the angel chorus
That hailed our Savior’s birth:
Go, Tell It On The Mountain,
Over the hills and everywhere;
Go, Tell It On The Mountain
That Jesus Christ is born.

Down in a lowly manger
Our humble Christ was born
And God send us salvation,
That blessed Christmas morn:
Go, Tell It On The Mountain,
Over the hills and everywhere;
Go, Tell It On The Mountain
That Jesus Christ is born.

When I am a seeker,
I seek both night and day;
I seek the Lord to help me,
And He shows me the way:
Go, Tell It On The Mountain,
Over the hills and everywhere;
Go, Tell It On The Mountain
That Jesus Christ is born.

He made me a watchman
Upon the city wall,
And if I am a Christian,
I am the least of all.
Go, Tell It On The Mountain,
Over the hills and everywhere;
Go, Tell It On The Mountain
That Jesus Christ is born.

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You can enjoy this week’s energetic inspirational video, “Go Tell It On The Mountain” by going to: https://gloryscapes.com/gotellitonthemountain/

Happy New Year!

– – – Pastor Cecil

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SILENT NIGHT​​​!

Luke 2:2-10​ – Devotional

Luke 2:2-10

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people.’

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Several years ago our church had finished a wonderful Christmas Eve service. Earlier there had been candles placed inside white lunch bags that lined the driveway leading to the church.

Joyce and I had volunteered to extinguish the candles after everyone had left. It had snowed a few days earlier and there were still a few inches on the ground. The temperature was below freezing when we crunched through the snow to the far end of the driveway. It was so quiet and beautiful that we were moved in our spirit with the beauty of God’s creation and the carol Silent Night.

The words of this well loved carol were written in 1818 by Josef Mohr after he had seen a play about the birth of Jesus. He was in a reflective mood and walked to a hill overlooking his village in the Austrian Alps. The view of the snow covering the village reminded him of a poem he had written a few years earlier. The poem was about the night the angel announced the birth of Jesus.

The next day he took the words of his poem to Franz Gruber, who had just composed a melody. He re-worked the melody to match the words to the poem Mohr had written and our beloved carol, “Silent Night” was born.

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SILENT NIGHT

Silent night, holy night
All is calm, all is bright
Round yon Virgin Mother and Child
Holy Infant so tender and mild
Sleep in heavenly peace
Sleep in heavenly peace

Silent night, holy night!
Shepherds quake at the sight
Glories stream from heaven afar
Heavenly hosts sing Alleluia!
Christ, the Savior is born
Christ, the Savior is born

Silent night, holy night
Son of God, love’s pure light
Radiant beams from Thy holy face
With the dawn of redeeming grace
Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth
Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth

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CLICK HERE to watch the Silent Night

Blessings dear hearts. May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!

– – – Pastor Cecil

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O COME, ALL YE FAITHFUL​​​!

Luke 2:15​ – Devotional

Luke 2:15

When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.’

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The beloved Carol “O Come, All Ye Faithful” was originally written in Latin (Adeste Fideles). The words were written by an Englishman, John Wade who had originally intended it as a hymn.

The music to “O Come, All Ye Faithful” was composed by fellow Englishman John Reading in the early 1700s. In 1841, Rev. Frederick Oakley revised the lyrics of “Adeste Fideles”.

While it would be an appropriate hymn at any time of the year, it has become a cherished Christmas Carol. Let us all come and adore, Christ the Lord.

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O Come, All Ye Faithful

1. O Come All Ye Faithful, joyful and triumphant,
O come ye, O come ye to Bethlehem.
Come and behold Him, born the King of Angels;
O come, let us adore Him, O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him, Christ the Lord.

2. O Sing, choirs of angels, sing in exultation,
Sing all that hear in heaven God’s holy word.
Give to our Father glory in the Highest;
O come, let us adore Him, O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him, Christ the Lord.

3. All Hail! Lord, we greet Thee, born this happy morning,
O Jesus! for evermore be Thy name adored.
Word of the Father, now in flesh appearing;
O come, let us adore Him, O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him, Christ the Lord.

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CLICK HERE to watch the O Come, All Ye Faithful.

Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!

– – – Pastor Cecil

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CAROL OF THE BELLS​​​!

Luke 1:30-33​ – Devotional

Luke 1:30-33

The angel said to her, “Don’t be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb and give birth to a son, and shall name him ‘Jesus.’ He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever. There will be no end to his Kingdom.

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Today we are just celebrating the birth of our Savior, Jesus, with a fun GloryScapes video. They are “words of good cheer . . . filling the air.”

CLICK HERE to watch the Carol of the Bells.

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Blessings dear hearts! Walk with God today and be a blessing.

– – – Pastor Cecil

P.S. – By the way, Russ Hansen, my friend and brother in the Lord who helps me with the technical aspects of The DailyEvotional, has a Christmas GloryScapes video program (about 2 hours in length) in HD (mp4 files) available on a USB Flash Memory Stick that you can enjoy this Christmas and in the future as a Christmas special for $29 (FREE S&H). They are only available for order until next Tuesday, December 10th. CLICK HERE if you are interested in ordering.

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STORMS!

Luke 8:23-25 – Devotional

Luke 8:23-25

As they sailed, he fell asleep. A squall came down on the lake, so that the boat was being swamped, and they were in great danger. The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Master, Master, we’re going to drown!” He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided, and all was calm. “Where is your faith?” he asked his disciples. In fear and amazement they asked one another, “Who is this? He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him.”

For a land lubber like me, a few wavelets cause me to head for shore. One day I was fishing with my dad on a lake in Idaho in his small aluminum boat that was not meant for any sort of extreme wave action. We were on the far side of the lake from our camp when the weather looked threatening. It was time to head for home!

About halfway across the lake the wind picked up and the water, which had been smooth and calm, now suddenly began to threaten. The waves grew to the point they were sloshing over the sides of our boat. We were fortunate to come under the protection of a piece of land that jutted out into the lake. We were saved! Yay!

I make no apologies for my fondness of watching the Weather Channel. The reports are primarily focused on the U.S., but when major storms threaten other parts of the globe they report them as well. As I have mentioned before, we have encountered storms in our lives.

I can say with confidence that you also have encountered storms, are going through them right now, or you will face them in the future. As His disciples have always done–call for Jesus to calm the storm!

Blessings dear hearts. Walk with God today and be a blessing!

– – – Pastor Cecil

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If you have watched The Sands of Eternity video above and prayed the prayer at the end, please go to https://PastorCecil.com/ and use the form on the webpage to let us know so we can send you follow up resources and/or send an email to pastorcecil@dailyevotional.com and let him know.

A LIGHT AND GLORY​!

Luke 2:30-32 – Devotional

Luke 2:30-32

“Lord, now allow Your servant depart in peace, according to Your word: For mine eyes have seen Your salvation, which You have prepared before the face of all people; A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the Glory of Your people Israel.”

Listen to today’s Message of the Week, “A Light and Glory!” by clicking above on the play button.

Blessings dear hearts. Walk with God today and be a blessing!

– – – Pastor Cecil

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If you have watched The Sands of Eternity video above and prayed the prayer at the end, please go to https://PastorCecil.com/ and use the form on the webpage to let us know so we can send you follow up resources and/or send an email to pastorcecil@dailyevotional.com and let him know.