Peace on Earth and Good Will to Men!

This theme and these words has been going through my head for the past few days. Could it be the recurring lyrics of Christmas carols that I have been hearing lately in the middle of the night? All musicians hear music when it isn't playing. I think it is something much more that and it's a message that is so important for all of us to ponder when there is so much chaos, violence, and unrest in our world today.

When will it happen? Will it ever happen? Is it possible in this life or will it become only a reality in the next life? I believe that God can and does use each of us to be instruments of His peace in this life. We can radiate peace to others when we ourselves carry that inner peace in our hearts. How do we acquire that peace? I believe that obtaining peace is not something that happens to us overnight, but it is a process of spiritual growth obtained through discipline and the acceptance of special graces God offers us.

Peace is more than a "fuzzy moment" or a nice feeling that comes over us. It is a deep faith that gives us strength in the midst of the prolonged and unending trials we face throughout a lifetime. It is a calm trust and daily surrender our entire being -- body, mind, and soul-- to Jesus and Mary, so they can transform everything we do into something beautiful. Jesus was the sacrifice, the oblation who gave Himself totally for us to bring us eternal love, eternal peace, and eternal joy. He offers Himself daily to us. He awaits us -- a prisoner in the tabernacle--He patiently waits for us to come and whisper sweet words of love, or to just sit patiently and watch and wait with Him until He speaks. He desires our company and longs for us to spend time -- just a few moments with Him-- to bless us and give us a glimpse into that inner serenity that all of us crave. It is the empty hole within us that only He can fill.

May the Christ Child fill your heart with the peace of His presence this Christmas and throughout the New Year!

Jill Stanek's Christmas Message

A special lady, who has made a major impact in the pro-life battle is Jill Stanek.
With her permission, I would like to share her special Christmas message with you. I hope it touches your heart as it did mine.

STANEK: The Embryonic Jesus Story
http://www.illinoisleader.com/news/newsview.asp?c=10872

Wednesday, December 24, 2003
By Jill Stanek (Jill@illinoisleader.com)


OPINION -- At this time of year we focus on Christ’s birth and His conception nine months prior by the Holy Spirit in the fallopian tube of a virgin.

But there is another fascinating incident the Bible describes about the beginning of Jesus’ human life. It is the Embryonic Jesus Story.

Luke 1 tells about the first person besides Jesus’ mother and earthly father who recognized He was extraordinary.

That person was Jesus’ cousin John - while John was yet a fetus, and while Jesus was but an embryo.

When John was a preborn six-month-old, his Aunt Mary came to visit his expectant mother Elizabeth, her cousin. Mary was newly pregnant with Jesus.

Luke 1:41 says when Mary greeted Elizabeth, John kicked. Elizabeth told Mary, “The instant I heard your voice, my baby moved in me for joy!”

Elizabeth then prophesied, “You are the most blessed of all women, and blessed is the child that you will have. I feel blessed that the mother of my Lord is visiting me.”

John was later known as John the Baptist. Jesus said John and his role were foreseen in Malachi 3:1, “I am sending my messenger ahead of you to prepare the way in front of you.”

Amazingly, John began preparing the way for Jesus at the tender age of six fetal months.

Actually, that was also prophesied. Before John was even conceived, the angel Gabriel told his father Zechariah, "He will be filled with the Holy Spirit even before he is born‚…. He will go ahead of the Lord…. He will prepare the people for their Lord" (Lu. 1:15-17).

On a practical level, we learn from these Scriptures that preborn babies hear, display emotion, communicate intuitively with their mothers, and even launch their life’s work.

Science has corroborated babies hear as early as 20 weeks (which the Bible knew 2,000 years ago), and most mothers say they bond with their preborn babies.

But can fetuses really show emotion and begin fulfilling their destiny? Skeptics will say I extracted too much from these passages.

But this wasn’t the first Biblical account of fetuses displaying dispositions.

Genesis 25 tells about Rebekah and the twins she was carrying, Jacob and Esau. Verses 21-22 say, “When the children inside her were struggling with each other, she said, ‘If it is like this now, what will become of me?”

The Lord answered her, “Two countries are in your womb. Two nations will go their separate ways from birth. One nation will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger.” (verse 23).

The struggles between the boys began en utero. The younger Jacob was born ‚"with his hand holding on to Esau’s heel.” Jacob later claimed Esau’s birthright, and God changed his name to Israel. The hostilities between the stronger Israelites and the weaker Edomites came to pass. Jacob’s prenatal propensity for "struggling" lasted his entire life. He once even physically wrestled God (Ge. 32:22-32).

Genesis 38:27-30 tells about another set of fetal twins: “As [Tamar] was giving birth, one of them put out his hand; so the midwife took a scarlet thread and tied it on his wrist and said, ‘This one came out first.’ But when he drew back his hand, his brother came out, and she said, ‘Is this how you burst into the world!’ He was named Perez (Bursting Into). After that his brother was born with the red yarn on his hand. He was named Zerah (Sunrise).”

Tamar's firstborn son, Perez, became an ancestor of God’s firstborn son, Jesus (Mt. 1:3, Lu. 3:33).

Yes, a person’s mark on the world begins prenatally. David said in Psalm 22:10,“From the womb you have been my God.” Conversely, Psalm 58:3 says, “Even inside the womb wicked people are strangers to God.”

That said, God offers redemption and wants the best for us. Just as he told Jeremiah in 1:5, he tells us, “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you. Before you were born, I set you apart for a special work.”

God’s plan for each egg, sperm, embryo, fetus, baby, child, and adult are beyond our human capacity to comprehend. Ecclesiastes 11:5 says, “Just as you don’t know how the breath of life enters the limbs of a child within its mother’s womb, you also don’t understand how God, who made everything, works.”

The angel Gabriel made another prediction to Zechariah about his son John, saying, “He will change parents’ attitudes toward their children.”

This prophecy brings me comfort. I pray John’s part in the Embryonic Jesus Story will do just that regarding some attitudes previously accepting abortion.

© 2003 Illinois Leader.com

Used with permission.

_________

What are your thoughts concerning the issues raised in this commentary? Write a letter to the editor at letters@illinoisleader.com, and include name and town.


Jill Stanek

Jill Stanek became a leader in the Illinois conservative movement when she fought to stop "live birth abortion" after witnessing one as an RN at Christ Hospital in Oak Lawn. Jill was asked to President Bush's signing of the Born Alive Infants Protection Act in August 2002. In January 2003, Jill was named by World Magazine as one of the 30 most prominent pro-life leaders of the past 30 years. She continues to press for Illinois to become a state where unborn and newly-born babies are safe. Jill is also pro-life coordinator for Concerned Women for America of Illinois and a public speaker around the country.

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