Friday Focus

Vol 6 No 10
December 7, 2007

Dear Families and Friends,

As we approach this holiday season, it’s sometimes very easy for us to remain aloof and untouched by the suffering that defines he existence of many families on this planet.

Holiday Help & Hope

I heard recently that if you have food in your refrigerator, clothes on your back, a roof overhead, and a place to sleep, you are richer than 75 percent of the people in this world! If you have any money in the bank and some in your wallet or some spare change in a bowl somewhere, you are among the top 8 percent of the world’s wealthy. That means 92 percent have less to live on than you do! If you have never experienced the danger of battle, the lonliness of imprisonment, the agony of torture or the pangs of starvation, you are ahead of 500 million other people in the world. If you can attend worship services at church without the fear of harassment, torture, or death, you are more blessed than three billion people in the world.

I’m not sharing these facts with you to make you feel guilty--but rather to make you uncomfortable. I hope these statistics motivate you and your family to do something for others during the holidays this year.

I hope something is beginning to stir in your soul as you read. What should you do about it? Where should you begin? What plans does God have for you and your family to help this broken world that we live in? There are several things your family can do for others this Christmas:

Pray for the men, women, and children in this world who do not have what you do.
Donate food to a local food bank. You can find collection bins at many local grocery stores.
Volunteer at a local shelter or soup kitchen on Christmas.
Have any extra coats or clothes lying around the house? Consider donating them to One Warm Coat, Goodwill, Salvation Army, Out of the Closet, etc.

While you or I may not change the whole world, we can change the world for someone. This Christmas, say “yes” to making a difference in the lives of others.

Find a way for your family to give back to those in need this holiday season.

Sincerely,
Rob Robinson

Robert J. Robinson, Principal
Teacher, Kindergarten/1st Grade
San Francisco Adventist School

They’re Expecting You

It was a Sunday morning. A bright and perky mom went in to wake her son and tell him it was time to get up, eat a bite of breakfast, and get dressed for church. "I'm not going!" he announced. There was a sullen tone in his voice.

"Hold on, young man!" she replied. "You know the Sunday routine in this house. Why don't you want to go to church today?"

"I'll give you two perfectly good reasons," he said. "First, nobody likes me down at that church. And, second, I don't like them either."

Rather than get exasperated with her boy, the wise mother sat down on the side of his bed. Rubbing his back very gently, she spoke in her most tender and comforting voice. "Now, sweetheart, you know you shouldn't feel that way," she began.

"But let me give you two good reasons why you just must get out of bed and go with us. First, you're 47 years old. And, second, you are the pastor."

Okay. It's an old story you've heard before. But it is marvelously adaptable. It can be Monday morning, the people in that office, and their boss. Or Wednesday morning, the nurses at the clinic, and the doctor. It even works for Friday morning, traffic court, and the judge. The reason it is such a flexible story that fits practically every work situation is that we all have those days or seasons.

When things are going well and everybody's happy with you, there is no problem getting up, going to work, and doing your job. But things don't always go well. And people aren't always happy with you. What then?

Have you noticed how many things are cyclical? A few good months of sales may be followed by a lean time for the company. Or maybe it's the mortgage business when interest rates are at historic lows; then the Federal Reserve starts inching rates up again. It even happens in family life. There are seasons of health and joy and laughter that seem to vanish overnight in the wake of a heart attack or auto accident or angry exchange. Does that mean the good times are gone forever? That it is right just to throw in the towel?

The Bible speaks of a virtue called perseverance. This noble trait is also known as holding on, staying steady at the task, and persistence. It deserves more credit than it gets. And it needs to be cultivated in everyone's character.

Somebody occasionally needs to remind us that tasks need doing because they are ours. We've made commitments with consequences. Others are depending on us. Once we carry through, the outcome can be trusted to the faithfulness and mercy of God.

So what’s on your agenda for today?

--Rubel Shelly

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