FIRST SUNDAY IN ADVENT

ALMIGHTY  God, give us grace that we may cast away the works of darkness, and put upon us the armour of light, now in the time of this mortal life, in which thy Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; that in the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge both the quick and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal, through him who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Ghost, now and ever. Amen.  (The collect from the Book of Common Prayer)

The Epistle

Rom 13:8-14

Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.
9For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
10Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.
11And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.
12The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.
13Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying.
14But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof. (KJV)

The Gospel

Matt 21:1-13

And when they drew nigh unto Jerusalem, and were come to Bethphage, unto the mount of Olives, then sent Jesus two disciples,
2Saying unto them, Go into the village over against you, and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose them, and bring them unto me.
3And if any man say ought unto you, ye shall say, The Lord hath need of them; and straightway he will send them.
4All this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying,
5Tell ye the daughter of Sion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an ass, and a colt the foal of an ass.
6And the disciples went, and did as Jesus commanded them,
7And brought the ass, and the colt, and put on them their clothes, and they set him thereon.
8And a very great multitude spread their garments in the way; others cut down branches from the trees, and strawed them in the way.
9And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna to the Son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest.
10And when he was come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, Who is this?
11And the multitude said, This is Jesus the prophet of Nazareth of Galilee.
12And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves,
13And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves. (KJV)

Gratitude

O MOST merciful Father, who of thy gracious goodness hast heard the devout prayers of thy Church, and turned our dearth and scarcity into plenty; We give thee humble thanks for this thy special bounty; beseeching thee to continue thy loving-kindness unto us, that our land may yield us her fruits of increase, to thy glory and our comfort; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The images are from Our Daily Bread. The prayer of thanksgiving is from The Book of Common Prayer.

Jimmy in California

This is the second week of our daughter Becky's, and grandson Jimmy's visit with us. They will return to Pennsylvania on Saturday. It has been quite a while since there was a baby in the house. It has been a long time since I changed a diaper, but Becky gave me a "refresher" course. It has been a wonderful experience for Sheila and me to meet this little fellow and spend quality time with him. Now that I think about it, this is the longest period of time we have spent with Becky in the last seven years.

2 1/2 month old James

Rebekah and Jimmy in the living room

Relaxing with Uncle Joseph on the front porch

Our Father Who Art In Heaven

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The creation of a family, with children, is the reason for all of God’s activity. This is how he intends to show his glory.

"[In Ephesians 1:3-6]…Christian experience is traced from its origin in the eternal purpose of God to its goal in the praise of the glory and grace of God – ‘He chose us in him [Christ] before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight … to the praise of his glorious grace.’ But what is God’s purpose in all this? ‘In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ.’ The creation of a family, with children, is the reason for all of God’s activity. This is how he intends to show his glory."

Sinclair Ferguson, Children of the Living God – pg. 4 – Banner of Truth Trust

Veterans Day

Craig Boyd 
U.S. Navy from 1966-1970
Petty officer 2nd class - Radarman

USS Goldsborough (DDG 20)
Home port: Pearl Harbor

Tanks of the 6th Armored -
Near Bastogne - Battle of the Bulge

My father:
Bernard Boyd _ U.S. Army
from 1942-1945
Technical Sergeant -
Radio operator
6th Armored Division - Europe

Tachikawa Air Base - Japan

My brother:
Keith Boyd
U.S. Air Force from 1967-1971
Sergeant-

AFSC - aircraft refueling
6100 Support Wing
Supply Squadron

  My son:
 Craig Robert Boyd

 U.S. Navy '87-'91
 USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70)
 USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71)

Veteran of Gulf War

Shepherd Boy

Our grand-son Jimmy was a Shepherd Boy for Halloween last night