Advent, the season of preparing for the birth of Our Lord Jesus Christ is underway. This time of waiting for the arrival of our Savior includes retelling the words of the prophets. These messengers who spoke on God's behalf continually told hard truths to the people of Israel as they repeated the cycle of sinfulness, conequences, and redemption.

Although the prophets regularly predicted consequences, they also shared a message of hope. They proclaimed God would send an annointed one, the Messiah, to save humanity.

This week, guest preacher Patrick Meisan explains the specialness of giving Jesus the title of Messiah. Simply put, Jesus is a different kind of king.

According to the Prophet Micah, Israel's rulers would come from Bethlehem, a small clan of Judah. Jesus the Messiah didn't have the resume of a typical monarch. Jesus was poor, he was annointed by a woman instead of a priest, and he wore a crown of thorns. Jesus didn't lead a great army; loving your enemy was his decree. Jesus has commanded us to live in a world that is nothing like the current one. Jesus wasn't what the world was expecting then and he isn't now.

You follow a great influencer and you have influence. Using your influence to build up others is one way to take part in God’s work. When you uplift people, you’re part of building the Kingdom of Heaven.

Wherever we are, we can build up others. Visits with neighbors, family dinners, meeting for coffee, and church gatherings all present opportunities for encouragement. By serving in a ministry, we can practice lifting up others by bringing them close to God’s love. Our speech, our presence, practical help, and valuing the young and the old are all ways to lift up people.

Pastor Mia reminds us that the future of faith is found in its followers. How will you use your uplift others in your role as Christ’s ambassadors?

Jesus just wanted to be left alone and instead he was asked to heal a woman's daughter. All she had was her voice to influence Jesus. Seems so backwards that Jesus was influenced by another person, but that sure is how this story in the gospel of Mark reads.

This week Bishop Cedrick Bridgeforth offers a sermon on how Jesus was confronted by the woman in Tyre in Mark 7 and the lessons we can learn about examining our faith and stepping outside our cultural norms to listen, hear a need and respond with grace.

Social media influencers have a powerful effect on us and on our society. They have billions of followers, and they make millions of dollars recommending products. These promoters have become celebrities by sharing their opinions.

On the other end of the spectrum are other influencers who aren’t famous, but people listen to them. Perhaps you admire or can’t stop watching a friend or family member. That person is an influencer.

The world’s greatest influencer was Jesus. Crowds gathered to hear his teachings. Jesus told his followers to be seen and make disciples. Because of their influence, there are 2.4 billion Christians today. We are here because one of them influenced us.

Now it’s our turn continue to spread Jesus’s influence. Pastor Mia reminds us that we are ambassadors of Christ and the future of faith is found in its followers. This week, think about how you have influence on others, because you do.

With only days left until the election, we hear the call to love and compassion. We are reminded that the Holy Spirit is actively working in the world, uniting us in God's kingdom. As followers of Christ, we are called to love like he did. Compassion transforms the world — our lives and the lives of others.

Jesus gave us a command to love God and love neighbor, and even to love those so difficult to love: enemies. Election season give us a unique opportunity to show love, as do economics. We are managers of God's creation, called to manage resources wisely and justly. Our financial decisions should reflect our commitment to the common good, supporting local economies and ensuring fairness in business practices.

As we approach the voting box, we are encouraged to vote with hope and love, trusting in God's sovereignty over all. We take the peace of Christ and share it with all, offering that peace as a gift to our neighborhoods and country.

Good people of faith will come to different conclusions in the voting booth. With this year’s election just days away, Pastor Mia tackles the topics of humility, immigration, and border control.

Many Americans agree the current immigration system is not working well, but the desired changes differ vastly among us. Some want tighter immigration controls and others a more generous immigration system. So how do we reconcile those differences to find peace across the divide?

Humility and humor are tools that can help us make connections. Remembering that our common commitment to Christ is bigger than our political ideologies is helpful too. The compassion that transforms the world is always about real people, not ideals.

You can only hold hardline positions if you have no lived experience. Therefore, we need to know the stories of real people. Nurturing your compassion with their accounts and the words of Scripture is faithful and responsible. As we head to the polls, we must remember the Christian teaching “Do unto others” applies during election seasons.

Jesus' teaching to "Do Unto Others" applies at all times, even election season. This week Pastor Mia dives into the issue of abortion from a compassion perspective.

As we delve into this series, we confront the challenges of living out Jesus' teachings in today's polarized political climate. We are called to view voting as an expression of faith, addressing today's issues from a Christian perspective. The goal is not to dictate political choices but to guide us in positioning ourselves as Christians in political decision-making, emphasizing love and compassion. This sermon highlights the importance of recognizing Jesus as our Savior, not any political candidate. This perspective shifts our approach to citizenship and voting, moving from anxiety to trust in God's sovereignty. We are encouraged to apply Christ's teachings consistently, even in politics, and to strive to be Christ followers . Compassion, a non-optional aspect of our faith, is emphasized as a transformative force in the world, urging us to do good without expecting anything in return.

Sin matters, because sin makes us slaves. Faith, on the other hand, opens the door to freedom.

When people are asked to define sin, the answers include disobedience, naughtiness, and sex. Those answers aren’t how people in Jesus’s time described sin. They had a clear understanding of sin that we don’t. Back then everyone knew that sin was anything that distanced you from God.

By living spiritual lives, we can grow in right relationship with God. Even so, sin still happens. We treat God as irrelevant, We become selfish. We lash out at others. And that’s where Jesus changes everything. Pastor Mia tells us that when Jesus pulls us into right relationship with God, he’s also freeing us for better lives.

Prophets and ancient writers called forgiveness a mark of the people of God. This week, Pastor Mia talks about what forgiveness is and isn't. Forgiveness is tricky and it's necessary.

Forgiveness is an intentional decision to let go of resentment and anger. Being outraged is okay. The way you handle your feelings is what matters. When you've been wronged, do you retaliate or move on?

For abuse victims the idea of forgiveness can be a twisted, loaded concept. When they've been told, "If you were a good Christian, you would forgive," without any repentance, they are really being told to pretend the abuse didn't happen and even allow it to continue. That is not forgiveness. It's actually cooperation with evil.

Forgiveness and reconciliation are two different things. Reconciliation happens when the wrongdoer takes responsibility and makes amends. Forgivess is foregoing retaliation while holding the wrongdoer accountable. Ulitmately, we forgive not because of the wrongdoer's action or inaction, but because Jesus has forgiven each of us.