By Skip Heitzig
There’s a Christmas song that tells us how Santa Claus “sees you when you’re sleeping, he knows when you’re awake, he knows if you’ve been bad or good, so be good for goodness sake!” The writer of this song was wrongly giving an imaginary elf the attributes of God. You see, only God knows everything. This attribute is called omniscience, and it makes Him so different, so much higher, than mere humans.
The thing about God that really grabbed David’s attention was His personal and thorough knowledge of him. He said in Psalm 139, “O Lord, You have searched me and known me. You know my sitting down and my rising up; You understand my thought afar off. You comprehend my path and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways. For there is not a word on my tongue, but behold, O Lord, You know it altogether” (Ps. 139:1-4). Amazingly, the God who knows everything about everything cares enough to know each of us personally.
David reminds us that God knows us inside and out. He has searched and knows us, including our thoughts and our motives. He knows when we sit down to relax and when we get up to engage in the activities of our daily lives. He can even tell what we’re thinking and what we’ll say. Knowing that God knows about us should cause us to live lives that are pleasing to Him. In the words of the Christmas song, we should want to “be good for goodness’ sake!”
David also realized that God’s thoughts toward Him were both gracious and numerous: “How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them! If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand; When I awake, I am still with You” (Ps. 139:17). God’s thoughts toward us are precious; in other words, they are loving, concerned thoughts. And His thoughts toward us are continual; they are beyond counting. If the mythical Santa was said to be watching to see whether to give or withhold gifts, know this: God is watching because He wants to give “exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think” (Eph. 3:20).
The Creator of the Universe, the Almighty God, who knows each star by name, is thinking about you. He sees you when you’re sleeping, He knows when you’re awake…and He is there diligently, lovingly watching over you. “He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He…shall neither slumber nor sleep” (Psalm 121:3-4).
I was there when it happened (To Listen)
You ask me how I know that Jesus saves me,
How I know that all my sins are white as snow;
You ask me how I know that He forgave me;
Now listen, I must tell you how I know.
You ask me how I know that He redeemed me;
And how I received the peace no gold can buy;
How from the guilt and pow’r of sin He saved me,
Made me an heir to mansions in the sky.
And now, as thru the world I go rejoicing,
I am telling what a Savior dwells within;
How I plunged into the cleansing, crimson fountain,
And Jesus washed my soul from ev’ry sin.
Patient: "HUH"
In The News:
Obama Administration Recognizes Syrian Opposition Forces
The U.S. is now officially standing with the coalition of fighters opposing Syrian president Bashar al-Assad's regime, President Barack Obama declared in an exclusive interview with Barbara Walters scheduled to air on ABC's "20/20" Friday. "We've made a decision that the Syrian opposition coalition is now inclusive enough, is reflective and representative enough of the Syrian population, that we consider them the legitimate representative of the Syrian people in opposition to the Assad regime," Obama said. "Not everybody who's participating on the ground in fighting Assad are people who we are comfortable with. There are some who, I think, have adopted an extremist agenda, an anti-U.S. agenda, and we are going to make clear to distinguish between those elements." ReligionToday.com previously reported that in February, al Qaeda's leader called for the ouster of the Assad regime, urging Muslims in Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey to support Syrian rebels. Syrian Christians, who fear for their future should Assad be defeated, say the growing presence of foreign Islamic fighters in the country and many Islamist brigades within the opposition Free Syrian Army are of particular concern. Innocent Christians and communities that have not joined the uprising against Assad continue to become victims at the hand of radicals as the total death toll now tops 42,000.
U.S. Navy Cancels Nativity on Bahrain Military Base After Atheist Complaint
The U.S. Navy directed service members serving in Bahrain to cancel and dismantle a live nativity after receiving a complaint from a military atheist group who said the manger scene endangered Americans serving in a Muslim country and violated the U.S. Constitution, Fox News reports. The live nativity was a long-standing tradition at Naval Support Activity (NSA) Bahrain that featured the children of military personnel dressed as shepherds and wise men along with Mary and Joseph. It was part of a larger celebration that included a tree lighting, Christmas music and photographs with Santa Claus and a camel. The Military Association of Atheists and Freethinkers filed a complaint with the Navy's Inspector General, arguing that it promoted Christianity as the "official religion of the base" and also put service members in danger because the local Muslim population could "see the U.S. military as a Christian force rather than a secular military." A statement the Navy sent the MAAF reportedly read: "Upon further review, the CRP [Command Religious Program] will be removing the Living Nativity Program from the general base secular holiday festivities and co-locating it more appropriately with some of our other private religious and faith-based observances at the chapel at a separate time." Some service members in Bahrain called the cancellation "heartbreaking," and children who were supposed to act in the nativity were devastated. "Here we are serving in the Middle East, defending our country and other people's religions, and we couldn't understand why we can't enjoy our own religious freedoms," said one officer who asked not to be identified.
You ask me how I know that Jesus saves me,
How I know that all my sins are white as snow;
You ask me how I know that He forgave me;
Now listen, I must tell you how I know.
Refrain
I was there when it happened, and I ought to know;
His Spirit burning in me, set my heart aglow;
So I praise the Lord today, He has washed my sins away;
I was there when it happened, and I ought to know.
His Spirit burning in me, set my heart aglow;
So I praise the Lord today, He has washed my sins away;
I was there when it happened, and I ought to know.
And how I received the peace no gold can buy;
How from the guilt and pow’r of sin He saved me,
Made me an heir to mansions in the sky.
Refrain
And now, as thru the world I go rejoicing,
I am telling what a Savior dwells within;
How I plunged into the cleansing, crimson fountain,
And Jesus washed my soul from ev’ry sin.
Refrain
Daily Smile:
Doctor: "Good news you passed your hearing test!"Patient: "HUH"
In The News:
Obama Administration Recognizes Syrian Opposition Forces
The U.S. is now officially standing with the coalition of fighters opposing Syrian president Bashar al-Assad's regime, President Barack Obama declared in an exclusive interview with Barbara Walters scheduled to air on ABC's "20/20" Friday. "We've made a decision that the Syrian opposition coalition is now inclusive enough, is reflective and representative enough of the Syrian population, that we consider them the legitimate representative of the Syrian people in opposition to the Assad regime," Obama said. "Not everybody who's participating on the ground in fighting Assad are people who we are comfortable with. There are some who, I think, have adopted an extremist agenda, an anti-U.S. agenda, and we are going to make clear to distinguish between those elements." ReligionToday.com previously reported that in February, al Qaeda's leader called for the ouster of the Assad regime, urging Muslims in Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey to support Syrian rebels. Syrian Christians, who fear for their future should Assad be defeated, say the growing presence of foreign Islamic fighters in the country and many Islamist brigades within the opposition Free Syrian Army are of particular concern. Innocent Christians and communities that have not joined the uprising against Assad continue to become victims at the hand of radicals as the total death toll now tops 42,000.
U.S. Navy Cancels Nativity on Bahrain Military Base After Atheist Complaint
The U.S. Navy directed service members serving in Bahrain to cancel and dismantle a live nativity after receiving a complaint from a military atheist group who said the manger scene endangered Americans serving in a Muslim country and violated the U.S. Constitution, Fox News reports. The live nativity was a long-standing tradition at Naval Support Activity (NSA) Bahrain that featured the children of military personnel dressed as shepherds and wise men along with Mary and Joseph. It was part of a larger celebration that included a tree lighting, Christmas music and photographs with Santa Claus and a camel. The Military Association of Atheists and Freethinkers filed a complaint with the Navy's Inspector General, arguing that it promoted Christianity as the "official religion of the base" and also put service members in danger because the local Muslim population could "see the U.S. military as a Christian force rather than a secular military." A statement the Navy sent the MAAF reportedly read: "Upon further review, the CRP [Command Religious Program] will be removing the Living Nativity Program from the general base secular holiday festivities and co-locating it more appropriately with some of our other private religious and faith-based observances at the chapel at a separate time." Some service members in Bahrain called the cancellation "heartbreaking," and children who were supposed to act in the nativity were devastated. "Here we are serving in the Middle East, defending our country and other people's religions, and we couldn't understand why we can't enjoy our own religious freedoms," said one officer who asked not to be identified.
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