When the angels visit the shepherds in the fields, their message is global but also personal: “To you… a savior is born.”
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Advent
It is not always easy to put yourself out there, yet we do—all for Jesus.
We can each bear good fruit through acts of justice and righteousness.
One of life’s most essential lessons is that we are never meant to go alone. And yet, modern culture pushes us more and more into lonely silos.
Mary’s story begins with blessedness and so does ours, for the prophet Isaiah declares that we are claimed by a God who calls our name. We are a blessing.
The Christmas story gives us permission to allow ourselves to be amazed
Have you ever done something that brought you so much joy, but you were afraid to tell others about it? Have you ever discovered something about yourself but didn’t feel others would embrace it?
It was recently a shock to some of our systems when we learned there is not really a donkey in the Christmas story as told per scripture.
In the angel’s proclamation of the birth of Jesus, we hear the phrase, “ALL PEOPLE.” The angels spoke to the most unexpecting group of shepherds and told them a message that was to “bring great joy to ALL PEOPLE.” Yet still we sometimes wonder, “Even them?”
Without fully understanding the bigger picture, it is easy to ask the question, “Why me?”
Our journey to the manger begins with a rather unexpected twist on an otherwise normal night.
This Sunday will feature our music programs as Leap of Faith presents a Christmas concert in the contemporary service and the Chancel Choir performs a cantata in the traditional service. Join us as we praise the Lord in song!
Put on the breaks!! It’s ok to stop and turn around and head in the other direction. It is ok to change your mind.
Gabriel is known to be an angel of great importance. Gabriel shows up a couple of times throughout the biblical narrative of heaven’s interactions with humanity. When Gabriel appears to Mary, we understand this to be a sign of great hope. Because of the message Gabriel brings, we understand that, like Mary, we are capable of important things. Even if we don’t always see it in ourselves, there are others who are sent to remind us of this truth.
John the Baptist is a faithful man who spent his life devoted to preparing people’s hearts for Jesus. However, his story begins with the angel Gabriel preparing the heart of Zechariah, John’s father. What the angel teaches in this story is how to tame our tongue till there is something worthy of it being set loose for.