December 2020

SAVE THE DATE

12.24 | Christmas Eve

12.25 | Christmas Day

12.31 | New Years Eve

1.1.21 | New Years Day

PRAYER CORNER

We hope this Christmas season you will display Christ like never before. Share the joy of the gospel with those around you along with Christmas cheer. As we look ahead to 2021, we pray that you can look back on 2020 and find things to be thankful and grateful for even through the hardships of this year. As always we look forward to the years to come, submit to God’s will for our lives, and stand ready for His coming. What a joyous day it will be when we see Jesus face to face.

A SPECIAL GIFT TO YOU THIS CHRISTMAS SEASON

By Bill Powell

Let’s face it- there are gifts, then there are gifts. This gift I am talking about is better than a Lexus with a ribbon on it. It's better than a puppy and even better than a vacation. Think about this- who can give a gift that is better than anything you can think of and will be given to everyone in our community? Yes, this gift is to the whole community but individually. So, you understand this is a physical gift. Something you and everyone can use. It won't wear out, get used up, or go out of style. Another nice thing about this gift is that you can share it. You should share it and not just keep it for yourself.

Now, you may be saying this is a trick or a bait-and-switch. No, it is exactly how I described it. The last time a gift like this was given to our community was in 1935 and repurposed in 1978. The best thing about it is that it comes from God (and only after much prayer), and many if not most of you are how this gift was made possible. Enough, Bill, what is it?

The gift is a new radio station that will carry all the programs that play on WMFJ 1450 AM, only on an FM frequency. It will be on 96.9 and will be broadcast from New Smyrna Beach on our tower near SR 44. Its full reach we will not know for sure until we turn it on. We DO know it will be heard in New Smyrna, Edgewater, Oak Hill, and at least to Port Orange and South Daytona. Once this is done, we will make the AM programming available on 97.3 from South Daytona to Flagler Beach. Not sure how far west it will reach just yet.

We have known for a long time that most people do not listen to AM radio. It has always been our feeling that most of our listeners are missing out on the wealth of Christian programming on WMFJ. The other advantage is that FM is stereo, and AM is not. Plus, FM doesn’t get fuzzy at night like AM. Many people in New Smyrna and south have never had the advantage of picking up WMFJ. Many of you will enjoy the clear stereo sound from the programs you love, especially at night. A few other nice features about it is that the cost after installation will be minimal because it will broadcast from our tower. No tower rent to pay or land to buy.

We currently have the construction permit and all the equipment, including the antenna and transmitter. Our goal, which should be realistic, is to turn it on sometime before the end of this year. Hopefully in time for Christmas. Why is this better than a Lexus? This is programming with eternal consequences. It is our prayer many will tune in and be discipled and either come to know the Lord or grow in their current faith.

Merry Christmas. To us a Savior was born, and he is Christ the Lord!

WORSHIP THE KING

By Chris Johnson

In Matthew 2, the Magi came to Jerusalem to inquire as to the location of the newly born king of the Jews. The reason for the inquiry was their desire to worship Him. This is an incredible thing to consider because babies are born every day around the world. In fact, sometimes those babies are born into royal families and given royal titles. Yet, how many of them are sought out by perfect strangers in order that they might be worshipped?

To worship Jesus Christ is the highest calling of every person in the world. The Bible tells us in Philippians 2 that one day, “every knee will bow, and every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.” This reality is more sure than the sun coming up tomorrow and it ought to cause us to pause and reflect on our own lives. Do we worship King Jesus? Does our life testify that we not only believe in Christ, but we actively follow Him? Do we long for his return with great anticipation? Do we search the Scriptures and meditate on the Word of God so that we might grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord? Do we truly worship Him?

The Christmas season is not simply a time of holiday leisure, brilliant light displays, gift-giving, and more. Those things are truly wonderful and a delight to the soul. We give thanks for every ounce of joy and happiness that can be drawn from the season. Yet, we know that the greater message, the greatest news, is that Christ has come. The Magi weren’t on a wild goose chase. Their mission was one of the highest importance because the Person whom they were to finally meet was the One who had created the very world they lived in, fashioned their very bodies in their mother’s wombs, and had come to be the source of salvation for a lost and dying world. Indeed, when they worshipped the King they worshipped the only one who is worthy of praise and honor and glory. Do we worship him? Are you worshipping him today?

BRING ON THE SMILES

By Denisha Stearns

I look at the photo of some children who just opened their OCC shoeboxes. One girl wrinkles her nose as she smiles. A boy holds his box over his head in celebratory victory. Another girl peeks over the shoulder of the boy, trying to get noticed while another boy strikes a pose, fingers near his forehead and hip jutted to one side- the vision of “cool” ness. Each of these children from the Dominican Republic reminds me of a child I have known here on our own soil of the United States- children acting like children. And like the children we once were and also children we once raised, the children in the photo have dreams, joys, fears, rules to follow, love to give, friends to hang with, and worries that burden them. Who among them would not like to receive a gift? And who among them does not need Jesus Christ as their Savior?

Doing our part at The Cornerstone station to help children receive shoebox gifts full of school supplies, clothing, toys, and toiletries has certainly been worthwhile over the years. We have imagined the smiles on their faces and then have seen in photographs evidence of the great joy the gifts bring. How much more can the good news of Jesus Christ produce joy in the life of a child? The joy of the fruit of the Holy Spirit, according to Apostle Paul, joy inexpressible, according to Apostle Peter, and the oil of gladness traded for mourning, so says the Lord in Isaiah 61. Are you ready to help bring good news and great joy? Are you ready to pack some shoeboxes? In this season of “we can’t because of COVID”, this is something we CAN do. Let’s get packing, and bring on the smiles, to the glory of the Lord.

THE CHRISTMAS STORY

By Christina Hutchinson

What could be more of a Christmas tradition than Christmas stories? Well, aside from gifts, of course. Oh, and the Christmas tree... ok, yeah Christmas stories are just one of many Christmas traditions! And there are all kinds. You’ve got Frosty The Snowman, Rudolph, Santa, etc. As Christians our favorite is The Christmas Story! The Story where God himself, our Creator, arrives as a human baby to this place we call earth, wrapped in swaddling clothes. Can you think of anything more amazing to celebrate during Christmas? It’s a jaw dropping story, and yet it’s so much more than just a story; it’s a true story. I couldn’t imagine living in those days and seeing the face of God as a baby! I mean, I think of Cora as just a little angel babe, but could you imagine being Mary and knowing that her child was going to be the one who saves the world? Not to get all emotional, but if that doesn’t give you goose bumps and Christmas cheer I don’t know what will! I thought for my article I would share lyrics from one of my favorite Chritmas songs by Sovereign Grace Music called Who Would Have Dreamed:

On a starlit hillside, shepherds watched their sheep

Slowly, David’s city drifted off to sleep

But to this little town of no great renown

The Lord had a promise to keep

Prophets had foretold it, a mighty King would come

Long awaited Ruler, God’s Anointed One

But the Sovereign of all looked helpless and small

As God gave the world His own Son

CHORUS

And who would have dreamed or ever foreseen

That we could hold God in our hands?

The Giver of Life is born in the night

Revealing God’s glorious plan

To save the world

VERSE 3

Wondrous gift of heaven: the Father sends the Son

Planned from time eternal, moved by holy love

He will carry our curse and death He’ll reverse

So we can be daughters and sons

CHRISTMAS COLLECTIONS

It’s been a tough year for sure but for most of us, it has not been as hard as it has been for our seniors in nursing homes. So many are lonely as well as missing many of their activities. My own mother-in-law is 92 and in a memory care unit. We have not been able to visit her since March. We need to step up and show some love. The Cornerstone will attempt to bring some love and show we care. Bring your gifts to our studios in Port Orange. Listen for more details and check our website www.wjlu.org for suggestions. We also welcome your ideas. We will be collecting from now through the December 13th. Join with us and help share the joy of Christmas with as many as we can.

NURSING HOME RESIDENTS | BLANKETS, SOCKS/SLIPPERS, ROBES, NICE SOAPS & LOTIONS, SUGAR-FREE CANDY *Any suggestions you may have, please let us know! 386-756-9094

HOMELESS | NEW SOCKS (no blankets this year)

FOSTER KIDS & TEENS | NEW TOYS FOR THE LITTLE ONES AND GIFT CARDS OR OTHER NICE GIFTS FOR TEENS.