Summit Church Sermon Podcast

In the final week of "Fresh Start" we tackled the topic of friendship by search the book of Proverbs. We discovered 3 characteristics of meaningful relationships that form and shape our lives as Christians.

This week, Pastor Dan walked us through a chance to hit the reset button in our relationships as we give and receive forgiveness.

Do you ever wish that you could hit the 'reset' button when it comes to family? We have all said things we shouldn't have said and done things we shouldn't have done. But in the midst of mistakes, you can have a Fresh Start.

God has already been working in your life, and He wants to keep working in and through you in 2017.

The Fresh Start series gives us opportunities to reset several key areas of life by asking what God wants to do in and through us in 2017.

Week one focused on a fresh start for our faith.

This week Pastor Dan begins to cast vision for the new year, talking about how we should seek God's presence as our foundation for 2017.

What does it look like to seek after God and how do we accomplish that? Until we do, we will not truly live a life that is complete and full of joy.

At the first Christmas, angels appeared to shepherds and declared that peace is available. In a single verse from the Bible, we find out where to find peace.

We search for peace in all kinds of places, Scripture is clear: True peace comes from God. And it comes through knowing and having a real and personal relationship with Jesus.

The birth of Christ is the story of God's desire to have a covenant relationship with us. One of the names of God is, "Emmanuel," which means God with us. Being created in God's image, we also desire relationships with other human beings.

But what happens when relationships suffer and become strained? During the holidays, we often desire to make peace, but don't really know how. This week we will learn from the Christmas story about how to give and receive the gift of restored relationships.

Christmas is supposed to be a time filled with singing, joy, and excitement. But the season can be overshadowed by the death of someone close to us.

An empty chair at the table can be a painful reminder of loss in the midst of celebration. There is hope! Jesus overcomes death and provides peace in the midst of our hurt.

Being thankful is not meant to be just a seasonal action brought on by a holiday. It should be something that is woven into the DNA of every Christian. We constantly express thankfulness to the God who has given us everything.

Jesus taught us to pray, "Thy Kingdom Come." He spoke of God's Kingdom being among us, but yet not fully here.

But what are we up against? There is a constant tension between God's Kingdom and that of the enemy. We live in a time when so many leaders of nations seem to reject Christ, what hope do we have that God's will can be done "on earth as it is in heaven?"