I grew up in a wonderful home. My parents were great, we had all the comforts and advantages of southern suburbia, and we were very involved in church. In that kind of environment, it was easy to come to a subtle conclusion: while God loves...
Christmas is, by some distance, the most significant holiday in the world (at least in the West). It’s startling just how all-encompassing it is—school, economics, business, entertainment, travel, families, and church all revolve around it and submit to it....
For many of us, Christmas Day is one of the most important days of the entire year, which is obvious given the intense amount of preparation that often goes into it. We adjust schedules, plan, and budget months in advance. Family members travel in from...
In the same way God set a star in the sky to lead the Magi to Jesus, He places His children in their neighborhoods, workplaces, PTA meetings, and lecture halls to do the same. You don’t have to go overseas to impact the nations. God...
1 In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He existed in the beginning with God. 3 God created everything through him, and nothing was created except through him. 4 The Word gave life to everything that was created, and his life...
1 Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from his love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and compassionate? 2 Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with...
18 This is how Jesus the Messiah was born. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit. 19 Joseph, to whom...
1 At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. 2 (This was the first census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3 All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census....
57 When it was time for Elizabeth’s baby to be born, she gave birth to a son. 58 And when her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had been very merciful to her, everyone rejoiced with her. 59 When the baby was eight days old,...
26 In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, 27 to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David. 28 Gabriel appeared to...
We love hearing good news, especially when we’re the first to know. There’s a big difference between getting a phone call from your best friend about their pregnancy, engagement, or new job and finding out about it on Facebook. We cherish being invited to participate...
Throughout the Old Testament, the prophets spoke of the promised Savior, telling the people how to recognize His coming and reminding them that God had not forgotten. The Messiah would be born in Bethlehem, the Son of a virgin according to the line of David,...
Many of us grew up with the story of Advent beginning in a stable. But, really, the story begins in a Garden, a long time before the night of Christ’s birth. When God created the world, all things were just as they should be. Creation...
1 In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He existed in the beginning with God. 3 God created everything through him, and nothing was created except through him. 4 The Word gave life to everything that was created, and his life...
1 Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from his love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and compassionate? 2 Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with...
As Christmas gets closer and closer, the feelings of long loved traditions and the nostalgia begins to set in. I find myself caught in this tension of living in remembrance of what was, and living in hope of what is to come....
18 This is how Jesus the Messiah was born. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit. 19 Joseph, to whom...
2 At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. 2 (This was the first census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3 All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census....
57 When it was time for Elizabeth’s baby to be born, she gave birth to a son. 58 And when her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had been very merciful to her, everyone rejoiced with her. 59 When the baby was eight days old,...
26 In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, 27 to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David. 28 Gabriel appeared to...
I so vividly remember the quiet, dark room where I lay holding my second child. It was only a couple of hours after she was born, my husband was sleeping on the hospital chair next to me, and for awhile now there had been no...
This weekend, Bill taught from Isaiah 11, asserting the prophet’s promise of a redeeming Savior as the foundation of the Christmas celebration. Isaiah’s prophecies were issued around 700 BC, after the northern kingdom of Israel had been conquered and taken into exile. Therefore, his prophecies...
Scripture unfolds for us a grand narrative of God’s work in the world for the redemption of the world, one that continues even today. As He directs all things for this purpose, He continues to work through His people – finite, sinful people. In the face...
This Advent season, we will add to our time of worship the wonderful melodies of selected Christmas carols. While not always viewed as worship music, these carols give us the opportunity to respond to the birth of Jesus with joy-filled celebration and gratitude. In the...
This Advent season, we will add to our time of worship the wonderful melodies of selected Christmas carols. While not always viewed as worship music, these carols give us the opportunity to respond to the birth of Jesus with joy-filled celebration and gratitude. In the...