[real-eyes] THE HOLY CROSS BLIND OUTREACH NEWSLETTER
- From: "dauidr@xxxxxxxx" <dauidr@xxxxxxxx>
- To: Real-Eyes@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Sat, 18 Dec 2010 15:44:06 GMT
THE HOLY CROSS BLIND OUTREACH NEWSLETTER
Holy Cross Lutheran Church
2003 NE Englewood Road
Kansas City, MO 64118
www.holycrosskc.org
GREETINGS
Merry Christmas! As the weather gets colder, we know that winter is descending
upon
us. We shiver every time we step outside and, even for a moment, shut the door
and
walk back in for a second of warmth.
Our reaction seems almost predictable. As the icy chill cuts through our coats
into
our veins, we try clinging to the comfort that extra moment shielded from the
wintry
blast will provide.
Even so, more than cold weather makes us scurry for safety. While the Christmas
season
is said to bring joy and peaceful feeling, many of us may feel a sense of loss.
It
is a time when memories of recently deceased loved ones flood our minds. We
remember
last year when Aunt So-and-So or Mom and Dad met us for a ride to Christmas
dinner
or family gathering. We may feel the isolating sense of loss creep in as we
wonder
what we will do on Christmas Day if family meets away from us. Perhaps, we’ll be
invited but activity—kids playing and boisterous conversations happen around us
instead
of including us.
So much for a season that brings comfort and joy! Instead, the feeling of
Christmas,
so advertised in songs like “Silver Bells” is something we dread instead of a
happiness
we await. For some of us, Christmas may seem like any other day of struggle and
survival.
Such was the world into which our Lord chose to reavel His saving face just over
two thousand years ago. People like you and me were just going about their
business.
Sure, those concerned were expecting a Messiah to come. But, like all citizens
in
Rome’s vast empire, many citizens were just doing their duty when asked to
enroll
for taxation accounting in their home towns. Shepherds were carrying on their
livelihood
out in the fields tending their sheep. Families in Bethlehem were no doubt
welcoming
the over flow of relatives coming for enrollment. Come to think of it, the
angels
did what Scripture says angels always do as messengers. They were announcing
God’s
news to God’s people.
That’s were things really made a change. In the town of David, not just any baby
was being born. It was Mary’s Son, a Savior, Christ the Lord. Though every house
and guest room were packed to the gills, Mary and Joseph found room amid the
mooing
of cows whose feeding trough, a manger, would provide a bed for the newborn
King.
The good news, the great joy of Christmas is that our Lord did not come for just
the in crowd or those who have the means to bask in Christmas’s glitz and
holiday
style. He came to save all of us from our sins. In ordinary ways—our disrespect
for
each other, our passé unfaithfulness to God and His Word, in our
self-centeredness,
we by nature disobey God’s will. Still, Jesus came to bear all our grievances.
We scurry to safety, even into the hum-drum of isolation’s loneliness so we
don’t
have to face greater fears outside our door. Yet, our Lord who came to a world
who
had rejected Him, came that, amid our despair and sorrow, we rely on His
salvation.
Jesus came to bear on Himself the sins and limitations—past, present, and
future—of
the whole world. He bore our guilt, surrounded by the activity and hubbub of
rejection
to the cross. There, He endured His Father’s wrath against sin on Himself. And,
He
did it all an innocent man for you and me.
Christmas is more than a feeling that comes this time each year. It provides us
the
assurance that Jesus came for us. He lived a life like ours and died just as we
will.
He wiped away our sins and, wiping away our sin, promises to somday blow the
cover
off our limitations. For He will return, even as He is risen from the dead, and
give
unending life to our now mortal bodies. And, indeed, through His Gospel told day
in and day out in His Word, He has already accomplished this great joy, even at
Christmas.
More than a feeling of Christmas, God gifts us with His peace, sins forgiven by
Jesus
Christ, His Son, who came and remains with us, our Savior.
REJOICE WITH US
This month, we sing Christmas carols as we look forward to celebrating Jesus’
birth.
Come, join our voices in praising God for we hear in His Word.
COMMUNITY CALENDAR
January 1, 2011: New Year’s Day
January 6, 2011: Epiphany
January 7, 2011: Allied Workers for the Blind meet. Call Terrie Arnold at (816)
363-6658
to find out more.
January 8, 2011, Social SecuritySeminar, Understanding Earnings Limits, etc (see
below)
January 8, 2011: First Steps for the Blind. Call Cathy Pyper for more
information
at (816) 455-521o9
.
January 11, 2011, Share A Fare Review Meeting
January 15, 2011: Progressive Council of the Blind meets.
January 29, 2011: Holy Cross Blind Outreach meal of the month and third year
anniversary.
Call David Rosenkoetter at (816) 805-7333 for more information and to reserve a
ride
to and from the meal.
Every Sunday: Worship at Holy Cross Lutheran Church at 8:00 and 10:45 AM.
Christmas Eve services will be held at 7:00 and 11:00 PM on December 24.
Announcements and Reminders
1. Newsletters and CD’s of previous sermons at Holy Cross will be available at
the
meal of the month.
2. 2. Please, let David Rosenkoetter or any of the volunteers know your prayer
requests
to be prayed at the end of Bible study.
3. 3. If you haven’t gotten your braille or large print calendar yet, they are
available
at no charge from Lutheran Blind Mission by calling (888) 215-2455.
4. UNDERSTANDING SOCIAL SECURITY AND BLINDNESS
A seminar to help persons who are blind living throughout the community to
better
understand Social Security such as:
• How it works
• What to expect
• Special rules that apply only to persons who are blind
• How to be proactive to avoid potential loss of benefits or allegations of
overpayment
Saturday, January 8, 2011
12:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Westport Branch Library
Second Floor Meeting Room
118 Westport Road
Kansas City, MO 64111
This seminar is FREE
to all interested persons; however, seating is limited, so pre-registration is
requested.
To pre-register or obtain additional information, you can call 816-505-5520, or
email
sbwright95@xxxxxxxx
A community service project Sponsored by the National Federation of the Blind of
Missouri – Kansas City Chapter
Now, may the Lord direct our days and our deeds, especially at this Christmas
season,
in His peace.
David Rosenkoetter, Director
Ruby Polk and Shirley Grauel, assistants
Ruby J. Polk
Braille Skills of Kansas City
816-505-2700
____________________________________________________________
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