the story of bethlehem

Page 4 December 8, 2011REVEILLE (CS)

By CHAPLAIN (Col.) FORREST BANKSTONCamp Shelby Installation Chaplain

In 1865 the Pastor of Holy TrinityChurch in Boston, Mass., was helpingwith a Christmas Eve service in

Bethlehem. He later wrote about his feelings as he

descended from Jerusalem into Bethlehemriding a horse.

He said, “I remember standing in theold church in Bethlehem, close to the spotwhere Jesus was born, when the wholechurch was ringing hour after hour withsplendid hymns of praise to God, howagain and again it seemed as if I couldhear voices I knew well, telling each otherof the Wonderful Night of the Savior’sbirth.”

Two years later, in 1867, PhillipBrooks, put his pen to paper and wrote avery special and very biblical song wesing each year at Christmas time. Hewrote “O, Little Town Of Bethlehem”.Allow me to share with you three versesof that precious hymn:

O little town of Bethlehem, how still we

see thee lie!Above thy deep and dreamless sleep the

silent stars go by.Yet in thy dark streets shineth the ever-

lasting Light;The hopes and fears of all the years are

met in thee tonight.

For Christ is born of Mary, and gath-ered all above,

While mortals sleep, the angels keeptheir watch of wondering love.

O morning stars together, proclaim theholy birth,

And praises sing to God the King, andpeace to men on earth!

O holy Child of Bethlehem, descend tous, we pray;

Cast out our sin, and enter in, be bornin us today.

We hear the Christmas angels the greatglad tidings tell;

O come to us, abide with us, our LordEmmanuel!

Those verses declare the heart ofChristmas. It is a time of celebration, a

time of salvation and a time of contempla-tion.

Long before Philip Brooks was evenborn, the prophet Micah put his pen topaper and wrote something about the littletown of Bethlehem.

“But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, thoughthou be little among the thousands ofJudah, yet out of thee shall he come forthunto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whosegoings forth have been from of old, fromeverlasting.” (Micah 5.2)

In forty brief words, Micah tells thestory of a special town.

Though his words may be brief, theycontain a wealth of spiritual truth. TheStory Of Bethlehem is a special story thatneeds to be told and retold in the days inwhich we live.

We are living in a day when the realstory of the birth of Jesus is lost amidtrees, decorations, shopping and giving.

Santa Claus, Rudolph and Frosty have

eclipsed Jesus as the reason for the sea-son. We need to remember that Christmasmeans more than a pile of shredded wrap-ping paper and credit card bills.

The story of Christmas is the story of alittle town called Bethlehem. As you thinkabout what God did when He sent Jesusinto this world to die for sinners, askyourself a few questions.

1. Do I believe the story?2. Have I ever trusted Jesus Christ and

His death and resurrection for my soul’ssalvation?

3. Am I as thankful for the story as Ishould be?

There is more to Bethlehem’s story! Ihave only shared a small portion of thatstory with you today.

There are parts of that story that willnot be told until we are in His presence inglory.

But, the parts we do have of that storyneed to be told in this day and hour.

The following worship opportunitiesare available through Camp ShelbyJoint Forces Training Center.

ON POSTGeneral ProtestantSunday, 9 a.m., Greer ChapelSunday, 12:30 p.m., Greer Chapel

Catholic MassSaturday, 2 p.m., Greer Chapel

(Confessions at 1:30 p.m.)

Sunday, 2 p.m., Greer Chapel(Confessions at 1:30 p.m.)

For Jewish, Latter-day Saints andMuslim services, please contact thePost Chaplain for assistance at 558-2378.

OFF POST

*Transportation provided for Jewish,Episcopal, Lutheran, Muslim servicesONLY (due to time scheduling) Unitsare responsible for arranging trans-portation by calling 601-558-2622.

LutheranSunday, 8 a.m., St. John LutheranChurch, 2001 Hardy Street, 601-583-4898.

Latter-day SaintsSunday, 9 a.m., Latter-day SaintsMeeting House, 1618 Broadway Dr.,601-268-2438/ Hall: 601-268-9706.Contact the Post Chaplain.EpiscopalSunday, 8 a.m., Trinity Episcopal, 509West Pine St., 601-544-5551

JewishFriday at Temple B’Nai Israel at 801

Mamie Street, 601-545-3871. EveryFriday at 6 p.m.

MuslimContact Post Chaplain

OthersChurch of God at Bellevue, Hwy. 589,HattiesburgJesus Christ of LDS, 2215 BroadwayDrive, Hattiesburg

CAMP SHELBY AREA WORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

The Story of Bethlehem...

By DANA ELISE SMITHCamp Shelby Public Affairs

Lt. Col. Edward Ramsey Coutta,a native of Seminary, hasrecently returned from a

deployment in Afghanistan with the184th Expeditionary SustainmentCommand. Before deploying over-seas, he served in the Chaplain sectionat Camp Shelby Joint Forces TrainingCenter since 2003.

Coutta’s job is to provide religiousservices and support for mobilized

service members and to ensure thatthey have access to spiritual resourcesand counseling to address any spiritu-al or emotional concerns they mayhave.

He is a member of the 66th TroopCommand, headquartered in Jacksonand has been in the Mississippi ArmyNational Guard for nearly 18 years.

“When I enlisted, I did not expect toserve in the military this long but Ihave found I have enjoyed the serviceand serving as a Chaplain,” saidCoutta.

Coutta obtained several degreesduring his service.

These include a Bachelor of Historyfrom Tennessee TechnologicalUniversity located in Cookeville,Tenn., a Master of BusinessAdministration from RegentUniversity located in Virginia Beach,Va. and a Master of InternationalRelations from Baylor Universitylocated in Waco, Texas. He earned adoctorate degree in psychology and amaster’s degree in divinity from theNew Orleans Baptist Theological

Seminary.Before mobilizing at CSJFTC in

2003 he worked as a psychologist atForrest General Hospital located inHattiesburg and Ellisville StateSchool in Ellisville.

Coutta enjoys serving his church,Fairfield Baptist Church where heassists in a worldwide Christian youthprogram called Approved WorkmenAre Not Ashamed, known asAWANA. He is married to his wife,Jenny and together they have threechildren: Micah, 5 and twins Jonathonand Eli, 3 months. In his spare time,Coutta takes pleasure in hunting, fish-ing and reading.

CSJFTC welcomes back Chaplain

Lt. Col. Edward Coutta