December 18, 2000
Texas Baptist Forum
Waging peace
___Celebrating Advent offers us the opportunity to examine once again God's wondrous love as revealed in the birth, life and death of the Prince of Peace.
___God so loved the world he took on human form through his Son, Jesus, to show us via word and example how to live and love. Jesus lived a sinless life, but he loved sinful humankind so much he died a painful death to save us from our sins. But Jesus did notabandon us following his resurrection and ascension into heaven.
E-mail the editor at marvknox@baptiststandard.com
___God is still with us even 2,000 years after Jesus went to prepare an eternal home for us. With Jesus' ascension came God's return to earth by way of the Holy Spirit. God's infinite love--Holy Spirit--descends on us like a hovering dove. Jesus came to Earth to live among us and save us, then sent the Holy Spirit to live in us.
___The dove symbolizes the Holy Spirit, which descended upon Jesus at his baptism. Also, the dove, today, is the emblem of peace. God in us--Holy Spirit--calls us to be peacemakers, children of God. With God, all things are possible, even peace on earth and human goodwill.
___If we would begin to wage peace at home and abroad, Christmas in the year 2000 could be the best ever since Christ's birth. Only the Holy Spirit can lead us to the truth in all things.
___ Paul L. Whiteley Sr.
___ Louisville, Ky.
Shining light
___"Let your light shine before men ..." (Matthew 5:13).
___Jaime Mitchell cooks at a pancake place in Norcross, Ga. His cooking prowess, mild manner, (plus his combat boots, jeans and large earring), kept my wife, Pam, and me entertained long after we finished eating.
___As stressed-out waitresses barked their orders, Jaime calmly flipped omelets while arranging chicken strips and burgers on the crowded grille. Thanking them for each order, he intermittently washed dishes and answered the phone.
___I asked the cashier if he were the owner. "Oh, no," she replied. "He's just the cook. ... He's my boyfriend."
___"He's pretty good," I remarked.
___"Yeah. He don't know how good. He's the humblest man in the world."
___Although the Bread of Life is on our church menus, many don't ask for him. Perhaps we should take some tips from Jaime Mitchell.
___ Doug Fincher
___ San Augustine
Key missionaries
___I enjoyed your editorial "'Tis the season for foreign missions" (Dec. 4).
___You mentioned Mike and Marsha Key. They served 24 years with the Foreign Mission Board in Togo, West Africa. Their work with the Ife (eefay) people in Togo became a model of reaching an unreached people group. The success they had in planting churches is amazing.
___They now are retired from the mission field but not from the ministry. Mike is chaplain at Polly Ryan Hospital in Rosenberg, and Marsha is a teacher in the Richmond school district. They are active at First Baptist Church in Richmond. All three of their children are involved in ministries here in Texas and in Israel.
___How do I know all this? My daughter had the wisdom to marry Mike and Marsha's son, Micah.
___ Bill Blackburn
___ Kerrville
Jesus died for all
___I read my Baptist Standard today, and as usual I was saddened by what I read.
___Tonight, though, my heart is broken. I was reading in the opinion section about the ongoing battle between the Palestinians and Israelis in Israel (Dec. 11).
___I do not pretend to know the answer about the situation in Israel. I do know that when Jesus said, "For God so loved the world" he meant the Arabs also.
___To say the Palestinians were "only Arabs" is like the Nazis saying the Hebrews were "only Jews."
___Regardless of the situation, the people Jesus died for are dying on both sides.
___Who have we become?
___ Wayne Moore
___ Seagoville
Not good
___The article on Palestinian Christians (Nov. 27) was not good for several reasons.
___First, if you attack the police in any country and shoot at them, they will shoot back in order to preserve the peace. Look at what happened in 1993 at the Branch Davidian compound in Waco. There were people in tanks shooting Americans because they were shooting back.
___Second, the children of Israel were given the Promised Land several thousand years ago by God. It has swapped hands so many times that the theory that possession is 9/10ths of the law applies in this case. All of the oil-rich Arab nations that are friendly to the Palestinians are giving them guns and bombs to create unrest.
___Third, I have always heard it said that God will bless the nation that supports his chosen people. Some say that is the reason Germany lost World War II.
___ James M. Tilley
___ Ranger
Get printer-friendly version of this story
Send this story to a friend
Contents/ Masthead / Why We're Here / Links / Archive / E-mail us/ SUBSCRIBE!
