The Hopes and Fears of all the Years ...

One of my favorite Christmas hymns is "O Little Town of Bethlehem".  This tiny insignificant town becomes the centerpiece of God's redemptive work for man.  4,000 years of longings, frustrations, and fears have found their fulfillment in this small town on this one night.  4,000 years of hopes, and 2,000 years since then of people wondering is if this all there is to life, and isn't there something more?

"The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight"

Or as Micah the prophet puts it on Micah 5:2-4  (ESV)

But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah,
who are too little to be among the clans of Judah,
from you shall come forth for me
one who is to be ruler in Israel,
 whose coming forth is from of old,
from ancient days.
Therefore he shall give them up until the time
when she who is in labor has given birth;
then the rest of his brothers shall return
to the people of Israel.
And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the LORD,
in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God.
And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great
to the ends of the earth.

Everything from the fall of Adam and Eve has been building up for this one moment, in this one tiny little town, for God to become man, and to become the Savior of the world.

From John 1:1,14 (ESV)

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

 ... And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

God become one of us - to be the only (John 14:6)  and perfect way to get rid of our sin problem - and satisfy our hopes and calm our fears - through his life, death and resurrection.

Some quick bits about our lives:

Jeremy is launching a new business next month called See Stories Media Company.  Check out @seestoriesmediaco on Facebook or Instagram and if you are in the need for photography and videography services I highly recommend. He has also been finishing up his degree at Wright-State university and pours beer at a local brew pub.

Aiden and Mackenzie will both be graduating high school this upcoming spring.  Aiden is finishing up at Troy Christian, (1 more track season to go!) and hopes to pursue Architecture, starting with classes at the community college.  He worked some this year at Hot Head Burritos - but quit to focus on school, cross-country, and track).  He was awarded the Conference Sportsmanship Award and the Coaches Award this past cross country season.
Mackenzie will be finishing up her home-school program (supplemented by several community college classes). She works part time at a local coffee shop (inside a local hospital). She will be heading to the mission field next fall in Eswatini, Ethiopia and Cambodia on the Adventures in Missions World Race program.  You can follow her blog now at https://mackenzietkach.theworldrace.org/   She will be blogging up to and during her 9 month journey (3 months in each country). This year she earned the Stars and Stripes Award with American Heritage Girls - many of you I know followed her project in building a memory garden for he local women's center. She will receive the award this February.

Makayla and Adam are in the middle of their Junior year of high school.  Both are home-schooled, supplemented by community college classes.  Makayla recently obtained her driver's licence (Mackenzie got hers earlier in the year, Aiden last year, and Adam's is imminent). They both hope to acquire part time work soon. So far we have a bartender, a barista, and a burrito maker - anxious to see what's next!

Karyn has been absolutely amazing keeping all this family activity together. She is an incredible homeschooling mom, driving instructor, family taxi driver, church keyboard player and vocalist,  wife, and much more.  In the words of comedian Tim Hawkins - "If she ever leaves me I'm going with her".  This spring we will celebrate our 35th anniversary.

Me (Jeff) - Well I'm still working for the Department of Defense and still (for the most part) enjoying my work,  I've been able to keep up my running - on track for 1,500 miles this year.  I'm finishing up my 4th and last year as a deacon at our church (term limited) and just spent the last four months teaching through Psalm 119 for our adult Sunday School Class. This is the psalm to go to if you want to gain a greater appreciation for God's Word. I sure have.

We did manage to enjoy a family vacation this year at Niagara Falls and Cedar Point.

This year as others has been filled with hopes and fears - but we can rest assured if our hope has been placed in Jesus Christ, that He is in control. And no greater can peace can be found than that.   May you experience His peace this Christmas season and in the coming year.