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Prepare yourself!Advent is a time of preparing ourselves for Christ’s coming. The word “prepare” is a great word. We’ll talk about it today in two different ways. First, let’s talk about preparing ourselves. In a "Peanuts" cartoon strip, Charlie Brown says to Linus, “Life is just too much for me. I’ve been confused from the … Read more
Luke 2.1-7 Joseph & Mary Travel to Bethlehem During the reign of Caesar Augustus, a census was decreed, which required everyone to travel to their hometowns. Joseph, being from the family of David, had to travel to Bethlehem, David’s ancient home. So Joseph and Mary (now pretty far along in her pregnancy) set off from … Read more
2 Peter 1.12-21 The Book of PromisesThe Bible is sometimes called the Book of Promises. And at Advent we look to a promise fulfilled: the promise of the Messiah, a Savior, whose birth we anticipate throughout Advent and celebrate on Christmas. The Promise of MessiahThe Old Testament scriptures promised a Messiah. Some of the prophecies … Read more
Last week we talked about the word, “come.” Christmas is about God coming to us and showing his love for us in very practical ways! God still comes to us, and he is coming back to us again someday, which leads us to today’s keyword, “promise.”Christmas is a sign of God’s love!For God so loved … Read more
Matthew 25.31-46Luke 2.1-7 One of the first summers after college graduation, my college roomie, Trish and I went to a friend’s wedding. Following we decided on an impromptu trip to Niagara Falls, Canada. It was around fourth of July weekend, but we thought, oh well, we are going to another country, Canada, so what does … Read more
Question for reflection …How will you prepare your heart this Advent for Christ’s coming? Today is the first Sunday of Advent. Our Advent series will look at several keywords of the Christmas story. Today, we’ll look at the word “come.” The word “Advent” comes from the Latin word, adventus, which means “coming.” There has always … Read more
“Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever.” (Psalm 107.1) I want to take a moment to wish all of you a happy Thanksgiving holiday this week, especially since I did not have an opportunity to do that this morning in worship. I trust you will take time to … Read more
Each year the Conference Council on Youth Ministries sponsors a weekend retreat for youth. This year’s theme was Prayer: The Best Wireless Plan. The two main speakers for the event were Stephen Handy and Quay Hanna. Quay shared of the story of how when he went to college he changed to fit the mold of … Read more
Ann Landers once responded to a letter from a girl who was writing about her uncle. The girl told the story: “My uncle was the tightest man I’ve ever known. All his life, every time he got paid he took $20 out of his paycheck and put it under his mattress. Then he got sick … Read more
Malachi 3.6-12 NLT Ann Landers had an interesting letter in her column. It was from a girl who was writing about her uncle & aunt. She said, "My uncle was the tightest man I’ve ever known. All his life, every time he got paid he took $20 out of his paycheck & put it under … Read more