The Christmas story mentions several encounters with what we call angels.
In fact the Bible is full of stories on how they interacted with God and us humans here on earth.

What I love about angels is how they seem to just show up when people lest expect.
I don't recall reading about anyone who planned to see an angel, or anyone who know ahead of time they were about to arrive.

Looking back at my life I think I have met an angel or maybe two angels to be precise.
It took on the same pattern. I was taken by surprise.
The circumstances were so random that you couldn't have planned it.
As you read on, I will let you decide for yourself…

While in Russia many years a go, I was traveling around with a Pastor.
Part of that journey required us to take two different trains within Moscow itself.
The problem was that we couldn’t figure out once on the first train where we needed to get off. If we missed the right station, we would most likely miss the next train???
Someone took notice of us and introduced himself as a Doctor from Afghanistan.
He stayed with us until we got to the correct stop and made sure we were ok.

Some years later I found myself in Japan on my own, having to catch several different trains to a remote part of the country.
Part of my problem was that I don’t speak or read Japanese.
The further we went from the main centers, the less English was used on the signs.

The last train I had to catch pulled out on schedule. I knew I needed to get off at a place called Inuyama, but didn’t know how many stops away that was.
At the first stop I looked out the window and to my horror, found all the signs in Japanese only. Now I had no way of finding out where to get off!
A man approached me (I must have looked distressed) and in English, asked if he could help.
He introduced himself and explained he was from….yes you guessed it Afghanistan!
He also stayed with me until the correct stop and even got off the train to make sure I made it off the platform ok.

What are the chances of that happening in two different countries under those circumstances!
I have wondered ever since whether maybe God sent an angel to help me???

Hebrews 13:2 says...
Some have entertained angels without knowing it

So when you read the Christmas story in the Bible…
Matthew 1:18-2:18; Luke 2:1-20
Maybe you could imagine what it would be like to be visited by an angel?
Maybe you have already experienced that at some time in your life?
Or maybe it is something for you to look forward to!

I think that it feels good when you know where you are going…

When I am driving my car to some new location, or a street in a part of Auckland that I haven’t been to before...there is part of me that is uneasy. It is that ‘unknown’ or only having part of the picture that effects your thinking.
You find it sometimes hard to relax on the journey.

When I was in Japan a few years a go I really experienced this feeling.
I was on my own and had to catch several trains from different stations to get to a meeting.
Not speaking any Japanese didn’t help much.
The last train I caught pulled into it’s first stop on the journey. I looked out the window and my heart sank...the station signs were only in Japanese. I know the station name I was going to, but had no idea what I was going to do as I had no way of knowing where to get off…
It is a long story, but I eventually did make it ok. Will tell you another time.

Anyway, having a clear plan and knowing some steps along the way feels so much better than having no idea!

Many people I talk too seem to not have much idea what God wants them to do with there lives.
That is why we did our little series called ‘Chazown’. It is the Hebrew word for vision.
I think God wants a balance in this for us. Yes, we are to walk by faith...but he doesn’t expect us to walk blind. Remember that his word is a lamp for our feet. Light is something that is seen!

God wants you to not only know some direction for your life, but also to see some of it.

If you want something practical to do help you find some more direction over Christmas…
How about doing what I did and read a book.
In particular Chazown by Craig Groeschel.
It is real easy to read, and fun to work through.

What not give it a try???

It seems Christmas is a ‘deadline’ time of the year.
We treat it as such a pivotal moment of our calendar, not necessarily because of the meaning of
Christmas but because of it’s position on our calendars.

Recently we had the roof replaced on the church building because it was so rusty you could even get wet coming to church.
The goal was to have it complete way before Christmas, and we have signed off completion today!
For me personally I have a number of goals...which all have to be complete you guessed it…before Christmas.

Many people have lots left to do before the magical Christmas date…
Whether it be getting their car fixed, buying presents or even visiting the dentist.
Many companies that I deal with are sending me Christmas type cards, pushing me to get in quick with orders before they shut early for Christmas.

Now add to that mix all your normal day to day activities…
Now add to that planning for Christmas day with family and who needs what, and who we are
giving this and that to…
Now add to that preparations for Christmas services…
….ahhhh….stop the bus...I want to get off.

No don’t panic I am not that bad.
I have learnt that I have a pace that I can go over this time of year. That has come from over
doing it many times over many years. I have learnt that I have the power to control how I behave and feel leading up to Christmas. That power does not belong to anyone else!

1 Timothy 4:16
Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both
yourself and your hearers.

It is one of the few Bible verses I know that talks about saving yourself…
So how? Very simply this is talking about keeping a close eye on yourself (not other people).
Are you doing too much? Are you organized? Are needing more sleep? Are neglecting time with God in prayer and his word? When was the last time you hung out with other disciples?
All stuff that you are qualified to answer for yourself.

If you want a Christmas time with less stress...look at yourself and do what you need to do…
Look after yourself.
Enjoy the Season, don’t just survive it!

For me, sometimes there is a gap between what I know and what I believe.
I definitely know in my head that God wants to bless me, but find it hard to believe in my heart.
This means that when some blessing comes along that was not expected, I sometimes struggle to accept it. I even think I don’t deserve it and that seems to rob me of the fun of it!
Trust me, I don’t like thinking this way.
The concept is quite simple...I just need it to work down into my heart!

I know I am not the only one who struggles to believe that Gods wants to bless us.
We know the things we have done and the people we have hurt.
We know that if we were God (thank goodness we aren’t) that we wouldn’t want to bless us.
But this ignores who God really is. It ignores what we should know about his nature. His heart.

Number One
The whole deal with Jesus should be a dead giveaway!
The fact that while I didn’t know him or acknowledge him, God sent Jesus to be sacrificed for my sin. God wanted to give me an opportunity for a clear conscience. Jesus was the ticket to that.
All I have to do is believe it and accept it.

Number Two
The bible says that God cares for the smallest of his creation. He does it supernaturally.
He does it to the point where they are not panicking about where their next meal is coming from. They know instinctively that God will provide. God says that we are more important than those creatures, and we should learn from their example.
Maybe with our so called superior intellect we feel we have to work it out?
That is also our achilles heal...we don’t have to work it out!
Again all I have to do is believe it and accept it.

Number Three
So how am I going to deal my warped thinking?
Well here is my plan…
The Bible says that God’s word is so powerful that it can supernaturally bury deep into my being.
It says it achieves everything that it was designed to do.
So the plan is simple. I want God’s word in me.
You get this by reading it. Looking at it. Meditating on it.

If we can do this, God has the best chance of healing our thinking…
I want God to bless me and for me to enjoy every moment of it!

Many of you will know that am I about to embark on a new challenge early next year.
What most of you will not know is the journey that lead up to this point…

We have had this funny feeling for sometime that God was about to do something different in our lives. Some people call it a ‘sense’.
Whatever you want to call it, we knew something was coming that God knew all about, but we didn’t have any idea about...a ‘God’ surprise.
What that stage meant was a lot of praying and seeking after him for what he was about to do.

Some weeks a go a lady I don’t really know that well offered to prophecy over me (prophecy like this is God speaking through someone to you)...of which I accepted. I mean, who doesn’t want to hear from God whenever the opportunity arise?

She said some very encouraging things and then made a statement that really struck me.
“God was about to open a door that hasn’t existed before. It is like you can see a wall which has no doors in it and then suddenly there is a door...because God put it there.”

Well this excited me immensely. God was about to open a new opportunity to me!

And within a few weeks that door did appear in my life. A role where there was no ‘natural’ opportunity
before this suddenly appeared. A role which we have accepted.
The opportunity to grow the edge/sphere ministries over 3 churches!

The reason I am saying this is simply in a hope to encourage you!
God does have a plan for each of our lives. In fact he says he has plans...not just a little singular plan.
The creator of the universe who has each day of lives recorded, wants to bless me and use me for his glory.
He used a lady to speak into my life and prepare me for something he had planned since the beginning of time.
God is at work in all of our lives even though we might not feel it, see it or even know it!

Jeremiah 29:11 says
For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
Today, trust God is indeed working things out behind the scenes for you.
He is working out all things out just for you!