Faith

Mark can't help but write about his faith in God as he considers it the most important thing in his life. He reflects on biblical principles, spirituality, practices and attitudes, religious structures, a bit of theology, and more - to encourage people to reflect on and rekindle their own faith and grow closer to God.

Mark Gilroy December 22, 2011

Merry Christmas From the Gilroys

Open publication – Free publishing – More gilroy family

Mark Gilroy December 18, 2011

Christmas Reminds Us of the Joy of Hospitality

Is your door open to others during the holiday season?

Christmas is the season for kindling the fire of hospitality in the hall, the genial flame of charity in the heart.

Washington Irving

History and literature brim with accounts of the wonderful gift of hospitality. In Charles Dickens’ immortal and beloved A Christmas Carol, it is the rich man with the big house, Ebenezer Scrooge, who locks his door and heart tightly to others, content to count his gold and silver coins. It takes an ethereal ghost and the fear of what the afterlife—chains and all—might hold for him to awaken Scrooge to the soulless and cruel miserliness of his ways. Soon after he sees the light, he is welcomed into the humble home of Bob Cratchett, where the air is cold but the hearts are warm, where he sees with his own eyes the responsibility and richness of opening one’s heart and home to others.

But my house isn’t very big and my furniture isn’t very nice. We get so tired out by the holidays. We just want some down time.

Not sure about your gift of hospitality? First of all, if you have a smile, a warm heart, and a few kind words, no one cares how grand or simple your house is. It was the investor Charles M. Schwab who said: “Money will buy you a bed but not a good night sleep, a house but not a home, a companion but not a friend.” Second, you are wise to pace yourself over the Christmas season and not fill every square in your December calendar with activities. You need not feel guilty for that down time you’ve been looking forward to.

But the simple truth is that hospitality is good for the soul; it allows you to connect with others and is a tangible expression that you care for them.

Two thousand years go, an unnamed innkeeper, his guest rooms already filled, opened his heart and what accommodations he could muster to a young couple with nowhere else to turn. His home was the site of the greatest miracle in the history of mankind.

Shepherds and angels may not appear at your front door when you invite the neighbors over, but a special blessing awaits you and them!

Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it.

Hebrews 13:2

From the Simple Blessings of Christmas by Mark Gilroy

Mark Gilroy December 16, 2011

Christmas Reminds Us That Greatness Begins In Small Packages

The man who is called father by three of the world’s major religions—Islam, Christianity, and Judaism—had but a small family of his own. In fact, he and his wife, Sarah, weren’t sure they could even have one child. But from Abraham’s offspring, there remains a lineage that circles the globe.

He wasn’t supposed to live beyond infancy. All the other baby boys of his birthplace died the year he was born. His mother had to give him up to the care of another. But the tiny baby survived, even when he was floated down the Nile River in a basket. And the man Moses grew into led his people out of slavery and against impossible circumstances presented by nature and enemies, he brought them to God’s Promised Land.

He was the youngest son of an inconsequential family that was a member of a small tribe that lived in the hill country of an obscure nation. Yet David, a man after God’s own heart, prevailed in combat against lion, bear, and giant. Poet and warrior, he became a king and nation builder against whom all other kings to come would be measured.

In a dark and violent world; in a bleak and blighted village; a tiny life appeared. What difference does the life of one small make baby? Particularly one of questionable lineage, of humble means, far from the center of worldly power?

Jesus, the Babe in the manger, brought light and hope to a world engulfed in strife—and forever changed the course of history.

We look to the big, expensive, and impressive; we admire the powerful and influential; we check price tags, even during the holidays. But the message of Christmas is that great things come in small packages. A simple kindness. A gentle word. A smile. A listening ear. A shared meal. A song. A handwritten note. A surprise phone call. The shining eyes of children. All these small gestures hint at the greatest blessing of Christmas: a grand and magnificent love broke into the world when Jesus was born in a humble manger.

Enjoy the bright lights and big moments of the season. But don’t lose sight that the greatest blessings come in the smallest packages.

The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches.

Matthew 13:31–32