麻豆视频

Cairns on Cinema

Well, folks, it鈥檚 that time again. As we bid farewell to this year and this decade, I for one find it easy to put 2020 behind us.

The New Year is always a good time to talk about beginnings and fresh starts. With that in mind, I wrote a little story on the birth of a child, since there鈥檚 nothing that leaves us with brighter expectation and hope.

The Ilex, or holly, is a genus that is widespread throughout the temperate and subtropical regions of the world. It includes species of trees, shrubs and climbers, some with evergreen and some with deciduous foliage.

If ever there was a tough Christmas, at least for a lot of us, it鈥檚 Christmas 2020. I won鈥檛 really miss the work involved in putting up and taking down the tree, but that鈥檚 only because no one can come to share its beauty with us.

鈥淭here will be no candlelight carol service at our church on Christmas Eve,鈥� I told Ed yesterday. Of course, he has always said candlelight services are popular because it is a way for everyone to play with fire at church.

Four hundred years after Moses led Israel out of Egypt, David became Israel鈥檚 beloved King. God promised that a Son from David鈥檚 lineage would come whose kingdom would never end.

*This poem is in no way meant to trivialize the impact this pandemic has had on our world, or make light of anyone鈥檚 suffering. I hope only to bring a smile.

As the days to Christmas wind down, an unwanted gift came our way. I told Ed yesterday that one of the secretaries at our church phoned to say she has tested positive for COVID-19. She and her husband are quarantined for 10 days.

Handel鈥檚 Messiah popularized these lines: 鈥渇or unto us a child is born.鈥� We need to hear afresh every Christmas. Every child holds a great promise of new things to come. Why do we need promises? We have experienced so much darkness in recent times.