Faithful Work = Conviction

Loving Deeds = Commitment

Enduring Hope = Confidence

As our pastor heads off on God's mission, he leaves us with some encouraging words about the future of NCC.

What we need most in a new season is not just a fresh start, we need fresh strength. The first step to fresh strength is to place your confidence in God's commitment to you.

One of the most uncomfortable feelings/emotions we live with are restlessness or regret. How do we find peace? The ultimate peace is with God. Jesus was born, died and resurrected so that we would be released from the eternal responsibility for our sin. When we follow Jesus, we can be at peace with God.

Mary and Joseph are searching for a place for Jesus. How do we find room for Jesus in a story that is filled with struggle, shame, and sorrow? How might we trade the struggles and sorrows of our story into songs of joy? Jesus exchanges our sorrow for joy when we drink form the well of salvation and celebrate with a sense of expectation.

While the Christmas story is wonderful to us, it was a nightmare for Mary and Joseph. The Gospel of Matthew records that King Herod hated Jesus so much that he wanted him killed. Thousands of years later humanity still struggles with hate. In week two of this advent series we will examine how Jesus comes to rescue us from our own hate filled hearts by showing us that the path to love is to learn that it’s not me that matters the most.

An unexpected pregnancy and an over due prayer request. Mary, Joseph, Elizabeth, and Zechariah had all found themselves in the middle of a story filled with circumstances that caused them shame. Zack and Liz were ashamed of what hadn’t happened and Mary and Joseph were ashamed of something that happened that they didn’t expect. We all deal with the emotion of shame, especially around the holidays. In week one of this advent series we will discover that Jesus was God’s answer to shame. He was hope in human form and if we just hang in there we will get the help from him that we so desperately need.

Spiritual rest is the result or relinquishing our responsibility for our lives and giving it completely to God. In the fourth and final week we will examine how to catch our breath by relying on God’s relentless love, grace, and mercy which is certain and true in all seasons of life.

Sometimes stress is the result of being scared of scarcity. In other words, the fear of not having enough is what keeps us running at a rapid unhealthy pace that causes us more pain than pleasure. In week three of this series we will examine how God plans to satisfy our hunger by personally serving us a feast in the presence of our foes.

Life is filled with highs and lows and hills and valleys. While we have no problem handling the hills we often want to rush through the valleys and it leaves us trying to catch our breath and stay committed to our beliefs. In week two of this series we will examine how to move through the valleys of life with the confidence that when we walk with God we are safe even in the valley.