Luke 1:37

For with God nothing will be impossible. Luke 1:37

There was a man who wasn’t paying attention as he crossed the street and found himself caught under a streetcar. Naturally a sympathetic crowd gathered around this man who was wounded, frightened, and wedged tightly under the car. And as they were waiting for Fire and Rescue to come, one man stepped out from the crowd, took off his jacket and crawled under the car. He put his folded jacket under the man’s head, held his hand, and talked reassuringly to him while they waited together for rescue. The person who told me this story was explaining the difference between ‘sympathy’ and ‘empathy.’ You see he said, “Sympathy ‘looks down’ with expressions of sorrow (internally rejoicing that this wasn’t happening to him) but empathy ‘gets down’ bringing hope and comfort. This is what Jesus did for us! He got down into the ugliness of life in a world in rebellion against it’s Creator to bring healing, hope, and comfort. Paul in Romans 5 says while we were without strength, ungodly, sinners, God’s enemies, Jesus died to declare us righteous, to reconcile us to God, and to save us by His life. When He returned to the Father, He left “another Comforter” to ensure we have the Power required to live His life! This Power comes from the Holy Spirit who is given to all who ask, from the greatest and, thankfully, to the least of us. If we’ll only have the trust of a young girl willing to be ‘overshadowed’ by the Holy Spirit (Luke 1: 35-38!) We must be born again through the power of the Holy Spirit. And we can, and will be, if we will only ask, “For with God nothing will be impossible. (Luke 1:37) This Sabbath I look forward to talking with you about the purpose of the Holy Spirit and how we receive Him. Blessings to you all, In Christ! Gary Snyder