It's important to have a reason for what we do, and not just do stuff. As Christians, we have a good reason to go to church. We go to church to get connected - connected with God through the beautiful gospel of Jesus, and connected with brothers and sisters in Christ who are walking through this life together with us. And those connections are what make the Christian life a life worth living.

Whenever or however you got to Atlanta, rest assured, it was no accident. God put you here on purpose. And for as long as you're here, God wants to make you a real and active blessing to your city...

It’s a little bit ironic, isn’t it? We live in a culture that is very familiar with the concept of religion, a culture where very many people have gone to church. And yet it’s a culture where very few people could tell you with confidence exactly where they’re at with God...

At Christmas we gather to remember the greatest gift God has ever given mankind. It is the gift of his Son: the Light of the World, and the reason why you and I never have to be afraid of the dark again.

God promises us peace. And not just someday in heaven - God promises us peace right here on this earth! It's not a peace that's defined by an absence of trouble; it's a peace that's defined by knowing that our God is in control.

As we sing 'Joy to the World,' we're not trying to summon generic Christmas cheer. We are looking forward to a real day, not long in the future, when our Savior will take away all sin, sufferings, problems, and pain forever.

Jesus didn't just come to inspire us to be better people, or to make our world a better world - he came to save us from our sin and bring us to a perfect world, where there will be no such things as danger, fear, death and pain ever again.

To be a believer in God is to wait patiently - not a stress-filled kind of waiting, but a joyful anticipation of things that are to come.

We don't have to be afraid of the day the world ends - because "the end of the world as we know it" will only be "the beginning of the world the way it is truly meant to be.

As we walk through this world of pain and death, God grant us the confidence to view our bodies the way he views them: bodies which will be raised, and glorified, and brought to perfect heavenly life one day.