Christmas Memories

I was having a conversation with my wife a week ago and we were reminiscing about our favorite Christmas memories. What struck me that night was something new. All of my Christmas memories were connected to family and relationships. I could remember some of the gifts I had received, but all of my greatest memories were tied to people. What has amazed me when I think about this is that this is the way it was supposed to be. I began thinking about Jesus coming to earth. He came for us. He came to redeem a people for Himself. His purposes were relational, He gave Himself. The one relationship you and I know we long for more than any other came on Christmas. God came to us, Isaiah the prophet said that His name would be Immanuel which means God with us. God came for his people and we get Him in a deep intimate relationship.

I challenge you to sit quietly and remember your favorite Christmas memories. As you remember those relationships, think about the greatest relationship we can experience because we have God with us. Jesus came and now it can all be made right. We can be released from the bondage of sin. We are His because He came for us. Praise be to our God that He does not quit and His relationship is so unbelievable. This Christmas season can be more relational than ever when you cherish the family and friends you have in light of how God has loved you and called you to love those around you.

"if I had not come"

John 15:22

Gracious Christ, Lord and Savior, I stumble on your words, "If I had not come" and stunned by the realization of what I would not know and have if You had not come. Just to think about it sends a chill up my spine. And yet, each thought becomes a source of profound thanksgiving. You have exposed my need and met that need through Your life, death, and resurrection.

Thank You for revealing the true nature of grace. Through You I know about the width, length, depth, and height of love that passes understanding. Through Your teaching I know how to put first the kingdom and God's righteousness. In the cross I experience the forgiveness and cleansing of my sins. Your death defeated the power of death so I can be sure that this life is only a small part of eternity and that I shall live forever. You are reigning Lord of history and are able to take what I commit to You and bring Your best. You understand my confusion and give me calmness, You see my stress and give me serenity, You invade my perplexities and infuse Your peace. Praise You, Lord; I am a new person filed with the Spirit.

Guide me today as I think prayerfully about what life would be like. . . . if You had not come. Most of all, help me claim all that is mine because You came and continue to come.
CELEBRATE HIS COMING---JESUS IS THE REASON

Anonymous

All is calm all is bright.

Silent Night has always been a beautiful Christmas song with so much more to offer than just Christmas. I get so excited to hear the wonderful pictures of Jesus, holy infant. Holy infant can never be said of any other child. At the moment He was conceived by the Holy Spirit He was holy infant, then holy toddler and holy tween and holy teen then holy twenty something. Jesus is God and has always been. All is calm and all is bright. I cannot imagine this phrase speaking of that night but of the redemption that the holy infant brings. So much commotion with what it means to have a newborn, to be in a stable. This in my mind was not a calm moment but one with much hustle by Joseph to help his wife and to comfort a crying child. The promise of a messiah brings calm, the joy of a savior makes the world bright. I am in awe of our God who would do this for us. To know that a holy infant was the perfect redeeming love. Praise God that all is calm and all is bright.

The wonder of christmas...

Jesus came to save His people from there sins. (mission statement)

God with us. (word became flesh)

Kingdom will have no end. (He is God man and Will not quite)

Humble entry to the world. (position of servant from beginning)

The God of the universe came for us. He wants His people. He will not quit until He gets what He wants. God has a purpose for His son come to earth. God knows that to get His people back the most perfect sacrifice must be given. The most perfect sacrifice had to come as a baby. God knew what it takes to redeem people and he spared no expense. God knows. God cares. God judges. God loves. God will not be taken lightly, when we look at the wonderful thing which God did for us we should be moved. Our lives can not stay still we can't become complacent in our lifestyle God is worth way to much for apathy. God was not complacent or apathetic. Our God knows. so the question is do you still wonder at the story of Christmas?

salvation is here

Remembering that salvation is here will enable us to be ready at any moment to live out G2. God has sent His son to be our salvation. Jesus came as a baby helpless and yet He was salvation. The angel said it, Mary believed it, Joseph heard it, Elisabeth said it, John the baptist jumped in the womb, and then the angels came from heaven to proclaim it. Salvation is here and it came in the form of a baby. Jesus was born and lived a life that we could not live and then died the death we could not die. Jesus was the greatest gift ever given. Are we living our lives as if salvation is here? We have the greatest gift, does our lives reflect that? Salvation gives us an amazing perspective on what mission is all about. Jesus mission was simple to come and save His people from their sins. Our mission is simple to obey and observe all that Jesus command us to . The great commission and the great commandment, G2 lived out.

G2 and Christmas

When i think about the great commission and the great commandment along side of the Christmas holiday I get excited. When we think about the purpose behind the coming of Christ it becomes clear that loving God, Neighbor and world can be played out with in this season.

Jesus example: when we see that Jesus took on human form and came in a humble manner and we look at how He describes His relationship with God the Father it becomes a wonderful example of how we are to live. When we see that He came on mission to save His people from there sins, He loved his neighbor, we should be on mission. When we look at how He gave His life sacrificially it is amazing to think that we should live the same way. Jesus was not just a baby but the messiah, the coming one who would change the world.

When Christmas loses the point of Jesus we have lost our way. I am not asking that we change the world, but what if we changed the Christians in the world? What would it look like to put our G2 lifestyle in to practice during Christmas when we can follow the example of the one we worship and celebrate. To truly remember that Christmas began with worship.

volunteer letter 4

I hope you and your family had a wonderful thanksgiving. You and your teaching team were on my list of things I am thankful for. God has been very gracious to us as we spend time each week preparing for Sunday’s. I find great joy in knowing that the gospel is going out in your classrooms. God is moving in our ministry we are seeing new families coming to church because of you families and the children God is using in our classrooms.
As we are now in the midst of the Christmas season, let us be diligent to help the children in our rooms every Sunday remember the point of this celebration. That as John tells us in his first chapter the word became flesh. As often as you can for the next 3 weeks describe for your class the beauty of God coming to earth as a baby to live the life we could not live and to die the death we could not die. God has given us great opportunities to use the birth of our Savior to speak to the need for salvation. Jesus came to save His people from their sins. My prayer through this Christmas season is that God would use the beautiful story of Jesus birth to bring some of these little ones to saving faith.
Our ministry is fun, but our message is life changing. Please take time to stop and remember our why we teach and serve. The goal is the gospel and that as we plant seeds the Holy Spirit would take the truth of who Jesus is and move in hearts.

I hope that you personally have a wonderful Christmas celebration speaking and living with the words of the angel to Mary and Joseph that His name will be Emanuel, which means God with us. He is here with us and we have the greatest gift ever given in forgiveness of sins and communion with God.

God with us.

Last night during communion one of our pastors gave us the phrase "God with us" to reflect on. This phrase comes from the Christmas story. The direct part is from the angel talking and telling that Mary will have a son and His name shall be called Emanuel, which means God with us. When I began reflecting on that phrase I was caught by the fact that Jesus came as a baby and began the process of redemption in the most humble means. When I think about the fact that God is with us, it is very humbling. Jesus came and lived the perfect life I could not live and the death I could not die, He was with us in physical body. In the midst of explaining His death to the disciples He said that if He did not go then the comforter the Holy Spirit could not come, which Jesus said was better. The God of the universe in human form said that what was coming was better. You and I as believers have what Jesus said is better. The question I asked my self was, do I live in such away that would reflect that God is with me? Would others know that I have the Holy Spirit? As Christians we sometimes think that having Jesus with the us every day would makes us more spiritual or more devoted in our lives, but Jesus said what we have now is better. Do you live like that? Do we live like we have the best? What will we do with the fact that God is with us?