Ministry

Gifts to go Forward 

It seems to me that every year, retail outlets start to cash in on Christmas and Easter earlier and earlier. I’m pretty sure Christmas was barely over coming into 2020 and Easter eggs were already on sale, and no doubt shops are already starting to cash in on Christmas. As we head into our theme of 'Moving Forward’ this term, I too thought I would  pull out a bit of Christmas early, namely the story of the 3 wise men or magi who travelled from the east bringing their worship and gifts of gold frankincense and myrrh, to the baby Jesus. This is a story of journey, adventure, political intrigue and scheming, but with gift giving being one of my love languages, I want to focus on the 3 gifts mentioned above.

Gold was given to Jesus to symbolise his kingship, and many scholars believe that it would also have been used to support Jesus and his family as they fled to Egypt to escape the schemes of King Herod who sought to kill him. Frankincense, a rare and expensive perfume signified Jesus’ deity, and again it is believed that this gift would have helped Jesus, Mary and Joseph financially during their exile. Finally, myrrh was a sign of the sacrifice Jesus would make to rescue all humankind from the power of sin and death and was very possibly used to embalm him prior to being placed in the tomb. These gifts given by the magi not only helped Jesus ‘Move Forward’ but also equipped and prepared Him to help others do the same.

Speaking of the love and goodness of God, Jesus said in Matthew 7.9-11, “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11 If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! The Gifts and talents we have and that we grow and develop are God given and help us to ‘Move Forward’ as we face the many challenges of Term 4 and prepare for the new year and other changes that are fast approaching. For students it's about exams, preparing for the next year level at school and of course for the Year 12s, the journey that is life beyond Endeavour. Staff at Endeavour are organising and facilitating interviews, celebrations, and transition days, planning for 2021 and new classes, and for some maybe (like Year 12 students) looking towards life beyond Endeavour. Parents and families may be thinking about the financial challenges of the Christmas season, holidays and what new things 2021 may have instore. Exciting and possibly scary times for all. 

The Bible is clear that we are not only given these gifts for our own benefit, we are challenged to think beyond ourselves we are ‘Blessed to be a Blessing' (Genesis 12.2). We are blessed with the gifts and talents we have been given that we might bless others with them and empower them to move forward also. We are called to be “the light of the world…” to “…let our light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify our Father in heaven” (Matthew 5.14-16) and we are encouraged to be “stewards of the manifold grace of God, serving one another with whatever gift each of us has received.” (1 Peter 4.10). As you walk this exciting and challenging season, I pray that you will be blessed to be a blessing.  

Jason Urquhart

Lay Chaplain