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The Executive Branch Must Act Within Its Authority

Pretvious Can We Really Trust Election Night Election Results?	God Has A Plan; A Christmas Message	Next To Be Determined
Published in The Post Newspaper December 25, 2024 This week Christians around the world are celebrating the birth of Jesus.  Some used to make a pilgrimage to Bethlehem as part of the observance. There are several reasons the birthplace of Jesus is important.  One is that it fulfilled a prophesy of the Old Testament about the coming Jewish Messiah.  He was to be born in Bethlehem of Ephrathah (Mich 5:2).  But wait a minute, his parents lived in Nazareth 90 miles from Bethlehem.  Chapter 2 of Luke tells us that Caesar decreed that a census should be taken throughout his empire.  That required Joseph and Mary to travel to their ancestorial home to be counted.  Both Joseph and Mary were descendants of King David so they made the trip, Joseph walking and Mary on a donkey.   Now Ceasar could have made his decree at some other time, but he didn’t.  It was God’s plan that Joseph and Mary would arrive in Bethlehem just as Mary was to give birth, thereby fulfilling the Scriptural prophesy that Messiah would be born in the City of David (Bethlehem). Unlike the birth of Jesus, we don’t need to go to Bethlehem to meet Him.  We could be in church, on the beach, in our car; It doesn’t matter.  In my case I was in my office in Washington, DC when I was introduced to the Jewish Messiah.   Before I met Him, I was bouncing from one thing to another.   After I met Him there was a purpose for my life. Some of you may know the story that I ran for Congress.  I did so because during a church service I felt the Lord was telling me to run.  My immediate reaction was “Here I am Lord, send Aaron!” (somebody else!)  I wrestled with this the entire service and when I got home, I decided to read the passage for the day’s service.  Hebrews 3:7 said, “Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts…” reading further here it came again 3:15 and again in 4:7.   That got my attention!  So, I ran for Congress.  I didn’t win but looking back, I feel like the Lord was using this to get me off my duff and to meet, minister to, and to pray for people I otherwise would never know.  One was a WWII vet in Brazoria County who was in hospices.  Another was a woman in League City who was dealing with the impact of agent orange on her family.  I didn’t know it at the time, but I believe this was God’s plan all along.  God works that way, leading us in ways we don’t fully recognize or understand until later. So, this Christmas, know that God has a plan for you.  You don’t need to be perfect for the Lord to meet you and use you.  He will meet you wherever you are, at the right time and at the right place.  Know that He loves you, He will bless you, and He will use you in ways you can never imagine.  Matthew 7:7 says “Ask, and it will be given, seek, and you will find, knock, and it will be opened to you…”  That’s Gods promise to us.  Count on it, trust it, and trust that He wants to use you in a special way.  All you need to do is to confess your shortcomings, ask His forgiveness, and seek to walk in His way, not your own.  That’s the real blessing of Christmas!
	About the Author 2024 Bill Sargent has written or cowritten over 275 guest columns and editorials over the last ten years and continues to do so. Bill lives in Galveston, Texas He unsuccessfully ran for Congress in 2012 and again in 2018.
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