Buh Humbug

BAH HUMBUG
The word came from an Old English word that was first recorded in 950 AD, as HALIGDAEG (HALIG for "HOLY" AND DAEG for "DAY").

The first recorded spelling as holiday was in 1460 AD. Around the Middle English period, it took on a new meaning as "a day when commoners were exempt from labor".

I BUMPED INTO CHRISTMAS TREE DECORATONS IN CRACKER BARREL THIS WEEK AND I DID NOT HEAR, SILENT NIGHT, PLAYING OVER THE SOUND SYSTEM AND NOT EVEN, JOY TO THE WORLD THE LORD HAS COME. HOWEVER, MY HEART WAS GLADDENED AS I THOUGHT, IT'S THE MOST WONDERFUL TIME OF THE YEAR. I LOVE THE MUSIC OF THE HOLIDAYS AND MY MIND CAN PLAY THESE WONDERFUL SONGS FROM THANKSGIVING TO CHRISTMAS.

THE NAME OF JESUS IS ON THE LIPS OF PEOPLE ALL AROUNG THE WORLD.
THE GREAT EVANGELIST, T.L. OSBOURNE TOOK ADVANTAGE OF THIS SEASON BECAUSE HE WOULD HAVE HIS GREAT CRUSADES THROUGHOUT THE NATIONS. HE SAID, "THE NAME OF JESUS IS BEING HERALD AROUND THE EARTH AND I AM GOING TO TELL THEM WHO HE IS."

SOME WILL KNOW THE NAME EBENEZER SCROOGE, CHRISTMAS STORY WRITTEN BY CHARLES DICKENS, THE CHRISTMAS CAROL, REPORTEDLY, HE WROTE THE SCRIPT WHILE WALKING AROUND LONDON ONE LONG NIGHT IN THE EARLY 1940'S.

I THINK DICKENS HAD HIS TONGUE IN CHEEK AS THE PENNED HIS EPIC TALE.

The surname of his main character was EBENEZER which means: TO RESCUE, TO SAVE OR TO BE STRONG.

IN A SIMILAR FASHION ABRAHAM'S ELDER, UNNAMED SERVANT, ELIEZER, WHO RULED OVER ALL ABRAHAM POSSESSED. IT WAS THIS FAITHFUL SERVANT WHO WENT TO FIND ISSAC A WIFE IN GENESIS 24, JUST AS THE HOLY SPIRIT IS GATHERING A BRIDE TODAY.

In the WELL-KNOWN CHRISTMAS narrative, Charles Dickens names Scrooge, EVE: (EB/the source of life, the living one), NEZER/ HELPER, could it be a play on words?

It was in the end of the story when Ebenezer realized his short-comings and the love of money epitomized his selfishness and his life was changed. His ultimate transformation showed he had come full circle by becoming benevolent to all he had taken advantage of. Dickens introduced us to Tiny Tim as a symbol of hope, by bringing a positive ending to the drama. Dickens uses Tiny Tim to ultimately show that people, and society, can change for the better. Scrooge represented the selfish (upper class) playing a key role in this – if he had remained selfish and cruel, Tiny Tim would have died.

Ebenezer can live in the upper class and the lower class in a people group, but hearts can change and lives can as well. The Holy Spirit and the Word are the instruments of change. Join us this Holy Holiday season and be a part of all that Christ joy is for us.

Let the Holidays begin and keep Christ first and upmost in your minds.
YOU MAY ASK, "Will the blessings last? The Blesser Will."

Pastor Cleddie Keith