Jesus turned the world upside down when He gave His own life for the will of the Father, in order for us to be saved. Likewise, the only way God will use us to turn the world upside down is if we give our whole selves to Him and His will and hold nothing back. Christ's sacrifice was about so much more than just a ticket to Heaven -- it was about saving the whole world, and using us in the process.

We tend to seek a mate first and then ask for God's blessing later. But what would it look like if we reversed that by seeking God and then allowing Him to direct our steps? When we put God first before moving forward in a relationship, He guides and directs us to the blessing of marriage the way He intended it to be.

On our own, we're all slaves to sin -- but Jesus paid the ultimate price for our freedom so we could be spared from the death sentence that awaits us. For us to be freed, we first need to confess our guilt. Only once we admit that we're dirty with sin can He make us clean.

We tend to think of ourselves as owners -- of our time, our finances, our talents, and more. We forget that we're merely just stewards of everything that God's blessed us with. Imagine how much more the Church could do if we'd each stop trying to own what was never ours to begin with, and instead we gave all that God calls us to give!

We spend so much time worrying about our jobs, our homes, our finances, our families, and a million other things. But how much time do we really spend worshipping the King? Our sole focus should be our relationship with Jesus, because everything else we do and have stems from that. When we prioritize Him, He provides for all of our other needs.

It's our responsibility as the Body of Christ to feed and tend to the other sheep in the Church. But we don't base our decision to obey God on what others are or aren't doing. If He's called us to do something, it's our job to respond in obedience -- even if that means leaving some people behind.

Tis the season...for shopping, stress, and credit card debt?! We too easily lose sight of the fact that the best Christmas gift ever given is the gift of Jesus Christ -- and His love is offered to us completely free of charge. Let's keep that reminder at the forefront to give us joy through this season, and let's spread that good news to others along the way!

When Jesus ate His last meal with His disciples, He took time to teach them the importance of remembering the suffering and death He was about to experience. It's in the process of giving thanks that we remember all that God gives to us. Jesus thanked His Father for what represented the worst suffering anyone could ever endure on the cross -- so let's be thankful in all things as we remember what He's done.

The Bible tells us to give thanks to God -- not just in good times, not just some of the time, but at all times and in all things. But the only way we can thank God in the midst of our suffering is if we trust Him to get us through it. When we thank Him in the hard times, we walk out our faith that He's with us in our trials and will see us through to the other side.

When we call out to God and ask Him to help us, then we have to be ready and willing to obey whatever He tells us to do in response -- even if it sounds crazy. And when we follow through on His answers to our call, we also have to remember to thank Him for the blessing we receive as a result.