Merry Christmas! Check out this special message for Christmas Day from Pastor Alarik. Christ is born!

There are bad things that happen in this world. There are frightening things. We don't feel secure or safe in this world, because bad things happen not only to bad people, but to all people. There's wars, violence, storms, disasters, and all kinds of bad things in this world. What we need is safety and security. Our God gives us that safety and security in Jesus. We are his people, and he is our all-powerful all caring God who protects us from all evil. While bad things do happen, we know we are safe in Jesus, no matter what. We have security, protection, and a safe home in our God.

Jesus comes to earth, to join us in the dirt of this world, get dirty in our sin, and show us who our God truly is.

Home can be a tough place to be. It can be filled with tension, conflict, arguments, and strife. When you're there, you can be tempted to avoid people, keep to yourself, or even leave altogether. Home is supposed to be a happy, peaceful place. Yet it often is not. Jesus came and died and rose again, that we may have peace. We have peace with God, but also with each other, in Jesus. By coming into our conflict of sin and suffering, he gave peace to all people, restored all brokenness, and repaired every relationship through his suffering, death, and resurrection. We now have a home with Jesus, where there is no brokenness.

Coming to church can be hard sometimes. We often wonder, am I good enough? Have I been away for too long? Have I gone too far? Have I done too much? Have I done not enough? Do I belong here? Will God accept me? We often can think we are too far gone. We can't come home to God, maybe like we can't come to our earthly homes and earthly families. You are always welcome at God's table. No matter what you've done or not done, where you've gone, or what your family may say, you are welcome at God's table. He's got it all set for you. A table where you dine on his word, promises, and good gifts that he offers to you. How do you know it's for you? Because it's for all people. Because all people who turn and come back to God, are his people, and you are welcome. You belong.

Being a just and good person is tough, but through the tasks and gifts God gives us, he blesses us, helps us rise to the occasion, and he shows us what perfect love looks like.

We feel like this world is not the way it should be. That's because it isn't. Our world is broken, messed up, and it feels, not quite right. Sin has entered into our world through us, just as it did through the first two people, and because of sin making a home in our hearts, we were exiled from our home with God, and left on our own in this broken world. God gives us a home in Jesus. He gives us a new home with his son, who left his home in heaven, was born to two people without a home, and himself had no home in which to lay his head. He made his home with us, away from his loving heavenly Father, so that we might have a new home with him in death as we dwell with Jesus, and when he makes all things new.

How do we live a thankful life? Pastor Alarik explores what everyday thankfulness looks like, and how it's bigger than just one day of the year. Check out this special Thanksgiving Day message, made just for you!

The easy, attractive, pleasant things in life, are not the things worth imitating. The things that in the moment feel good and seem good to do, are not usually the things that we are called to do as followers of Jesus. What we want to leave behind is a life that people look back on and consider to be good and well-lived, but for most of us, that means doing the hard thing rather than the easy thing. In Jesus, we are given life eternal. That life we will have after death and when Jesus returns, is better than anything we could ever hope for in this life. He shows us that what it means to live in this world, is to hope in his promises, and to live a life worthy of those promises. Not a perfect life, but a life that is a witness and points to Jesus and his promises, and living for God rather than for ourselves. When we do that, we live the good life.