Wise relationships are rooted in our relationship with God. Are your relationships self-serving or loving?

God is the source of all we have; we should therefore honor him with our “firstfruits” and with the use of our money in generosity and service, not in greed. Commit to a specific amount or percentage of your income to give to God off the top. Then consider how you treat your employees or workers you encounter in society: Do you value their work and compensate it fairly, or do you hoard money for yourself?

The Book of Proverbs: The Ways of the Wise

Big Idea of the Series: The book of Proverbs is a collection of wise sayings from (primarily) King Solomon. This seven-week series will look at the multiple gems of wisdom and themes found in the book and consider practical areas of our life where God’s wisdom can shape and change how we live.

Week 1

Text: Proverbs 3:1–2; 30:7–9

Topics: Orderly Life, Contentment, Stress

Big Idea of the Message: A well-ordered life will bring contentment.

Application Point: What are the most important priorities in your life? Is it a little crowded for Jesus right now?

This standalone message ignites an excitement for the new opportunities a new year or season offers believers who keep their eyes on Jesus. We can develop high-quality habits of turning the pages of Scripture to find our place in the powerful story of God.

Week 1

Text: 2 Corinthians 5:17; Psalm 40:3

Believers are given God’s manual on finding hope and are invited to turn the page to unpack its message.

Value the opportunity to receive new life in Jesus, and appreciate the gift of growing in knowledge of the Bible.

This standalone message ignites an excitement for the new opportunities a new year or season offers believers who keep their eyes on Jesus. We can develop high-quality habits of turning the pages of Scripture to find our place in the powerful story of God.

Week 1

Text: 2 Corinthians 5:17; Psalm 40:3

Believers are given God’s manual on finding hope and are invited to turn the page to unpack its message.

Value the opportunity to receive new life in Jesus, and appreciate the gift of growing in knowledge of the Bible.

Week 4 – Love

Text: Luke 1:39–55

Mary celebrates God’s great gift to her after visiting her cousin Elizabeth.

During Advent, we are called to stop and consider the many ways God has shown and continues to show us his love.

Week 3 – Peace

Text: Luke 3:1–17, Isaiah 9:6

John’s message prepared people for Jesus’s arrival, which would bring peace.

The world longs for salvation—for the coming of peace, when all is made right in our lives and in the world. During Advent, we are called again to bring the foretaste of the Prince of Peace’s salvation into our areas of influence.

Week 2 – Joy

Text: John 1:19–34; Philippians 4:4–9

Everyone longs for joy that lasts. Jesus brings the joy we need, but we must be willing to come to him to receive it.

To experience enduring joy, we will need to let Jesus’s arrival be a holy invasion of every part of our lives.

This four-week series will focus on how the arrival of Jesus answers our deepest longings in life: our longing for Jesus to come anew into our lives (hope); his arrival in Bethlehem answering our longing for God to move in our lives (joy); our longing for a Savior (peace); and finally, the return of Jesus to make all things new (love). We will see how the longings themselves are God’s gifts to us. The four-week series will call us to celebrate Jesus’s arrival and eventual return by considering the many ways he has fulfilled our deepest needs of peace, joy, hope, and love.

Week 1 – Hope

Text: Luke 21:25–36

At Advent and Christmastime, we tend to focus on the birth of Jesus, but we miss the point if we don’t also speak about his return.

God is a God of hope who calls us to look beyond the circumstance and trust again in his promises.

Returning to God in worship can be challenging. The weight of having been absent and the struggle to make sure it is done right is palpable. When the Hebrew people returned from exile, they had to relearn how to worship God as he expected. This five-week series will take passages from the postexilic period that show how God led his people back to the worship of the one true God.