Recently, Congress voted to give non-profits a huge holiday gift:
The charitable IRA rollover provision has been made permanent!
     This provision will allow those 70½ and older to donate as much as $100,000 of IRA account assets each year directly to one or more public charities.  The donations will count as part of the IRA owner's required annual payout.
    Remember that there is no income tax charitable deduction for the donated assets, but they don't count as income, either.
To qualify, the donation of IRA assets must be made directly to a charity, not a donor-advised fund or grant-making foundation.  The assets must be transferred directly to the charity from the IRA custodian, such as a bank or mutual fund.
     The law is retroactive to January.
Gifts for 2015 must be made by December 31.
     Please check with your tax attorney, accountant, consultant, or other tax professional for additional details.
[Editor's Comment: You may wish to consider giving your IRA to one or more of our church institutions of higher Christian education:

• Emmanuel College
• Holmes Bible College
• Southwestern Christian University
• Advantage College

Don't forget Falcon Children's Home.
Jesus said, "It is more blessed to give than to receive" (Acts 20:25).

President Ron White is a man of faith and prayer.
He has wisely chosen to lead Emmanuel College on his knees.
The Bible says, "The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much" (James 5:16, NKJV).

Let us join with Dr. Ron White in daily prayers for Emmanuel College and for Dr. White, our new president.

The Wise Men Opened Their Treasures
      "On coming to the house, they saw the Child with His mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped Him. Then they opened their treasures and presented Him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh" (Matthew 2:11, NIV).

Today's prayer topics:
    The wise men traveled the farthest and perhaps understood the most about the Christ-Child, His future, His sacrifice, and His provision for man. See how quickly they bowed in the presence of the Son of God and worshiped Him. 

• Pray we continually bow down and worship our Savior and Lord, never losing sight of what He has done and is doing for us.
• Pray we open the treasures of our hearts and give Him our hopes and dreams, our thoughts and ambitions, to offer them to Him for His use and purpose and for our good.

Thank you for praying.
 
Answered prayers:
    Thankful for the gifts of goodwill and the favor of God upon Emmanuel College that has led us miraculously through many challenges this past year.
    Thankful for those who have given financial resources during the last few weeks with gifts ranging from $10 to $1000 and culminating in a donation of $50,000 this week. What generous Christmas gifts to honor our Lord, Emmanuel, the God Who is with us!

Never give up unless its praise we give up to God; never give in except to give in to Him.
 
Ron White, Ed. D.
President
Emmanuel College
181 Springs Street
Franklin Springs, GA 30639
706.245.2803

The Scripture for this message is recorded in the Gospel of Luke, Chapter 1, and verses 26-38, NLT.

Hear the Word of the Lord:
26 In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, 27 to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David. 28 Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you![a]”
29 Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean. 30 “Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God! 31 You will conceive and give birth to a Son, and you will name Him Jesus. 32 He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give Him the throne of His ancestor David. 33 And He will reign over Israel[b] forever; His Kingdom will never end!”
34 Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.”
35 The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the Baby to be born will be holy, and He will be called the Son of God. 36 What’s more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age! People used to say she was barren, but she has conceived a son and is now in her sixth month. 37 For the Word of God will never fail.[c]” (For with God nothing shall be impossible)
38 Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.” (…be it unto me according to thy Word.) And then the angel left her.”
     During this time of the year, you will hear people talk about the "Magic of Christmas" or the "spirit of the season."  I've heard professed atheists say they love Christmas because there is just something special in the air at this time of the year.
     Let us be clear, there is something special about this season, but it has nothing to do with "magic."  It has everything to do with the miraculous.  We often speak of the wonderful teachings of Jesus and the amazing miracles of Jesus. The teachings are wonderful and the miracles are amazing, but the greatest miracle of all is the miracle of the incarnation--His birth. 
 
 The Apostle John gives it like this:  John 1:1-29 (NLT)
Christ, the Eternal Word
1 In the beginning the Word already existed.
    The Word was with God,
    and the Word was God.  (Ref: Gen. 1:1)
2 He existed in the beginning with God.
3 God created everything through Him,
    and nothing was created except through Him.
4 The Word gave life to everything that was created,[a]
    and His life brought light to everyone.
5 The light shines in the darkness,
    and the darkness can never extinguish it.[b]
14 So the Word became flesh[d] and made His home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness.[e] And we have seen His glory, the glory of the Father’s One and only Son.
 15 John testified about Him when he shouted to the crowds, “This is the One I was talking about when I said, ‘Someone is coming after me Who is far greater than I am, for He existed long before me.’”
 
Can we possibly wrap our minds around this miracle--the miracle of the Word becoming flesh--the Creator becoming the created--Eternal God becoming mortal man bound by time and space. 
 
     The greatest minds in the universe have wrestled with this "the greatest miracle of all" and have been found wanting.  All we can do is stand in wonderment and amazement and rejoice at this miracle of miracles.  For with God nothing is shall be impossible!
 
Now consider with me:
1.  Jesus was born Son of Man that we might be born the sons of God.
He came to His own people, and even they rejected Him. 12 But to all who believed Him and accepted Him, He gave the right to become sons (children) of God. 13 They are reborn—not with a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan, but a birth that comes from God.
The Pharisee Nicodemus, a scholar of the law, realized there was something different about Jesus.  He said, "No man can do the miracles you do unless God is with him."  To which Jesus replied, "Except a man be born again, he can not see the Kingdom of God"  (John 3:3).  Later Jesus told Nicodemus, "Marvel not that I say unto you, you must be born again."
 
The Apostle Paul declares, "If any man be in Christ, he is a new creation (creature), old things have passed away and behold, all things are made new" (2 Corinthians 5:17).
 
Again Paul explains this great change--I like to call it the great exchange--when he proclaimed the grace of God so freely given in Jesus Christ: 
2 Corinthians 8:9 (NLT)  9 You know the generous grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, so that by His poverty He could make you rich.
 
The Son of God came from the riches of Heaven's glory to the poverty of a cattle stall and was laid in a feed trough.  Why?  In order that the Son of God could become the Son of man, and rescue us the sons of men from sin and destruction.  Taking our sin as His own exchanging our poverty for His riches.  He who knew no sin became sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God in Christ.  What an exchange. What a miracle!

The old hymn declares:  He’s a Savior to be proud of bless His Name.  For to rescue me from ruin Jesus came.  On the cross He died for me, paid sins debt and now I’m free.  He’s a Savior to be proud of, bless His Name.
        Jesus was born Son of Man that we might be born the sons of God.  
 
 2. Jesus was born the Son of man that He might die.
Jesus is the only person ever born for the express purpose of dying.
 "For God so love the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life."  I will say something that may shock you--"For God so love the world that He gave His only begotten Son (to die a cruel death on a Roman cross)... You say, the Bible does not state that, you are right, but that's what John 3:16 is all about.

I never will forget a Christmas sermon I preached in my early ministry.  In essence, I declared that the lovely Baby in the manger is One and the same Man Who died on a cross. I don’t recall the exact words I used, but I’m sure I gave a rather vivid picture of Calvary and all it’s suffering. One of my more sensitive members, met me at the door horrified, rebuking me for talking about the cross and Jesus dying for our sins on the Sunday before Christmas.  I think she used these words, "How dare you....." 
 
One pastor made a manger and put crucifix in it.  He covered the manger with a baby blanket.  He had his congregation come by one by one and look in the manger.  When they removed the blanket they saw the crucifix—a stark reminder why Jesus came as a Baby.  I wish I had thought of that.  I'm sure my member would have fainted dead away.  The smelling salts would have been needed for sure.

It is not too bold to state that every step Jesus made was one step closer to the cross!  Yes, Jesus was born to die.
Jesus said, "For even the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve others and to give His life as a ransom for many."  Mankind was enslaved in sin and needed a Redeemer—Someone was needed to pay the price to free us from the bondage of sin.  Jesus did that.  He satisfied Divine justice paying for our sin.  Jesus came to seek and to save those who are lost.

But the Bethlehem story doesn't end at the manger on a cross.  Jesus standing in the middle of a cemetery made this glorious declaration, "I am the resurrection and the life, he that believeth in Me though he were dead, yet shall live: and whosoever lives and believes in Me shall never die."  Then Jesus asked this penetrating question, "Do you believe this?"  Because He lives we can each experience a Christmas Miracle.
 
May I ask you a question?  Have you received your Christmas Miracle?  Have you been born again (from above)?  Can you say with confidence that you are a son (child) of God?

How can you have this Miracle happen in you life you ask?
 
That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus Christ, and shall believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved (Romans 10:9).

Susan Best in her poem, “A Miracle of Dreams,” gets to the very  heart of the miracle power of God to redeem and restore.
 
                             A  MIRACLE OF DREAMS
That night when in Judean skies the mystic star dispensed it’s light,
A blind man moved in his sleep, and dreamed that he had sight!
 
That night when shepherds heard the song of Heaven’s angelic choiring near,
     A deaf man stirred in slumber’s spell and dreamed that he could         
                                                  hear!
        That night when in the cattle stall slept child and mother cheek by jowl,
A cripple turned his twisted limbs, and dreamed that he was whole!
 
That night when o’er the newborn babe the tender Mary rose to lean,
A loathsome leper smiled in sleep, and dreamed that he was clean!
 
That night when to the mother’s breast the little King was held secure,
A harlot slept a peaceful sleep, and dreamed that she was pure!

That night when in the manger laid the Son of God Who came to save
A man moved in the sleep of death, and dreamed there was no grave!

[Editor's comment: Wesley Russ is one of the best preachers in the Pentecostal Holiness Church. I know, I have heard him preach. When I was in my first pastorate at the Brownville Pentecostal Holiness Church near Evergreen, Alabama in Conecuh County, I requested a preacher and a quartet to be sent from Emmanuel College to preach a weekend revival. They sent Wesley Russ. He was simply outstanding and I knew then he was a man born to preach. When I was called to go into the Air Force as an IPHC chaplain to fill the vacancy of Chaplain, Colonel, Eugene Myers, I recommended to my church board and congregation that they contact Wesely Russ. He came, and shortlly afterwards married the former Miss Janice Robinson, a graduate of Emmanuel College and a native of Washington, DC. They served that church faithfully for five years and took it to the next higher level.
     From Brownville, Wesley and Janice went to Gadsen, AL to plant a church and to continue his education at Jacksonville State University. Meanwhile, Robert L. Rex asked Wesley to come to Atlanta to start a church there. He did and built the Church of the Comforter. After successfully pastoring that church for several years, he was called to pastor the College Park Church in Maryland, Maranatha Fellowship. God gave him a multi-cultural church with people from countries all over the world. His church became a leader in the IPHC in giving to World Missions, and his congregation gave more per capita than any other church in the denomination.  As I recall Wesley pastored that church for over 29 years.
     Wesley is a church planter and has planted churches in Russia, Romania, and the Philippines.
     Meanwhile, Wesley was elected to be the superintendent of the Mid-Atlantic Conference. He mentored and trained Jamil Khan to be his successor at Maranatha Fellowship. Now, Jamil is a Navy chaplain. He just completed a two-year tour in San Diego, CA, and now is a chaplain to the Marines at Camp Lejuene, NC.
     Although Wesley Russ is retired as the conference superintendent he is open to fill pulpits, preach revivals, and minister on special occasions. He is a gifted communicator and knows how to stir the heart and inform the mind. He preaches with an anointing from the Holy Spirit. If you wish to communicate with Wesley Russ write me at: hugh@hughsnews.com, and I will connect you with Wesley.]

Numbers 6:22-27
And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying: 23 "Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, 'This is the way you shall bless the children of Israel. Say to them: 

24 "The LORD bless you and keep you; 
25 The LORD make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you; 
26 The LORD lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace."' 

27 "So they shall put My Name on the children of Israel, and I will bless them." 
NKJV

     It is true that children often say some of the funniest things. I think children today are more intelligent than any previous time in my history.
     I received this true story from one of our subscribers who was one of Stephanie's many friends. She is a wonderful person and has several children. 
Here is a story she sent on Christmas Eve, Eve:
     Hey Hugh,
     My son said something funny I think your readers may find humorous.

Hey Hugh,
My son said something funny I think your readers may find humorous.
     On a recent return visit to my husband's family we visited many relatives. We visited my husband's father whose dog was sick and had eye medicine he kept telling the kids to avoid when petting. After leaving, we went to visit my husband's grandmother who had recently been transferred to a nearby nursing home. While there, we met her roommate and several of the staff who made her stay there as pleasant as possible. 
     As we leave, my husband thinking of the dog medicine begins to instruct our children, "Now kids, I want you to wash your hands when we get back to the hotel because . . ."
     Before he can finish, my youngest says, "Yes, because we've been hugging old ladies."
​

     One of the many joys I have as the editor of Hugh's News is to announce special events and significant occasions in the lives of my subscribers.
Stan and Eve Oliver met at Emmanuel College. Both of them were in the 10th grade when Emmanuel had a high school. That was when Emmanuel College was a Junior College.
     In those days Stan would hitch hike to Williamston, NC to court Eve. Stan said that they dated for four years before he could muster up the courage to ask her to marry him.
     I enrolled in Emmanuel College in the fall of 1952. I remember that Stan and Eve were a beautiful couple. It seemed then that they were destined to marry. Eve was a beautiful young Christian lady, and Stan was a handsome Christian young man. Stan was probably the most athletic man on campus. In those days we played touch football. Stan could run, pass, and design plays that produced yards and eventually touch downs. It is little wonder his children were athletic.
     Stan and Eve had a church wedding on Christmas day in 1955.  The Rev. Mr. Joe Russell performed their wedding ceremony. He was noted for knowing how to tie the knot. Their marriage has not only survived but thrived through 60 years. What an example they are to all of us in displaying enduring love, loyalty, dedication, commitment, and knowing how to cherish each other in sickness and in health, in the good times and the tough times. What a sterling example they are to all of an enduring relationship based on their faith in Jesus Christ and faithfulness to attend and be active in their church.
   God blessed Stan and Eve with three children: Debbie Maxwell and Teacher; Stan, Jr. who is a successful businessman and owns his own business; Joe who is a retired Major League Baseball player (now a coach in the Red Sox Baseball organization. Joe played in a World Series as the catcher for the Cincinnati Reds.
     God has blessed Stan and Eve with 12 grands and 6 great grands.  
     Stan and Eve owned Oliver Insurance Company for 35 years.  God Blessed them with a good career.  This is was Independent Insurance Agency.  They insured churches and church related risks.
     Stan Oliver is one of the best bass soloists in the known world. He has directed church choirs and has sung in quartets. Eve also sings and has a great voice. However, she no longer sings solos.
     I know  you want to join Melvine and me in wishing Stan and Eve Oliver a happy 60th Wedding Anniversary on Christmas Day.
     If you would like to contact them you may call them at 706-245-5751.
     Or, you may write them at:
     
     Stan and Eve Oliver
     118 Cobb Drive
     Royston, GA 30662

 

     Campus Crusade for Christ/CRU co-founder Vonette Bright died two days before Christmas. She was 89.  
Earlier this month, her family released a statement saying Bright was close to the end: "Her prayer is that she will simply become weaker, fall asleep and wake up in the arms of Jesus," they said. 
     Bright died from complications from acute leukemia. 
"In all of life, she celebrated well and boldly invited others into the kingdom to celebrate with her," reads the CRU website. "Thus Vonette was as at home in Buckingham Palace as in a meeting of the Christian Motorcycle Association—where she served as an honorary chair. Cab drivers and U.S. presidents were treated equally: 'Oh, honey,' she'd say as she greeted each one." 
     Bright and her husband, Bill, who died in 2003, founded Campus Crusade—later called CRU—in 1951, Charisma News previously reported. 
Campus Crusade for Christ is a worldwide, interdenominational Christian evangelism and discipleship organization. Since its founding, Campus Crusade for Christ has become one of the largest Christian organizations in the world. The organization currently is served by more than 25,000 full-time and part-time team members in 191 countries around the world and is comprised of 29 different ministries. 
     Vonette received numerous honors and recognitions, as well as six honorary doctorate degrees from universities such as Colorado Christian, Taylor University and Liberty University, according to her biography. 
     She founded the Great Commission Prayer Crusade and National Prayer Committee in 1972, according to the website. She served as chair of the Bright Media Foundation, chair emeritus of the National Prayer Committee and honorary co-chair of the Mission American Coalition.  

Two neighborhood dogs were sitting in the back of a pickup on a summer day.

"I can't figure it out "said the first dog.

"I'm in perfect shape, I run around all day getting lots of exercise. I eat well and sleep a lot but I'm always anxious."

"About what?" the other dog asked.

"I don't know the first dog said."

"Well, why don't you go to a psychiatrist?"

The first dog looked pained; "How can I? I'm not allowed on the couch!"

It's not too late to send Birthday Greetings to my Parents, Hugh and Melvine Morgan.

Dear friends and readers of Hugh's News,
My parents, Hugh and Melvine Morgan, are overjoyed by your response to my appeal to send Birthday Cards to them.
     Many of you have enclosed a contribution to Hugh's News, Inc., the electronic newsletter, that my Dad has published now for 18 years. He is now 83 years old and my mom is two years younger. They have worked together as a team now for over 55 years in ministry. Dad could not put together these newsletters without my mom's encouragement and faithful support.
     My dad looks forward to working on a Hugh's News daily. He has opened every Birthday and Christmas card you have sent. He and mom have read every card, and some have sent photos of their children and families, as well as newsletters of what is happening in their lives. They take the time to pray for their friends and their families after reading the cards and newsletters.
     In order to include you in this birthday and Christmas card greeting before the end of 2015, I believe this opportunity to share with my parents should be extended to the end of December. We know you are busy as we are getting prepared for Christmas Day.
     Your gifts or contributions are tax deductible, and now is a good time to give at the end of the year to maximize your ability to enjoy a tax exemption. Hugh's News is incorporated as a non-profit Christian corporation, and Hugh's News, Inc. has a 501 (C) (3) IRS Tax Exempt Status.
     When writing a check or money order please make it out to Hugh's News, Inc., and send your letter to:
          Hugh and Melvine Morgan
          c/o Hugh's News, Inc,
          17 Sweet Apple Lane
          Winder, GA 30680-3349
       (Please include your email address so my dad can sent you a "thank you" via an email response.)
     You may also give via a Credit Card, too. Please look for the icons that are visible in this newsletter or click on Support Our Mission.
     The goal my father has set for this fund drive is $7,000, We are over half way there. We believe we can reach that goal by December 31. Thank you in advance for your giving to Hugh's News, Inc.

Which of us has not failed miserably at some endeavor or at least believed we had?
     Consequences have a way of blowing things out of all proportion and if we are not very careful, we will abandon all hope of success and set aside projects having true or even life changing potential. 
     Failure does not necessarily imply we did it wrong or that the idea was not a good one.
Some things simply cannot be explained and negative results just mean we are to back up and take another run at it. Even The Almighty God was willing to begin again and again . . . and again! I am well aware our God does not, nor has He ever failed, but He has certainly made it clear from the beginning, He is willing to give us every opportunity to succeed.
     Adam was the image of the awesome God who made him
Eve was true perfection without doubt
     The serpent was as crafty as a serpent’s known to be
And their combination got them all thrown out
     The garden was a place of matchless beauty
        The tree of life held promise of success
          But man the mighty master of creation
              Fell miserably and failed to pass the test.

     Almost a thousand years tumbled by as man struggled in the coils of the dragon, and as desperate and wicked as humanity became, there were many who escaped his grasp and rose like stars in a dark sky to proclaim aloud the promise of God, “the serpent crusher will come!” Then came Noah. Somewhere around his eightieth birthday his great grandfather Enoch was translated to heaven. Is it possible that he, like the disciples on the Mount of Olives, was witness to that departure? Whatever his hope or its source, he knew God was still on track to fulfill the promise.
     Faithful to The Lord’s commands he preached across the years. And all his friends and neighbors heard him shout “I can see a flood on the horizon” They laughed and mocked and simply drove him out.
     But rain did fall and mankind died "Neath judgments" towering waves--While Noah rose above the storm and humankind was saved.
So God, “unwilling that any should perish, but that all men come to repentance,” revived a world convulsed by the consequences of sin. One after the other His champions charged the darkness, taking ground for God, often staining with their blood the very ground they gained. And though the “road is broad and the gate is wide that leads to destruction and many there be that go in there at” there are millions who have chosen the “narrow way with its strait gate” and are entering into life. And, the serpent is wreathing in pain from the myriad wounds inflicted by God’s warriors who look with confidence at his crushed and bloodied head.
     The final thrust of heaven’s sword was made from Calvary’s cross. As Jesus died and darkness fell, though some felt all was lost. Then Christ revived and light renewed and death itself was slain. Thus He has given hope to all; success in Jesus’ Name.
     You see then, your stumbling feet are not destined to fail. God, who has made every success possible, is on your side. When the odds seem never to favor you, you must rise up in faith for nothing is impossible to them that believe. Remember, all things work TOGETHER for good, to those who love God, who are the called according to His purpose.
     Start again. Get up and start again. You are destined for greatness and though you may not see the how, why or when, He is your strength . . . so my friend, it’s time . . . to start again!

[Editor's comments: Ronald Gadberry has accepted my invitation for him to be a Contributing Writer for Hugh's News. He is an ordained minister of the International Pentecostal Holiness Church, and a member of the New Horizons Ministries. He is offering his services as an evangelist and singer to pastors of churches who are now preparing their 2016 revival and preaching mission services.
     You may contact Ronald Gadberry at the following address and/or telephone numbers:
The Rev. Mr. Ronald Gadberry
509 Cottage Park Lane
Shawnee, Oklahoma 74804
1-405-834-0479 / 1-405-808-2937
He will do your church good.]

Eight wonderful gifts that don't cost a cent!
1. The gift of listening
2. The gift of affection
3. The gift of laughter
4. The gift of a written note
5. The gift of a compliment
6. The gift of favor
7. The gift of solitude
8. The gift of a cheerful disposition
Let me add a ninth one to this list:
9. The gift of presence
     At this Christmas season don't forget that when you go anywhere, you as a Christian bring Jesus Christ with you because He lives within you. Your presence in any situation will make a difference.

"You are a king, then!" said Pilate.
Jesus answered, "You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I WAS BORN and came into the world is to testify to the truth.  
Everyone on the side of truth listens to Me" (John 18:37).
******
9 Now Pilate wrote a title and put it on the cross. And the writing
JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS. 
20 Then many of the Jews read this title, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, Greek, and Latin. 
21 Therefore the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate, "Do not write, 'The King of the Jews,' but, 'He said, "I am the King of the Jews."'" 
22 Pilate answered, "What I have written, I have written." 
(John 19:19-22, NKJV).

My parents, Hugh and Melvine Morgan, have been overjoyed by your response to my appeal to send Birthday Cards to them.
     Many of you have enclosed a contribution to Hugh's News, Inc., the electronic newsletter, that my Dad has published now for 18 years. My dad is now 83 years old and my mom is two years younger. They have worked together as a team now for over 55 years in ministry. Dad could not put together these newsletters without her faithful support.
     My dad looks forward to working on a Hugh's News daily. He has opened every Birthday and Christmas card you have sent. He and mom read every card, and some have sent photos of their children and families, as well as newsletters of what is happening in their lives. They take the time to pray over their friends and their families after reading the cards and newsletters.
     In order to include you in this birthday and Christmas card greeting, I believe this opportunity to share with my parents should be extended to the end of December. We know you are busy as we are getting prepared for Christmas Day.
     Your gifts or contributions are tax deductible, and now is a good time to give at the end of the year to maximize your ability to enjoy a tax exemption. Hugh's News is incorporated as a non-profit Christian corporation, and Hugh's News, Inc. has a 501 (C) (3) IRS Tax Exempt Status.
     When writing a check or money order please make it out to Hugh's News, Inc., and send your letter to:
          Hugh and Melvine Morgan
          c/o Hugh's News, Inc,
          17 Sweet Apple Lane
          Winder, GA 30680-3349
           
          (Please include your email address so my dad can sent you a "thank you" via an email response.)
     You may give via Credit Card, too. Please look for the icons that are visible in this newsletter or click on Support Our Mission.
     The goal my father has set for this fund drive is $7,000, We believe we can reach that goal by December 31. Thank you in advance for your giving to Hugh's News, Inc.

       One never knows what a new day will bring forth in life. All of us like surprises, and God gave Melvine, Greg and me a wonderful surprise visit from Retired Air Force Chaplain Bob and Janice Lynch, as well as Janice's father, Dan Byus.
     It happened Saturday morning, December 19. It was one of those leisurely Saturday mornings. We were in our pajamas. Melvine had prepared country ham biscuits and a separate biscuit with butter and peach preserves from the Amish country. We were watching television to see what was going on in the world.
     The door bell ran. Melvine was the closet to the front door and she responded to the door bell. She cracked the door open slightly and to our wonderful surprise we heard an ensemble of three adults singing, "We Wish You a Merry Christmas." Bob and Janice are great singers and have blessed Air Force congregations in the states and around the world with their anointed and gifted singing.
     Chaplain, Major General, Cecil Richardson, Chief of Air Force Chaplains, after hearing them sing and the power of the Holy Spirit fell upon us gathered for our Chaplains, Spouses, and Friends Retreat at Founders Inn, Virginia Beach, VA, in the summer of 2011, told me as we ate lunch in the restaurant in the Inn, "Hugh, I never knew what tremendous talent Bob and Janice have. What a blessing they are to us, and I know they have been to many chapel congregations during Bob's career."  Cecil Richardson is an ordained minister of the Assemblies of God.
     I am so glad I invited our daughter, Stephanie, to come to the retreat with us. She got to meet all the chaplains and their spouses, and she bonded with Janice Lynch, as well as Dr. Jan Richardson, an educator and reading consultant for elementary school children, and wife of Cecil Richardson..
     We have known Bob and Janice for decades. We have visited them at several of their assignments while they were on active duty, like Barksdale AFB, Louisiana, Andrews AFB, Maryland, and Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia.
     All of their children are Christians and are serving the Lord in ministry.
     What a delight it was to see Dan Byus. He is an amazing man. He has served the Pentecostal Holiness Church as a pastor and missionary to 
Alaska. He is a Godly man, and when he speaks he speaks with Biblical authority and anointing. He was sharing with us about the glory of God and it was like drinking a cup of cool, sweet water freshly drawn from a deep well. Dan's wife, Ruth, passed away a few years ago, and is buried in the National Cemetery at Quantico Marine Base, VA. She was a beautiful Christian lady, a gifted pianist and singer.
     The Lynches were on their way to Callaway Gardens for a wedding rehearsal and dinner for a relative. Following those events they were to take a carriage ride to see the beautiful lights at the Gardens. To view the Fantasy in Lights Click Here on this hyperlink I have prepared for you.
     Bob and Janice reside in Fredericksburg, VA in a gated community.
​

     On Monday, December 21, 2015, I received an email from a faithful and loyal supported of Hugh's News. He is a pastor of one of our IPHC churches in the North Carolina Conference. He is Bobby Williams.
     Here is what Bobby wrote:
"Dear Hugh, Please pray for me. A couple of Sunday's ago as I was getting ready to go to church, I was stricken with a significant stroke. The Lord protected me from having major neurological damage. However I have no left peripheral vision and this makes reading and typing almost impossible. I am having severe headaches. Please pray and ask my many friends to join you. Bobby Williams"

     Several years ago Bobby's home burned. We told you about it in Hugh's News, and many of you came to the rescue to help Bobby and his wife recover their loss and keep on serving the Lord.  Since then, Bobby sends a check monthly to Hugh's News, Inc. to support this ministry. He has never forgotten the help you all gave him in his time of need.
     We believe that when Jesus gave the Great Commission He not only commanded His disciples to preach the Gospel, but to heal the sick as well. Now is the time for us to obey that command and see the sick healed. Join mr in praying for Bobby Williams's healing.
     Last week I was talking with Jon Potter, pastor of our Pentecostal Holiness Church in Birmingham, by phone, and by the way they are meeting in the church facility that the Lord help me to build with the giving of His people, in Hoover just off the Alford Exit on I-65 South. Jon reminded me of this Scripture:

Romans 15:17-22

17 Therefore I glory in Christ Jesus in my service to God. 18 I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me in leading the Gentiles to obey God by what I have said and done- 19 by the power of signs and miracles, through the power of the Spirit. So from Jerusalem all the way around to Illyricum, I have fully proclaimed the Gospel of Christ. 20 It has always been my ambition to preach the Gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else's foundation. 21 Rather, as it is written: 

"Those who were not told about Him will see, 
and those who have not heard will understand."   

22 This is why I have often been hindered from coming to you. 
NIV

     

26 In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, 27 to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David. 28 Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you![a]”
29 Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean. 30 “Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God! 31 You will conceive and give birth to a Son, and you will name Him Jesus. 32 He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give Him the throne of His ancestor David. 33 And He will reign over Israel[b] forever; His Kingdom will never end!”
34 Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.”
35 The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the Baby to be born will be holy, and He will be called the Son of God. 36 What’s more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age! People used to say she was barren, but she has conceived a son and is now in her sixth month. 37 For the Word of God will never fail.[c]” (For with God nothing shall be impossible)
38 Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.” (…be it unto me according to thy Word.) And then the angel left her.”
During this time of the year, you will hear people talk about the "Magic of Christmas" or the "spirit of the season."  I've heard professed atheists say they love Christmas because there is just something special in the air at this time of the year.
 
Let us be clear, there is something special about this season, but it has nothing to do with "magic."  It has everything to do with the miraculous.  We often speak of the wonderful teachings of Jesus and the amazing miracles of Jesus. The teachings are wonderful and the miracles are amazing, but the greatest miracle of all is the miracle of the incarnation--His birth. 
 
 The Apostle John gives it like this:  John 1:1-29 (NLT)
Christ, the Eternal Word1 In the beginning the Word already existed.
    The Word was with God,
    and the Word was God.  (Ref: Gen. 1:1)
2 He existed in the beginning with God.
3 God created everything through Him,
    and nothing was created except through Him.
4 The Word gave life to everything that was created,[a]
    and His life brought light to everyone.
5 The light shines in the darkness,
    and the darkness can never extinguish it.[b]
14 So the Word became flesh[d] and made His home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness.[e] And we have seen His glory, the glory of the Father’s One and only Son.
 15 John testified about Him when he shouted to the crowds, “This is the One I was talking about when I said, ‘Someone is coming after me Who is far greater than I am, for He existed long before me.’”
 
Can we possibly wrap our minds around this miracle--the miracle of the Word becoming flesh--the Creator becoming the created--Eternal God becoming mortal man bound by time and space. 
 
The greatest minds in the universe have wrestled with this "the greatest miracle of all" and have been found wanting.  All we can do is stand in wonderment and amazement and rejoice at this miracle of miracles.  For with God nothing is shall be impossible!
 
Now consider with me:
1.  Jesus was born Son of Man that we might be born the sons of God.
He came to His own people, and even they rejected Him. 12 But to all who believed Him and accepted Him, He gave the right to become sons (children) of God. 13 They are reborn—not with a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan, but a birth that comes from God.
The Pharisee Nicodemus, a scholar of the law, realized there was something different about Jesus.  He said, "No man can do the miracles you do unless God is with him."  To which Jesus replied, "Except a man be born again, he can not see the Kingdom of God"  (John 3:3).  Later Jesus told Nicodemus, "Marvel not that I say unto you, you must be born again.
 
The Apostle Paul declares, "If any man be in Christ, he is a new creation (creature), old things have passed away and behold, all things are made new" (2 Corinthians 5:17).
 
Again Paul explains this great change--I like to call it the great exchange--when he proclaimed the grace of God so freely given in Jesus Christ: 
2 Corinthians 8:9 (NLT) 9 You know the generous grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, so that by His poverty He could make you rich.
 
The Son of God came from the riches of Heaven's glory to the poverty of a cattle stall and was laid in a feed trough.  Why?  In order that the Son of God could become the Son of man, and rescue us the sons of men from sin and destruction.  Taking our sin as His own exchanging our poverty for His riches.  He who knew no sin became sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God in Christ.  What an exchange. What a miracle!

The old hymn declares:  He’s a Savior to be proud of bless His Name.  For to rescue me from ruin Jesus came.  On the cross He died for me, paid sins debt and now I’m free.  He’s a Savior to be proud of, bless His Name.
        Jesus was born Son of Man that we might be born the sons of God.  
 
 2. Jesus was born the Son of man that He might die.
Jesus is the only person ever born for the express purpose of dying.
 "For God so love the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life."  I will say something that may shock you--"For God so love the world that He gave His only begotten Son (to die a cruel death on a Roman cross)... You say, the Bible does not state that, you are right, but that's what John 3:16 is all about.

I never will forget a Christmas sermon I preached in my early ministry.  In essence, I declared that the lovely Baby in the manger is One and the same Man Who died on a cross. I don’t recall the exact words I used, but I’m sure I gave a rather vivid picture of Calvary and all it’s suffering. One of my more sensitive members, met me at the door horrified, rebuking me for talking about the cross and Jesus dying for our sins on the Sunday before Christmas.  I think she used these words, "How dare you....." 
 
One pastor made a manger and put crucifix in it.  He covered the manger with a baby blanket.  He had his congregation come by one by one and look in the manger.  When they removed the blanket they saw the crucifix—a stark reminder why Jesus came as a Baby.  I wish I had thought of that.  I'm sure my member would have fainted dead away.  The smelling salts would have been needed for sure.

It is not too bold to state that every step Jesus made was one step closer to the cross!  Yes, Jesus was born to die.
Jesus said, "For even the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve others and to give His life as a ransom for many."  Mankind was enslaved in sin and needed a Redeemer—Someone was needed to pay the price to free us from the bondage of sin.  Jesus did that.  He satisfied Divine justice paying for our sin.  Jesus came to seek and to save those who are lost.

But the Bethlehem story doesn't end at the manger on a cross.  Jesus standing in the middle of a cemetery made this glorious declaration, "I am the resurrection and the life, he that believeth in Me though he were dead, yet shall live: and whosoever lives and believes in Me shall never die."  Then Jesus asked this penetrating question, "Do you believe this?"  Because He lives we can each experience a Christmas Miracle.
 
May I ask you a question?  Have you received your Christmas Miracle?  Have you been born again (from above)?  Can you say with confidence that you are a son (child) of God?

How can you have this Miracle happen in you life you ask?
 
That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus Christ, and shall believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved (Romans 10:9).

Susan Best in her poem, “A Miracle of Dreams,” gets to the very  heart of the miracle power of God to redeem and restore.
 
                             A  MIRACLE OF DREAMS
That night when in Judean skies the mystic star dispensed it’s light,
A blind man moved in his sleep, and dreamed that he had sight!
 
That night when shepherds heard the song of Heaven’s angelic choiring near,
     A deaf man stirred in slumber’s spell and dreamed that he could         
                                                  hear!
        That night when in the cattle stall slept child and mother cheek by jowl,
A cripple turned his twisted limbs, and dreamed that he was whole!
 
That night when o’er the newborn babe the tender Mary rose to lean,
A loathsome leper smiled in sleep, and dreamed that he was clean!
 
That night when to the mother’s breast the little King was held secure,
A harlot slept a peaceful sleep, and dreamed that she was pure!

That night when in the manger laid the Son of God Who came to save
A man moved in the sleep of death, and dreamed there was no grave!

[Editor's comment: Wesley Russ is one of the best preachers in the Pentecostal Holiness Church. I know, I have heard him preach. When I was in my first pastorate at the Brownville Pentecostal Holiness Church near Evergreen, Alabama in Conecuh County, I requested a preacher and a quartet to be sent from Emmanuel College to preach a weekend revival. They sent Wesley Russ. He was simply outstanding and I knew then he was a man born to preach. When I was called to go into the Air Force as an IPHC chaplain to fill the vacancy of Chaplain, Colonel, Eugene Myers, I recommended to my church board and congregation that they contact Wesely Russ. He came, and shortlly afterwards married the former Miss Janice Robinson, a graduate of Emmanuel College and a native of Washington, DC. They served that church faithfully for five years and took it to the next higher level.
     From Brownville, Wesley and Janice went to Gadsen, AL to plant a church and to continue his education at Jacksonville State University. Meanwhile, Robert L. Rex asked Wesley to come to Atlanta to start a church there. He did and built the Church of the Comforter. After successfully pastoring that church for several years, he was called to pastor the College Park Church in Maryland, Maranatha Fellowship. God gave him a multi-cultural church with people from countries all over the world. His church became a leader in the IPHC in giving to World Missions, and his congregation gave more per capita than any other church in the denomination.  As I recall Wesley pastored that church for over 29 years.
     Wesley is a church planter and has planted churches in Russia, Romania, and the Philippines.
     Meanwhile, Wesley was elected to be the superintendent of the Mid-Atlantic Conference. He mentored and trained Jamil Khan to be his successor at Maranatha Fellowship. Now, Jamil is a Navy chaplain. He just completed a two-year tour in San Diego, CA, and now is a chaplain to the Marines at Camp Lejuene, NC.
     Although Wesley Russ is retired as the conference superintendent he is open to fill pulpits, preach revivals, and minister on special occasions. He is a gifted communicator and knows how to stir the heart and inform the mind. He preaches with an anointing from the Holy Spirit. If you wish to communicate with Wesley Russ write me at: hugh@hughsnews.com, and I will connect you with Wesley.]

 
 
 
 
 

Melvine and I want to thank our son, Greg, for getting many of you involved in helping us celebrate our birthdays this week. We want to thank you for your response.
     Melvine and I celebrated our birthdays by going to eat at two of our favorite restaurants: LongHorn Steakhouse and Red Lobster. Greg accompanied us for both dinners.
​     What was so wonderful is the fact that so many of you sent us birthday cards and some with contributions to Hugh's News, Inc.  Friday and Saturday was the largest number of birthday cards in our mailbox. Every card has meant so much to us. We are praying over each card for you and your family.
     It occurred to us that we should keep the birthday party celebration going through the month of December since everyone is busy preparing for your Christmas with your family and friends. This extension of time will give you opportunity to get your tax deductible contribution in before the end of 2015.
​     We want you to know that you, our readers, are what Hugh's News is all about. This is my 18th year of producing the news of the IPHC Ministries and the body of Christ worldwide. It is a real joy to publish sermons, Advent messages, fast breaking news, birthdays, events, and church happenings.
​     Please continue sending cards for our birthdays, and if you can spare a gift or contribution for Hugh's News, Inc. it will be greatly appreciated. I need to raise $7,000 by the end of December to meet our annual budget. You have never failed to meet every goal we have set as the need arises.
     When giving by check or money order, you may send your card or letter to:
​          Hugh and Melvine Morgan
​          Hugh's News, Inc.
​          17 Sweet Apple Lane
​          Winder, GA 30680-3349
​     You may also contribute to Hugh's News, Inc. visa your credit card. Look for the icon to give or the words Support Our Mission. Giving by credit card is the fastest and safest way to get the money to our banking account. I am immediately notified by Merchant Services of our bank and I can send you an immediate "thank you:" note. Every gift is important and we value our relationship with you.

SAN BERNARDINO, CA (Reuters, Dec. 8) – One brother liked to party and chase girls. After high school, moved by what he saw as his patriotic duty, he enlisted in the [U.S.] Navy and received two medals recognizing his contributions to “the global war on terror.”
The other… became increasingly intolerant, ultimately nursing a growing hatred that led him, along with his wife, to open fire on a San Bernardino holiday party [December 2nd], in what law enforcement officials have termed a terrorist attack.
Syed Raheel Farook and his younger brother Syed Rizwan Farook grew up in the same house, attended the same high school two years apart and, as teenagers, often socialized in the same groups. But as they grew older their paths diverged.
Rizwan is now dead, gunned down by police in Southern California after joining with his wife in killing 14 people and injuring 21. Raheel is alive and left to wonder what went wrong.
 We know now that Rizwan became a terrorist in part because of the influence of his very strong-willed Pakistani wife. She came from a family of wealthy Pakistani landowners and studied to be a pharmacist in college.
The story of Rizwan and his wife, Malik, has carried me back to the book of Genesis and the account of another very strong-willed mother named Hagar (See Genesis 16-21). Although separated by 4,000 years, their stories have common threads.
Hagar was an Egyptian woman, possibly acquired by Abraham as his wife’s personal servant while he and Sarah lived there (see Genesis 12). If that is the fact, Abraham and Sarah brought her with them when they moved back home to the environs of Hebron.
THINK ABOUT IT: Acquiring Hagar could be one of the dire consequences of Abraham’s sidetrack when he moved to Egypt. People walking with God today find it easy to get sidetracked too!
 
Hagar lived in the tents of Abraham, the father of the faithful, and had many opportunities to be exposed to Abraham’s trust in God. She surely heard Abraham tell and retell the story how God had made a special covenant with him. Hagar also knew well the promise that God would birth many nations out of Abraham. She even listened repeatedly to the Messianic promise Abraham often shared that through his seed, all nations worldwide would be blessed.
When Sarah could not have children, she opted for an ancient form of surrogate motherhood and gave her servant to Abraham to conceive an heir. It was a relationship full of conflict from the start. Hagar was never willing to complete the custom and give her son to Sarah as Sarah’s child. Instead, she nurtured the hope to one day supplant Sarah and take her place in Abraham’s heart and family. Her son would be Abraham’s heir, and to her, that meant she would one day be Abraham’s wife. Hagar also wanted to achieve it without giving her loyalty to Abraham’s God. Hagar’s lineage would have never brought the Messiah into the world, and Christians worldwide would not be celebrating Christmas in a few more days. But God never chose Ishmael as the heir to the covenant. As for Abraham, he took Ishmael into his heart as his heir, but never intended to welcome Ishmael’s mother into his arms as his wife.
These family dynamics were packed full of potential for rivalry and dispute. An explosion was begging to happen. The conflict that ensued meant Abraham’s family was very dysfunctional. The struggle continued for a long time, perhaps 15 years. This means Hagar had all that time as Ishmael’s primary teacher. Little wonder Ishmael never bonded to the covenant either.
In the modern era, Rizwan, we are told, was greatly influenced by Malik, his wife. Her last acts were gut-wrenching. She was so committed to terrorism that she deserted her six-month-old infant. She also swore allegiance to ISIS and Abu Bakr, ISIS’ leader. Then, she and Malik picked up their AK-47’s and started murdering innocent people. Malik fired first in the bloody massacre.
THINK ABOUT IT: Children need a dad and a mom who are each committed to rearing them in the faith. Divided parenting routinely yields painful results. 
“Walk before me and be perfect,” God said to Abraham in the midst of all this dysfunction (Genesis 17:1). The very statement meant Abraham was not living in the perfect will of God even though he believed God’s promises to him. The Lord went on to tell Abraham that Sarah would conceive a son and he would be the heir to the covenant. Abraham understood instinctively what that meant. The thoughts of his heart transparently came to the surface when he cried out to God, “Oh that Ishmael might live before you!” (Genesis 17:18).
Any normal parent can feel Abraham’s passion in that prayer. Ishmael was his firstborn son and he loved him. That affection made the price of walking perfectly with God sky high.
THINK ABOUT IT: God gave Abraham a resounding “NO.” Doublemindedness destabilizes families today too, and nations as well.
Abraham accepted he would have to surrender Ishmael as his heir in order to live in the perfect will of God. But he also believed both boys could grow up under the same tent. It was an ancient strategy of coexistence. Abraham wanted to hold on to his plan and God’s plan (keep Ishmael and his mother in the family and at the same time Sarah’s baby would be the heir).
The birth of Isaac to Abraham and Sarah is the most miraculous birth story in the Old Testament. Sarah was ninety years old and Abraham was one-hundred. Both were well past the age for conceiving a child. But God had spoken, and baby Isaac was born.
Abraham loved both children and kept his family together for the next three years or so, until Isaac was weaned. Abraham’s strategy seemed to be working, albeit with much tension.
The scheme finally unraveled at Isaac’s weaning party, when Sarah saw Ishmael mocking her toddler. Her response to Abraham was immediate, and the whole plan crumbled in the next twelve hours:
 "Get rid of that slave woman and her son, for that slave woman's son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac."
11 “The matter distressed Abraham greatly because it concerned his son. 12 But God said to him, ‘Do not be so distressed about the boy and your maidservant. Listen to whatever Sarah tells you, because it is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned. 13 I will make the son of the maidservant into a nation also, because he is your offspring.’"
14 Early the next morning Abraham took some food and a skin of water and gave them to Hagar. He set them on her shoulders and then sent her off with the boy. She went on her way and wandered in the desert of Beersheba (Genesis 21:10-14).
THINK ABOUT IT: To Abraham’s eternal credit, he would obey God, no matter how much it hurt! The division had become so malignant the only solution left was surgery to cut out the cancer. In Abraham’s family it meant very painful separation. From that day, the descendants of Ishmael and Isaac have not been able to live together in peace. Yes, the implications have reached down the corridors of history into the 21st century.
This ancient story is loaded with sadness and grief. It also includes the pathos that causes some to pity Hagar, thinking she got a raw deal. But did she?
God was indeed fair and extended great grace to Hagar. For example, the angel of the Lord, as an Old Testament manifestation of Messiah, appeared personally to her twice. As for Sarah, she never received such personal and direct revelation from her Messiah. Sarah was a loyal wife, totally committed to the covenant, who trusted her husband to give her revelation from Jehovah.
The first revelation to Hagar was in the wilderness of Shur, when she was running away from Sarah. Hagar recognized her visitor as El-Roi, meaning, "the God who sees me" (Genesis 16:13). But Hagar only partially accepted His counsel to her, namely, “Go back to your mistress and submit to her” (Genesis 16:9). She went back, but her heart did not change and she did not submit. How interesting that the meaning of the word, Islam, carries the idea of submission and obedience, the very things Hagar would not do.
If she had only embraced the covenant in her heart and believed the revelation of El-Roi! God really does “watch over His word to perform it” (Jeremiah 1:12, nas). Submission to the Word of the Lord would have enabled her to become a faithful servant in Sarah’s household. It would also have meant a life of comfort for her and her son in Abraham’s family. The Messiah lovingly gave His attention to Hagar, but she was not willing to treasure the rich promise of the God who watched over her, nor was she willing to serve Sarah.
When Abraham sent Hagar and Ishmael away that morning after the weaning party, it was like a death both to Abraham and to Hagar. Abraham lost his firstborn son, and Hagar and Ishmael lost their home.
When Hagar’s supply of water ran out, she placed the crying teenager under some bushes about a bowshot away, saying, “‘I cannot watch the boy die.’ As she sat there nearby, she began to sob” (Genesis 21:16). In this dire situation, the Messiah appeared to her a second time—on this occasion as the God who hears:
God heard [Elohim shama] the boy crying, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What is the matter, Hagar? Do not be afraid; God has heard the boy crying as he lies there. Lift the boy up and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation.” Then God opened her eyes and she saw a well of water. So she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink. God was with the boy as he grew up (Genesis 21:17–20).
Ishmael’s name means “God hears” (Genesis 16:11). In this poignant scene that drips sadness, the revelation of God was actually a play on words: God hears the child whose name means “God hears.”
The Messiah’s promises to Hagar were warm and reassuring, but she never gave implicit trust to the God who heard her (Elohim Shama), and was watching over her (El-Roi). Nor was she willing to teach her son the true meaning of his own name. Instead, she continued to demonstrate lack of faith. A few years later, for example, she showed her contempt by taking a bride for Ishmael from Egypt (Genesis 21:21). Hagar has become a type for all ages, therefore, of people who are determined to live a Messiah-rejecting life. They will do it no matter how often and how graciously God reveals Himself—even if He is standing in flesh and blood in front of them (John 18:14, 24; Acts 4:6–13; Matthew 13:13–15).
            Hagar’s lineage would have guaranteed the Messiah would not be born. The result would have been no salvation, and no Christmas to celebrate the Lord’s birth.
THINK ABOUT IT: Abraham had to eject Hagar from his tent for his family’s survival. Doing so also preserved the Messianic line. Even today, many people have secret sins, bondages, and strongholds in their lives that will ultimately destroy their families and their eternal souls, if not expelled in a radical spiritual deliverance.
In a later generation, another foreigner, Ruth the Moabite, made what was by far the wiser choice. Ruth was an alien from the commonwealth of Israel, but she had a heart like Sarah, the mother of Israel. Ruth never received a personal revelation from Naomi’s God, yet she chose the God of her mother-in-law and reaped abundant blessings as the result (Ruth 1:16–18; 4:13–22; Ephesians 2:12–22).
Living with Alligators
            Kevin Garvey has a thriving business in Broward County, Florida. He is the only trapper licensed by the county to remove nuisance alligators. In 2000, he received 616 alligator complaints and removed 97 reptiles. As of the end of July 2001, he had already received over 1,500 complaints and caught 130 alligators.
The top spot in his county? Weston, a meticulously groomed, planned city. Seems the homeowners there, who spent up to $700,000 for their homes, did not expect nor appreciate giant reptiles in their idyllic new community.
"That's probably gator heaven out there," says Jim Huffstodt, a spokesman for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. Huffstodt also noted Weston and other planned communities are often built right on top of the marshlands that were previously inhabited by the offensive reptiles. Just sighting an alligator in an area like Weston—filled with families with small children—is grounds for removal and destruction.
Such a story begs the question: How could anyone who moves into prime alligator habitat be surprised to see alligators there?
THINK ABOUT IT: In the same way, why do so many people settle for doubleminded lifestyles that invite trouble? They want to hold onto God and the world, and then act surprised when they fall into sinful conduct and things unravel.
            The Pew Foundation has done a survey of the two million Muslims living in America.  Eight percent said that suicide bombings and other forms of violence in the name of Islam are "sometimes" or "often" justified.
            Franklin Graham adds: “That's 144,000 Muslims [in the U.S.] who openly say without hesitation that violence in the name of Islam is justified! Our nation and our politicians need to realize the dangers of allowing people into this country that are not properly vetted."
            Simply put, Abraham and Sarah could not live together with Hagar and Ishmael. They had to separate. But so many governmental leaders in America are repeating history thinking we can all be one happy family. Will things unravel again? And, has the unravelling already started?
             It took two weeks to find a Muslim cemetery that would receive the bodies of Malik and Rizwan, and it is located hours away from San Bernardino. Only ten people attended the funeral. 
            As a father who lost a son in a car wreck nine years ago, I can imagine how many deaths Abraham died as grief took hold after losing Ishmael. One can only guess how much Abraham missed him. The Biblical record does not say father and son ever met face to face again.
            Ishmael did return for his father’s funeral, however, and helped Isaac lay Abraham to rest in the Cave of Machpelah beside his beloved Sarah (Genesis 25:9).