1 Thing Matters

What do others think of us? Do we have a good reputation? Is our name respected? It may very well be, but not even a good name is enough to guarantee that we’ll be OK when life isn’t.

At least not OUR good name, that is. HIS, on the other hand, makes all the difference.

It would be more than enough for God to breathe life into us through hearing and believing his Word. That alone is priceless. But that wasn’t good enough for God. He went a step further and provided us with the privilege of prayer, the opportunity to speak to him about what is on our hearts. And he listens. He always listens.

Being OK when life isn’t? That involves bouncing back to prayer.

Our identity is solidified as we bounce back to the Word and to our baptism. They are our anchor when it comes to being OK when life isn’t. One would expect that the more confident we are with our own identity, the more confident we would be in witnessing to others. So why is witnessing still such a challenge, and more importantly, how do we overcome it?

2020 was a tough year, but is there any guarantee that 2021 will be any better? No, there isn't. Is there a way though, that we can turn a setback into a comeback? Can we bounce back from last year? We can, if we bounce back to our baptism.

2020 was a tough year, but is there any guarantee that 2021 will be any better? No, there isn't. Is there a way though, that we can turn a setback into a comeback? Can we bounce back from last year? We can, if we bounce back to the Word.

This year has been a mess in so many ways. Our Advent/Christmas series, "Christmess," has allowed us not only to acknowledge and embrace the mess, but to rejoice all the more that it was this very mess into which Christ came to save.

As we look back on the mess of this year, how do we plan accordingly for the next year to ensure that it isn't such a mess? Unfortunately, we can't control how messed-up next year will be. However, we can plan to be better prepared for whatever comes our way. How? Less focus on our life and more focus on the Lord.

This year has been a mess in so many ways. Our Advent/Christmas series, "Christmess," allows us not only to acknowledge and embrace the mess, but to rejoice all the more that it was this very mess into which Christ came to save.

Messed-up plans are one thing, but how do you handle when others plan to mess you up? What hope is there when we have no control over the ill intentions of others toward us?

This year has been a mess in so many ways. Our Advent/Christmas series, "Christmess," allows us not only to acknowledge and embrace the mess, but to rejoice all the more that it was this very mess into which Christ came to save.   

We’ve all faced messed-up plans this year - multiple times in many cases! How do we keep ourselves from unraveling when our plans do? We find hope in this: our failed plans don’t deter his faithful promises.

This year has been a mess in so many ways. Our Advent/Christmas series, "Christmess," allows us not only to acknowledge and embrace the mess, but rejoice all the more that it was this very mess into which Christ came to save. No matter how messed-up and dysfunctional our family has been in the past or is even now in the present, Christ brings hope for messed-up people... including us.

This year has been a mess in so many ways. Today we begin our Advent/Christmas series, "Christmess," which will allow us not only to acknowledge and embrace the mess, but rejoice all the more that it was this very mess into which Christ came to save. Yes, our world has been a mess, but Christ is the Hope for a messed-up world.