BTLN UPDATE

 

Congrats Ben! This is Ben's second Helmet ever. (And first Bulldog win!) Ben's first Helmet was on his first night at Btln! (I'm sure that is a Btln record!) Ben won the Belly Flop on his first night! What a way to start your Btln career!

 

This week we welcomed back Ryley (for the rest of the Btln year!), GeRRald (For one night.) and Austin (Not sure how long Austin will be around.) What a difference to have these guys back at Btln! We are so happy to have these guys back, even if it's only for one night!

 

GeRRald wanted to play Murderball, so we played Murderball! After two games we were tied 1-1. My team had Ben's team down early in the third game, but we were unable to finish them off. They battled back, taking the third game, and finished us off in the fourth, beating us 3-1!

 

In Bible study we had Ben leading us through another strange story from the Bible. The best part about these stories, is that they are real! Real people and the one true God!

 

Not long after God had rescued the Israelites from slavery in Egypt they began to grumble against God.

 

Numbers 11:4-6  The rabble with them began to crave other food, and again the Israelites started wailing and said, “If only we had meat to eat! We remember the fish we ate in Egypt at no cost—also the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions and garlic. But now we have lost our appetite; we never see anything but this manna!”

 

It is sad how fast the Israelites forgot all the good things God has done for them! (Are we any different?) God had saved them from Egypt, was going to take them to their own land and in the mean time was miraculously providing food that had all the vitamins and nutrients that they needed!

 

Numbers 11:13-15  Where can I get meat for all these people? They keep wailing to me, ‘Give us meat to eat!’ I cannot carry all these people by myself; the burden is too heavy for me. If this is how you are going to treat me, please go ahead and kill me—if I have found favor in your eyes—and do not let me face my own ruin.”

 

Even Moses begins to forget how God had provided for the Israelites. Moses is trying to do things on his own instead of leaning on God!

 

Numbers 11:18-20  “Tell the people: ‘Consecrate yourselves in preparation for tomorrow, when you will eat meat. The Lord heard you when you wailed, “If only we had meat to eat! We were better off in Egypt!” Now the Lord will give you meat, and you will eat it. You will not eat it for just one day, or two days, or five, ten or twenty days, but for a whole month—until it comes out of your nostrils and you loathe it—because you have rejected the Lord, who is among you, and have wailed before him, saying, “Why did we ever leave Egypt?”’”

 

God gave the Israelites the meat they desired, and in larger portions than they could have ever imagined! We need to remember that God knows best! (Careful what you pray for!)

 

We also need to remember all the good things God has done for us in the past, and believe that he can do more than we can ask or imagine in our future!

 

Ephesians 3:20-21  Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

 

 

Ping Pong Tourney next week at Btln!

 

THE CAPTAIN

BTLN PREVIEW - GeRRRRRRRRRald

 

 

 

 

That's right, GeRRald is going to be at Btln this week! It's so good to have GeRRald back, even if it's only for one week!

 

 

THE CAPTAIN

WINTERSLAM 9

 

 

 

Congrats John Van! John is the Winterslam Champion! John is now the reigning Btln Olympic and Winterslam Champion! That is a very good year!

 

There were 32 boys at Winterslam 9! 22 Lightweights and 8 Heavyweights! (2 guys couldn't compete.) In the Lightweight Division we had 6 bouts in the first round! The 6 winners moved into the second round. After two bouts in the second round we were down to 2 guys! Tyson and Jake both battled hard, but in the end it was Jake winning the Lightweight Division! Congrats Jake! Could Jake be a future Winterslam Champion?

 

First Round Winners

Kaylon Sieben

Jakob Boschmann

James Podmoroff

Riley Becker

Tyson Tiller

Logan Cunningham

 

Second Round Winners

Jakob Boschmann

Tyson Tiller

 

Lightweight Champion

Jakob Boschmann

 

 

The Heavyweight Division had two rounds. In the first round, eight men battled in two bouts for the right to be one of the final two! Max and John were the winners of the two bouts in the first round, setting up a clash of the titans! Both guys fought hard, it wasn't going to be easy for either of them.

In the end John outlasted Max, giving John the Winterslam Title and the Belt! Congrats to both Max and John! Both competed very hard! 

 

First Round Winners

Maxwell Nicholson

John Van

 

Heavyweight Champion

John Van

 

 

Special thanks to Ben, Jason, Jake and Max for helping set up! Thanks also Aaron!

 

THE CAPTAIN

WINTERSLAM CHAMPIONS

 

This week is Winterslam 9! (Can't believe that it is already nine years!) Only one repeat Champion in eight years. Who will take home the belt this year?

 

Here are the Champions from the past!

 



WINTERSLAM CHAMPIONS

 

AUSTIN SCOW - 2013

NATHAN KLASSEN - 2012

KALEB HORKOFF - 2011

SAM SCHIESSER - 2010

STEVEN FEENSTRA - 2009

STEVEN FEENSTRA - 2008

DEVIN CHURSINOFF - 2007

BEN JEPSEN - 2006

 

THE CAPTAIN

BTLN BIRTHDAYS - FEBRUARY

 

It's February and the Captain is finally on top of things! (Birthday blog before the middle of the month!) Seems like there are Btln Legends every month! So many pictures of Ben, he's been around for a long time!

 

Ephesians 5:1-2  Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

 



Happy Birthday and may God bless you again this year!

HARRY TOURNEMILLE - February 2
DYLAN WARWARUK - February 2
ANDREW NEUFELD - February 6
DESHAWN DENNIS - February 11
GEORGE KOZUB - February 13
TIM FEENSTRA - February 14
BEN JEPSEN - February 14
JUSTIN BEKKER - February 17
RILEY LEIGHTON - February 20

 

THE CAPTAIN

BTLN UPDATE

 

Congrats Max! This is Max's fifth Helmet of the Btln Season! There are eleven nights left in the 2013/14 Btln Season. Can Max be caught? Will Max tie or beat Zach's record of eight Helmets in one Btln Season? Can't wait to find out!

 

We played the Btln Trifecta for the first time this year! We started with Murderball. It was a best of five, my team winning three straight! The second leg of the Trifecta was Handball. We were playing to seven and my team had an early 4-0 lead! But Ben's team stormed back winning 7-5! We finished with Extreme Bulldog. My team had John Van in the middle and Ben's team had Nathan Klassen. In the end it was Jake Hachey for my team that outlasted everyone, giving my team the 2-1 victory in the Btln Trifecta! Love the Trifecta! I wish we could play it more often!

 

In Bible study we continued our miniseries "Strange and weird stories from the Bible". This week we looked at Balaam and his talking donkey. (Numbers 22:1-41, Numbers 23:1-12)

 

Numbers 22:2-6  Now Balak son of Zippor saw all that Israel had done to the Amorites, and Moab was terrified because there were so many people. Indeed, Moab was filled with dread because of the Israelites.

The Moabites said to the elders of Midian, “This horde is going to lick up everything around us, as an ox licks up the grass of the field.”
So Balak son of Zippor, who was king of Moab at that time, sent messengers to summon Balaam son of Beor, who was at Pethor, near the Euphrates River, in his native land. Balak said:

“A people has come out of Egypt; they cover the face of the land and have settled next to me. Now come and put a curse on these people, because they are too powerful for me. Perhaps then I will be able to defeat them and drive them out of the land. For I know that whoever you bless is blessed, and whoever you curse is cursed.”
 

King Balak heard how God had helped the Israelites. Balak realized that he needed supernatural help, so he asks Balaam to curse the Israelites. Balaam wanted to curse the Israelites because of greed, but he knew that he couldn't curse the Israelites if God wouldn't let him.

Joshua 24:10  But I would not listen to Balaam, so he blessed you again and again, and I delivered you out of his hand.

Deuteronomy 23:5  However, the Lord your God would not listen to Balaam but turned the curse into a blessing for you, because the Lord your God loves you.

In the end Balaam blesses the Israelites, but not before he was rebuked by his donkey.

2 Peter 2:15-16  They have left the straight way and wandered off to follow the way of Balaam son of Bezer, who loved the wages of wickedness. But he was rebuked for his wrongdoing by a donkey—an animal without speech—who spoke with a human voice and restrained the prophet’s madness.

If God would not let the Israelites be cursed then we can be sure that he will do the same for us! But He (Jesus) lives to bless us!

Romans 8:31  If God is for us, who can be against us?

Ephesians 1:3  Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.


Winterslam 9 next week at Btln!

THE CAPTAIN

NEARLY 80,000!

 

 

That's right we have almost reached 80,000 Visitors here on the blog! And just like in the past we will be giving away an iPod!  If you are a member of the Btln 3739 Nation and you see 80,000 visitors on the counter on the blog and you can prove it(Take a picture.) then your name will be entered into a draw for the iPod. There might be only one person that will see 80,000 or it could be a few guys. All of the guys that see 80,000 and can prove it will have their names entered in the draw. (We will need your proof before or on the day of the draw.)(The counter is either on the side of the page or on the very bottom of the page, depending on which web browser you are using.)

Battalion Headquarters History

September 20 2006 - Blog is started by Ben.

April 18 2008 - Blog hits 10,000 visitors.

February 3 2009 - Blog hits 20,000 visitors.

November 3 2009 - Blog hits 30,000 visitors.

May 20 2010 - Blog hits 40,000 visitors.

February 10 2011 - Blog hits 50,000 visitors.

December 8 2011 - Blog hits 60,000 visitors.
October 23 2012 - Blog hits 70,000 visitors.

Good luck to all and thanks again for visiting the blog!

THE CAPTAIN

BTLN UPDATE - MIKE NIGHT!

 

Congrats Landon! First Helmet of the Btln season for Landon! Chocolate never tastes better than after winning a Yorkie in Bulldog! Not sure if Landon shared any with his brother Dylan. It is so tough to win in the second half of the Btln season, things are going to tighten up in the Winston standings!

 

Shirt of the week goes to John Van!

 

This week was Mike Night at Btln! Always good times! There were a few bumps and bruises, but nothing to be worried about! After all we are men at Btln! The smiles say it all! So many lead changes early on, but really not that close at the end! Thanks to Ben for taking all the pictures!

 

Mike final scores

Jonathan's team - 38
Luke's team - 30
John's team - 27
Max's team - 25

This week at Btln we looked at a couple of stories. We looked at the story in (Joshua 10:5-14). In this story God caused the sun to stand still in the sky! In the other story (2 Kings 20:1-11) God caused a shadow to move backwards! In each of these stories God actually stopped the earth's rotation! And in the second story after he stopped the earth he even spun the earth backwards!

Why is this important to us? This proves that God is still in control of his creation! The laws of nature that God created are still in place, but don't apply to God!

Colossians 1:15-17  The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.

God is still the Creator and the Sustainer of life!

In the second story God adds fifteen years to Hezekiah's life!

2 Kings 20:4-6  Before Isaiah had left the middle court, the word of the Lord came to him: “Go back and tell Hezekiah, the ruler of my people, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of your father David, says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will heal you. On the third day from now you will go up to the temple of the Lord. I will add fifteen years to your life. And I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria. I will defend this city for my sake and for the sake of my servant David.’”

God gave Hezekiah an extra fifteen years of life and wants to give us eternal life! This is the super hero that the world is looking for! God is far more powerful than Superman and doesn't have any of the limitations that any of the comic book super heroes have! (God has no Kryptonite!) And God is real!

Titus 3:4-7  But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.

THE CAPTAIN

BTLN UPDATE

 

Congrats Josh! Second Helmet of the year for Josh! Josh is back in the hunt for Winston! John Van was there at the end with Josh, but fell just short. Nice work guys! It looks like Bulldog will be intense until Last Night!

 

We played Handball this week and somehow the teams ended up being very lopsided. Ben's team was up 12-7 when we rebooted, and then won the second half of the game 3-1. After winning last week I was back to my losing ways this week.

 

In Bible study we decided to look at an awesome but strange story. In Ezekiel 37:1-14 there is a story called "The valley of dry bones". In this story God shows Ezekiel a vision. God shows Ezekiel a valley full of dry bones. God tells Ezekiel to prophesy to the bones. As Ezekiel prophesies to the bones God puts the bones back together, attaches tendons, puts skin on the bones and breathes life into the bodies of the slain!

 

This story tells how God will the give the nation of Israel spiritual life and bring them hope in the future!

 

 

Ezekiel 37:14  I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land.

This story was written to the nation of Israel, but is there anything that we can learn or apply to our lives? God is the only one that can give spiritual life and he wants to give us this life! We are all just as spiritually dead as those dry bones!


Ephesians 2:1,5  As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, but because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.

What else can we learn? God chooses to use the saved (Like he used Ezekiel) to help him spread the good news to those who haven't heard or accepted it yet!


2Corinthians 5:20  We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God.

Ezekiel 37

The Valley of Dry Bones

37 The hand of the Lord was on me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. ² He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. ³ He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones live?”

I said, “Sovereign Lord, you alone know.”

⁴ Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! ⁵ This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. ⁶ I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.’”

⁷ So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. ⁸ I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them.

⁹ Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Come, breath, from the four winds and breathe into these slain, that they may live.’” ¹⁰ So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army.

¹¹ Then he said to me: “Son of man, these bones are the people of Israel. They say, ‘Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.’ ¹² Therefore prophesy and say to them: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: My people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel. ¹³ Then you, my people, will know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. ¹⁴ I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the Lord have spoken, and I have done it, declares the Lord.’”

MIKE NIGHT next week at Btln!

THE CAPTAIN

WINSTON UPDATE

 

 

It is one week into the second half and still no Winston Update! Well here it is! Max had a big lead early but the race for Winston has tightened up lately! Can Max hold onto his lead? Will John or Luke catch Him? Is David going to make a late charge? Can't wait to find out!

 

WINSTON STANDINGS

MAXWELL NICHOLSON - 4 Helmets and 1 Major
JOHN VAN - 3 Helmets and 1 Major
LUKE BOSCHMANN - 3 Helmets
DAVID BARNEY - 2 Helmets
JOSH RIDSDALE - 1 Helmet
JONATHAN FOJT - 1 Helmet
NATE KLASSEN - 1 Helmet
NOAH MAKORTOFF - 1 Helmet

 

THE CAPTAIN

BTLN BIRTHDAYS - JANUARY

 

Birthday time again! There are so many pictures of Owen, Jason and Max! These guys have all been around for a long time! Good friends and good memories! Happy Birthday and may God bless you again this year!
 

Galatians 5:1  It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.



JEREMY FEDDERSON - January 2
COURTNEY FRIESEN - January 4
JASON HAYASHI - January 10
MAXWELL NICHOLSON - January 10
OWEN SPISAK - January 23
GEOFF MARTENS - January 31

THE CAPTAIN



BTLN UPDATE

 

Congrats David! Everybody do the Barney! (How these things start I will never know!) Second Helmet of the year for David! Shirt of the week for David as well! Jonathan was there at the end with David, but just missed getting his second Helmet!

 

We played Murderball this week and for what feels like the first time this year my team finally won! The curse is over! ;)  It seems like forever since my team won the majority of games in one night. The final score was 3-2!

 

In Bible study this week we talked about contentment.

 

1Timothy 6:6-8  But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.

 

Hebrews 13:5  Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”

 

Philippians 4:12-13  I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.

 

Most people struggle with contentment and after Christmas this feeling seems to grow. Lack of possessions, disappointment in friends and family can leave us feeling empty. Paul tells us that if we have food and clothing that we should be content! The key is that we need to know that God will never leave us or forsake us and that through Christ we can do anything!

 

Philippians 4:4-7  Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

 

If we go to God for help then we will have the peace of God and will be able to rejoice in the Lord!

 

 

Week one of the Second Half is in the books!

 

THE CAPTAIN

8TH ANNUAL BTLN ALUMNI

 

So sorry that this is so late! Alumni Night is a night that is one of my favorite nights of the year! I never leave feeling disappointed. Like I told Ryley, I could be happy being a fly on the wall, just watching all the guys having a good time.

 

Four years ago we started handing out the Sergeant Jerseys on Alumni Night. This year it was Ryley's turn to receive his jersey.  I just never get tired of looking back at the wonderful history that we have at Btln 3739! So proud of Ryley! He is the kind of man we want to show to the boys that are a part of Btln right now! (And to the rest of the world!) The world likes to honor men that are good at playing sports like hockey, football or baseball. But for some reason they still want them to be good men as well. (Hello Pete Rose.) We want to honor and follow men that are following Christ.

 

1 Corinthians 11:1  Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.

 

We played 10 games of Murderball! My team losing 7-3! It was first to seven wins. So much fun, you really don't have to be careful with so many big guys!

 

After a picture we played Bulldog and this year we started with Maxwell in the middle and ended with Owen as the winner! Congrats Owen! Few guys intimidate me like Owen! I wasn't going to sacrifice my body to stop him!

 

Once we were done at the gym we moved to Jepsen's to do some more visiting. Thanks again to Bruce and Katie!

 

Can't wait till next year!

 

THE CAPTAIN

ALUMNI NIGHT 2013!

 

 

The 8th Annual Btln Alumni Night is just over a week away! Anyone in grade 11 or 12 and all Btln Alumni are invited!

 

Dec. 27th at the G.C. at 7:00 p.m.

 

THE CAPTAIN

BTLN BIRTHDAYS - DECEMBER

 

December is here! Actually, it is nearly half over! So many good men having birthdays this month! Good men and good friends! Jesus is also a friend! In December we celebrate that Jesus came to this earth to lay down his life for us! Jesus is the friend that we all need!

Proverbs 18:24b  there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.

John 15:13  Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.

MIKE TRAINER - December 4
KEVIN HAYASHI - December 9
DEVIN CHURSINOFF - December 10
DYLAN ZORN - December 19
LUKE BOSCHMAN - December 19
CALVIN PETERS - December 21
STEPHEN LAWRENCE - December 23
REESE HOGARTH - December 25
JEREMY MARTENS - December 28
ZANE LAWSON - December 31

Happy Birthday and may God bless you again this year!

THE CAPTAIN

BTLN UPDATE - THE 3B's!

 

 

 

 



What a night! Over 40 guys showed up for the 3B's! We ate 10 extra large Battalion Baconators, one large pot of Beans, 7 cases of Barq's and over 100 Bonuts! We started out by eating the Baconators and the Beans. (Originally we wanted to call the Baconator the "Greasy Pig". It has multiple pork products!)

After pizza and Beans we moved upstairs to play some MurderBall. Ben's team took the first game, But my team Battled Back and took the next two! Ben's team took the next game forcing the fifth and final game! The fifth game was close, But I could feel it slowly slipping away, Ben's team taking the fifth and the win!

Bonuts were next on the agenda! The guys ate over 100 Bonuts! Even though one tray hit the floor! 5 second rule! Not sure Logan will ever live it down!

We ended the night with Bulldog! Congrats Luke B! This was Luke's 3rd Helmet of the First Half! Luke and Jonathan were in it at the end, Luke pulling out the Big win!

Next up Btln Alumni 2013! Dec. 27th at 7:00. Grade 11's and 12's are invited!

 

THE CAPTAIN

BTLN UPDATE

 

 

 

Congrats Nate! This is the first Helmet of the Btln Season for Nate. Nate has the dangerous combination of strength, speed and determination. Can he catch Max and John in the race for Winston? Can't wait to find out!

This week the Freshpark skate ramps showed up! So stoked! Can't wait to try them out! I just love that Btln and the GC Youth are working together! It's the way it should be! Expecting God to do great things through both Btln and Youth!

We played Handball this week at Btln. The game was back and forth but very close all the way through. The score was 9-9 when we went to one of the shortest "Next goal wins" overtimes in Btln history! First shot got past the Captain! Luke B. turned and threw the ball all in one motion and the game was over! Even in defeat the Handball was a lot of fun!

In Bible study this week we looked at the Christmas story.
 

Luke 2:1-20 

In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. ² (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) ³ And everyone went to their own town to register.
⁴ So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. ⁵ He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. ⁶ While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, ⁷ and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them. ⁸ And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. ⁹ An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. ¹⁰ But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. ¹¹ Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. ¹² This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
¹³ Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

¹⁴ “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
    and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

¹⁵ When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

¹⁶ So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. ¹⁷ When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, ¹⁸ and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. ¹⁹ But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. ²⁰ The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

 

The question that we tried to answer this week was, why was Jesus born in a stable instead of a palace? The Creator of the Universe and the Savior of the world being born in a barn? It should be enough to move us to tears. Why did God choose to announce Jesus' birth to the shepherds? I believe God wanted to show us that his plan was to save everyone no matter what our social status is.

Romans 3:23  for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

Acts 10:34-35  Then Peter began to speak: “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right.

Philippians 2:5-11  In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Jesus' birth, life and death were all a lesson in humility.

Next week is the Three B's!

THE CAPTAIN