December 10, 2022

Dear Road Church Friends,

This coming Sunday we celebrate Christmas Joy. I’ve read that Joy is good for us. Studies suggest that joyful people have less chance of having a heart attack, because joy lowers stress and therefore improves our chance of living longer. But, best of all, Joy makes life fun! They say, “happiness is due to chance, but joy is a choice.” Happiness comes from external circumstances. Joy wells up from a place deep inside of us. Scripture tells us our joy is our strength. The story of Jesus’ birth begins on a strong note of angelic joy, and concludes on the “exceeding great joy of the wisemen upon seeing the star over Bethlehem. Over the centuries the Christmas story has produced the most joyful music in the whole repertoire of Church music. I’ve always felt that the greatest songs in any Hymnal are those that celebrate Advent and Christmas. I regard “Joy to the World” as the greatest of all. The message this week is the story of Isaac Watts, the Christian minister who wrote this Hymn, inspired by Psalm 98.

SCRIPTURE:  Psalm 98     MESSAGE: “JOY TO THE WORLD!”

O sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvelous things. His right hand and his holy arm have gotten him victory. The Lord has made known his victory; he has revealed his vindication in the sight of the nations. He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness to the house of Israel. All the ends of the earth have seen the victory of our God. Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth; break forth into joyous song and sing praises. Sing praises to the Lord with the lyre, with the lyre and the sound of melody. With trumpets and the sound of the horn make a joyful noise before the King, the Lord. Let the sea roar, and all that fills it; the world and those who live in it. Let the floods clap their hands; let the hills sing together for joy at the presence of the Lord, for he is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with equity.

A CHRISTMAS PRAYER

We open here our treasures and our gifts,

And some of it is gold,

And some is frankincense,

And some is myrrh;

For some has come from plenty, Some from joy,

And some from deepest sorrow of the soul.

But thou, O God, dost know the gift of love,

Our pledge of peace, our promise of good .

Accept the gift and all the life we bring.

by Herbert H. Hines

 sings of Hope, Peace, Joy and Love to all.

Pastor Norm

This worship service on YouTube: https://youtu.be/qbO8uAab77I