Merry Christmas

Some of you have probably wondered what happened to my daily posts. Well, with everything going on during this time of year, I took a little break. Yet, I did want to send everyone a brief wish that you all have a merry Christmas. Here is a short post. i will continue with 1 Corinthians tomorrow.

At Christmas time, we remember the birth of our Savior. That evening in a field outside of Bethlehem, an angel appeared to some shepherds watching over their sheep.

“And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:10–11, ESV)

This was the greatest news that anyone could hear. The Savior came to earth to perfectly “seek and to save the lost.” All humanity was lost in the darkness of sin. There was none righteous, not even one. The “good news of great joy” the angel brought was that this baby born in Bethlehem was the sinless one who would save people from sin and its power. He did this by dying on a cross to pay the penalty of sin for us so we could have eternal life as a free gift. The only requirement was that people must receive the free gift by believing in Jesus Christ alone.

It is for this reason, that my wife and I rejoice in this season. We have this blessed hope that in spite of everything we see going on is this world, our eternal destiny is secured in Christ. It is our hope that everyone will reflect upon the true meaning of Christmas and experience the same joy that we have.

This has been a busy but blessed year. We had the opportunity to visit with our son, his wife, and our grandson in the Midwest. We also visited our daughter, her family and our grandchildren in December and had a wonderful time.

From a ministry standpoint, I think I have been busier now than when I was in the full-time pastorate. This year, I preached in two revivals. The Lord gave me opportunities to fill the pulpit for many of the pastors in the area. Moreover, I have continued to keep up the daily devotionals on www.renewingtheheart.org and have completed a book titled “The Seven Filters. Discerning thoughts and ideas to ensure they conform to God’s will.” I hope to publish it soon. I am still leading the Connect Group Ministry at our church and spent a lot of time writing a handbook on Critical and Controversial Doctrines. I also lead two of our Connect Groups. (If anyone is interested in starting or discussing a groups ministry in your church, send me a note. i would love to discuss this with you.)

My wife has also been very busy in the ministry here. I could not do everything without her prayer support and active help in organizing the groups. She certainly is a blessing, and our love continues to grow deeper every day.

With everything that is going on, you might ask, “You all are retired. Shouldn’t you be doing fun stuff?” The answer is yes. However, we have to schedule the fun stuff into our lives. I never thought retirement would be like this. We have taken time to walk on the beach and do some fishing. Fishing in the spring was very good and so was the summer deep sea trip that I went on.

In closing, I want to say how much you all mean to me. I appreciate your feedback. My hope and prayer is that you all have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Remember that Jesus is the reason for the season.

May God richly bless you all,

Steve Hankins