WS Chronicle

Chronicle File Photo

BY DONNA ROGERS 

THE CHRONICLE

Christmas Day was a time of celebration at Galilee Missionary Baptist Church, and of reflection.

The church, on Northampton Drive in Winston-Salem, was one of the churches that chose to have a service on the actual date, Sunday, Dec. 25. Some churches opted to have a service on Saturday, Christmas Eve, rather than Sunday.

The service was abbreviated for the day, considering Christmas is a time for families to be together. The service featured singing, praying and regular church procedures.

The Rev. Dr. Nathan Scovens, senior pastor of the church, did not deliver a message that centered on the Christmas Story. Instead, he told members of the congregation to “Just Be Grateful.”

“Stop complaining and grumbling, stop moaning about life and just be grateful,” he said.

Scovens said those in the congregation should look to how blessed they are now to be grateful, not just in the past.

“Too often I have found that we are grateful for the wrong stuff,” he said. “You should be grateful that God saved your sin-sick soul.”

He said members of the congregation should be grateful for what they have, what they don’t have (such as illness) and what didn’t happen (such as an accident).

The people should be grateful for Jesus, Scovens said.

“Don’t complain! Lift Jesus up!” he said.