Psalm 56:3-4 When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. In God, whose word I praise – in God I trust and am not afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?

Acknowledge that there are things that will make you afraid.

2 Timothy 1:7. “God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of love and self- discipline.”

God calls us to do more than simply bear the load of adversity. He calls us to persevere (press forward) in the face of it.

Success requires vulnerability.

Praise shows dependence.

Trust God not His provisions.

Proverbs 18:10, “The name of the Lord is a strong tower.”

Psalm 42:11, “Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.”

Challenge: Choose not to be downcast.
Choose not to be disturbed.
Choose to put your hope in God.

Luke 2:25 Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout, He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was on him.

The desire to be comforted is a universal human need.

Luke 2:36-38 There was also a prophet, Anna, the daughter of Penuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was very old; she had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, and then was a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying, coming up to them at that very moment, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were liking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem.

Jesus provides what we need.

Become a Marveler.

Become a Mover.

Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts.

Become a Messenger.

Challenge: Find opportunities to share the true meaning of Christmas.

Mathew 2:1-12 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod; Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” When King Herod heard his he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Messiah was to be born. “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written: “’But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’” Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.” After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.

Gold Stands for purity. (Isaiah 1:18)

Isaiah 1:18 “Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.”

Frankincense stands for worship. (John 4:23-24)

John 4:23-24 Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and truth.”

Myrrh stands for victory. (John 10:10)

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

Challenge: Don’t let the meaning of Christmas be a secret.

Charlie Brown and ___________
Jimmy Fallon and ______________
Taylor Swift and ______________
Laverne and ____________
Lucy and ______________
Amy Poehler and _______
David and _____________

2 Timothy 2:22 Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a Pure heart.

Great friendships challenge us.

Proverbs 27:17, “As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.”


2 Corinthians 6:14-17 Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? Or what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.” Therefore, “Come out from them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you.”

Great friendships encourage us.

Ecclesiastes 4:9-10, “Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work; If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up.”

Great friendships have consistency.

Proverbs 17:17, “A friend loves at all times.”

Great friendships are cherished.

Proverbs 18:24, “A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend that sticks closer than a brother.”