Introduction

Recently, I was reminiscing about the "good old days." I suppose what got me to thinking was a little comic I saw in another church's newsletter. In it, a little child came up to her elderly grandfather, who was sitting in his over-stuffed chair, and said, "Papa, what was so good about the 'good old days?'" His answer? "I was very young!" As I watch my little 1 ½ year old grand-daughter grow day by day, and watch her go through the house at top speed, I am reminded of what it was like to be young. I'm sure that when her Mom and Dad have twins after the first of the year, I'll feel a little older once again. In my reminiscing, I recalled that in elementary school, I would flip-flop from year to year in what I preferred the class and the teacher to call me—my real first name, Roy, or my nick-name, Skip. Some choice, huh? I didn't really think that "Skip" was too bad, especially after the other kids started to grow up and stopped using the monikers, "Skippy Peanut Butter," or just "Skippy."

The years that I chose to use "Roy" were not without challenge, either. You guessed it—I was always getting called "Roy Rogers." I suppose I could be thankful they didn't call me "Trigger." You remember Roy, Dale, and Trigger, don't you? They were all quite popular back in the 1950's, when I was a kid. Recently, I read about a family reminiscing about those years, and how it got awfully confusing, especially around Christmas time. Their son, John, was four years old, while little Mary was only two. John loved "The Roy Rogers Show," but he was equally fascinated by the story of Mary, Joseph, and the baby Jesus. For Christmas, John received a six-shooter and a holster, while his sister got a doll baby. A few days later, the mother overheard the boy say to his little sister, "Mary, swaddle that baby and jump on Trigger, 'cause we're headed for Bethlehem!" It wouldn't be long, and they would grow up, too—and go on!. At least back then, Jesus was a part of the picture—not so much today, huh?

Yes, I think the enormity of God's Gift in that manger is lost to many of us amidst the crowded malls, over-abundance of social events, overspending, overeating, or just plain fatigue from overextending ourselves. Please take time to join us daily, as we, at Christ our Rock Bible Church, go on a journey this Christmas—a reminiscing of growing and going! Be watching for it each day—no matter the circumstances we find ourselves in every day, God wants to use it to grow us, and then, go on in His grace. During the next two weeks, we will be scanning the Old Testament to see how it pointed to the Christmas call to grow and go. Following that, we will spend a week in the Gospels, seeing the same thing. And then, the week before Christmas, we will immerse ourselves in the story of growing and going—Christmas itself! It will be a very uplifting time—it is our prayer that you will be drawn into the heart of Christian growth, and then live every day going on in Him. In this, have a very Blessed Christmas!

~ Rev. Roy D. Warren, Jr., Pastor