Fresh Manna
by Pastor Tim Burt

Merry Christmas to you all from Renee and I. We pray that this coming year is your best ever and  that 2019 is marked by God’s presence, guidance, peace, joy, and blessing! God bless you richly and love from the Burts!  I will be back to writing January 2nd. 

Part One: “The Feeding Trough” by Pastor Tim Burt

Luke 2:4-5 (NIV) “So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David.  He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child.” 

Joseph and Mary loved each other. They were excited in their new engagement and dreamed of serving God together as one. They knew of the depth of their love for God and hoped that His blessing would be mighty upon their life because of their love for Him. But the looks, the whispering and gossip—it seemed as though the reputation of living righteously before the Lord all their life had been trashed in the eyes of others and they were glad to get away from it.

This journey was long and difficult for Mary. She was so pregnant and uncomfortable. Lord, if I am carrying your Son, is there anything special to help us that comes with this honor? It seemed to be the opposite. No room to stay anywhere. Lord, how can this be? You’ve led us here and I am about to give birth to your child. Surely you have a special place for this to happen. As they drew closer and were finishing this hard long journey to Bethlehem, they talked trying to make sense of what God was doing in their lives. It was so difficult to understand. Their minds could hardly comprehend Gabriel’s revelation concerning the virgin birth of the son of God.

Mary and Joseph were real people—human, like you and I. They loved God and yet they had to walk out their faith moment-by-moment, like you and I. And so they did. Although they were blessed and God was with them at every step, they had those moments like you and I do, where the thought comes, Lord, where are you in all this?  He was there. They had to constantly remind each other of this just like we need to. That is one of the greatest blessings of marriage and Christian friendship. They provide the opportunity needed to remind and encourage each other in the promises the Lord has made to us throughout His Word. Part Two tomorrow…

Psalms 28:7 NLT   “The Lord is my strength and shield. I trust Him with all my heart. He helps me…” 

In His Love,
Pastor Tim