Saturday, Dec. 22, 2007
Dear Saddleback Family,
Merry Christmas to you!
TODAY at both of our 4:30 PM and 6:30 PM CHRISTMAS SERVICES the Fox News network will record them for broadcast nationally on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Please make a special effort to attend either of today's services, then call your relatives to watch for you on TV. Bring your neighbors with you!
At Christmas, everyone deserves to hear the Good News so here's what we're doing this Christmas:
· 14 Christmas services at Saddleback: (2 yesterday) SAT: 4:30 & 6:30 pm, SUN: 9:00, 11:15am, 4:30, 6:30 pm, MON: 1:00, 3:00, 5:00, 7:00, 9:00, 11:00 pm
· Fox News will broadcast "Christmas with Rick Warren" multiple times on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
· The US Armed Forces Network will broadcast "The Purpose of Christmas" (last year's Saddleback service) for all troops around the world to watch!
· All Wal-Marts and Sam's Club are broadcasting "The Meaning of Christmas" a message by me, along with Christmas carols by the Salvation Army, on all their in-store TV screens.
· Good Morning America is broadcasting our roundtable about "The Good News of Christmas" on Christmas Day.
Forward this email to your friends in other states and countries to watch Saddleback's Christmas service on the Internet at www.saddleback.com
A PERSONAL WORD OF ENCOURAGEMENT TO YOUR FAMILY
So many of you lost loved ones this past year - moms, dads, brothers, sisters, grandparents, children, and other dearly loved family members. Christmas is always a poignant time when someone who was with us last Christmas has now gone on. I want you to know that I care about your grief, and I am empathizing with those of you who've experienced loss in '07. This Christmas I am praying for your family.
Yesterday, Dan Hamer's mother passed away during the night. Dan is the CFO of Saddleback. Although I didn't know Dan's mother, I am thanking God for her life - because God used her to bring Dan into this world. Knowing Dan, I know that his mother had to be a great woman.
I feel the same way about your family, and your loved ones who passed away this year. This Christmas I am thanking God for their influence on your life - both the happy and the sad experiences. God uses your family members to custom-shape your life for service to Him. God uses it ALL for good in our lives. So this Christmas, remember the loved ones you've lost, and thank God that we have their memories. We are to be thankful IN all things, not for all things, remembering God's promise: "We are well aware that God works with those who love him, those who have been called in accordance with his purpose, and turns everything to their good." (Romans 8:28 NJB)
God is with you this Christmas. And just as God has encouraged me through the loss of my brother, Jim, who died earlier this year, I'm confident that "If your heart is broken, you'll find God right there; if you're kicked in the gut, he'll help you catch your breath." Psalm 34:18 (Mes) and "God blesses those who mourn, for they will be comforted." Matt 5:4 (NLT)
This Christmas I'm speaking on "God's Christmas Gift to You." Jesus himself was the first Christmas gift and it is why we continue the tradition of gift-giving even 2007 years after that first Christmas, that split history into BC and AD. When we accept God's gift of salvation in Jesus, we receive 4 great benefits: 1) We lose our loneliness. 2) We get a second chance. 3) We find out who we are. And 4) We're given the strength to go on.
Everybody needs encouragement and hope. Bring you friends with you this Christmas. You might even forward this note on to people you care about. May God bless you, may God bless your family, and may God bless your friends.
Merry Christmas! See you this afternoon.
Pastor Rick
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