“And if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the poor, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday.” Isaiah 58:10

I have always been drawn to the Gospel of John’s opening, “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” Winter is a dark, cold season. And yet, it’s the time we celebrate Christmas and the Good News of Jesus, the divine, having come to live among us. How fitting that we honor the light of the world in the contrast of darkness!

What is the thrill of Christmas for you? I love twinkling lights and friends gathering. I love the anticipation in the eyes of children and the carols. I love the meals and the community, breaking bread and sharing wine, celebrating the Good News in our lives and in this world together. Isaiah not only announced the coming of Christ, saying “Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel” but also why he would come. In short, to teach us the love and way of God so that we might live more equitable lives, that we might create a more level playing field for all people, no matter where they come from or if the world deems them “deserving.”

Good News Clinics has over 300 volunteers who “spend [themselves]” in behalf of the disadvantaged. Physicians and retirees, students and administrators give of themselves to bring life to the message of Jesus. It is like Christmas year-round, it is the celebration of God among us every day in our halls. This Christmas season I am especially grateful for those who have chosen to give from their abundance to further the mission of the Clinics. Our mission statement reads that we provide free healthcare for the low-income, uninsured of Hall County. But in doing so we become dealers of hope, providing light in the darkness of troubled times for thousands of wonderful, bright, caring, and kind people with beautiful faces, names, children, jobs and families.

We see patients like “Brannon,” who had become legally blind due to severe cataracts in both eyes. He had gone from being independent to dependent; his license revoked, his job lost, his family helping him learn to navigate in a world without sight…until he walked through our doors. Brannon was able to get the healthcare he needed, and the Good News of Jesus was spoken into his life as he cried and thanked his volunteer doctor for his fully corrected, 20/20 vision. He gets redeemed. He gets his life back. He is one of thousands. We are doing our part for the Kingdom of God, and you make that possible.

Join us in growing our ability to change lives like this. We need you and our patients need you, to offer from your abundance what we will turn into HOPE for those living under the oppressive thumb of scarcity.

I can make two promises about your gifts to Good News Clinics this year: They will be used (and matched
by an incredible donor) to heal those who otherwise fall through the cracks, into darkness because of
disease. And, “then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like noonday.” In
giving we receive so very much.

May your Christmas be filled with brightness because of Christ Jesus in your life and may you
share your light gladly for the world which needs it.

Merry Christmas,
Liz Coates
Executive Director, Good News Clinics