The holidays season can be a wonderful time of hope and joy with our families. But often, we have difficult situations with family members to navigate during this season, perhaps some that we ourselves have caused. The Apostle Paul has wise words for us about loving genuinely, living harmoniously, and leaving it to God that we discuss in our 1st Christmas message for 2016.

We all know that, sometimes, the very thing we don't want to hear is the most loving thing for someone to tell us. But what does that mean when it comes to what love really is? And what does that mean for how we view the Bible? This week we explore how the prophet Jeremiah spoke words that the king didn't want to hear, and how he responded helps us answer these questions about the difficult honesty of love.

The small Book of Jonah is one fully of irony, primarily from the ironic prophet who doesn't act in a way we would think a prophet of God would act. But in his failure we get a picture of our own struggles, and even more we get a picture of a God who pursues all peoples until the end.

This election is one of the most contentious in recent history. Many followers of Jesus wonder how they should vote, or if the Scriptures give us any wisdom in how to vote. While the Biblical authors did not write for this primary purpose, there are a few things we can learn that can help us as we vote in one month.

Isaiah 53 is the high point of prophecy in the Old Testament. From it we can see the rest of the Bible more clearly. In a beautiful poetic form Isaiah talks about a suffering servant who will suffer for us and be a substitute for us. It's an incredible look at the One who would come 700 years later.

The prophets are often profound yet difficult books to understand. How do these ancient words affect our lives today? In Isaiah 6:1-8 we see a powerful picture of God's holiness, and that the good news contained within changed everything for our lives today.