{"id":852,"date":"2011-12-15T16:34:30","date_gmt":"2011-12-15T16:34:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/chadstutzman.net\/?p=852"},"modified":"2011-12-15T16:34:30","modified_gmt":"2011-12-15T16:34:30","slug":"a-letter-from-grandpa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chadstutzman.com\/?p=852","title":{"rendered":"A Letter From Grandpa"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Every year around Christmas my grandpa Stutzman sends out a letter and sometimes a poem.\u00a0 This year he shared an extended poem in tribute to grandma who passed away last November.\u00a0 I just started reading it.\u00a0 My grandpa Stutzman was a pastor for many years and he still loves to write.\u00a0 Maybe that is where I get some of my passion for writing and speaking.\u00a0 He has been an inspiration to me over the years and an encouragement to finish life well.\u00a0 He was married for 68 years and turned 91 in September.\u00a0 Even now he is focused on his relationship with God and helping others with that relationship as well.<\/p>\n

When I think of my grandpa, I think of a man that is very focused on God and the eternal, a man that loved his wife deeply and loved his children and family well.\u00a0 I think of a man that welcomed my wife Vikki into the family when we got married over 22 years ago, even though she was not Mennonite.\u00a0 I think of a man that has impeccable character and integrity.\u00a0 He started a book store many years ago and built that business with the help of his family.\u00a0 His love of books and reading and poetry has been passed on to many in the family.\u00a0\u00a0 He loved to preach and has told me that many times.\u00a0 I think it’s the one thing he misses most since his retirement.\u00a0 I thought I would share some of his letter entitled “Joyous Christmas Season 2011” that he sent to family and friends this Christmas as a tribute to David Stutzman:<\/p>\n

Another Christmas season has arrived.\u00a0 With that season comes the knowledge that the year is coming to a close.\u00a0 Though we do not know the exact date of Christ’s arrival, I think it is quite interesting that we are closing the year on a joyous note.\u00a0 So to my many friends and loved ones I wish a MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR.\u00a0 In your prosperity keep your focus firmly fixed on the Eternal.\u00a0 Make that your New Year’s resolution.<\/p>\n

Two words in John 1:4, and I love them; Life and Light.\u00a0 Then a third word in verse 9 is descriptive, “That was the True Light”.\u00a0 Verse 4 then is so profound.\u00a0 “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.”\u00a0 Jesus arrived in a dark world, so it was soon clear that He was that true light.\u00a0 True life is always luminous.\u00a0 It always lights up and is revealing.\u00a0 Jesus himself said in John 14A:6 “I am the way, (for going) the truth, (for knowing) and the life, (for growing).”\u00a0 It is very clear then that Jesus was that True Light.<\/p>\n

The reason for the Father to send His Son into a dark world is very interesting.\u00a0 His sole purpose was to put that light into some being where it would luminously shine.\u00a0 He did not choose the angels because they were already lighted up.\u00a0 For example, if I take my flashlight into a brightly lit room and turn it on, it would not be noticeable.\u00a0 But if I take it into a dark room it will shine brightly.\u00a0 So the Father sends His True Light and Life into a dark world.\u00a0 He places that light into us darken sinners and makes us alive and luminously shining.\u00a0 I become the showcase that the True Light is lighting up.\u00a0 The glory is not mine, but it belongs to the Illuminator.\u00a0 May we this Christmas season thank God for the True Light and Life.\u00a0 May our lives be a luminous glow for Jesus.<\/p>\n

I hope that was a blessing to you as we head toward Christmas.\u00a0 Shine brightly!\u00a0 Love you Grandpa.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

  Every year around Christmas my grandpa Stutzman sends out a letter and sometimes a poem.\u00a0 This year he shared an extended poem in tribute to grandma who passed away last November.\u00a0 I just started reading it.\u00a0 My grandpa Stutzman was a pastor for many years and he still loves to write.\u00a0 Maybe that is … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “A Letter From Grandpa”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-852","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-faith"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chadstutzman.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/852","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chadstutzman.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chadstutzman.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chadstutzman.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chadstutzman.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=852"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chadstutzman.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/852\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chadstutzman.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=852"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chadstutzman.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=852"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chadstutzman.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=852"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}