As we step into the New Year, many of us are focused on the future — setting goals and making plans. But have you stopped and honestly considered whether you've surrendered every part of your life to God?

There’s a reason for all the various shades of dark blue when it comes to Christmas — especially Christmas cards. A lot of the events happened in the dark. Jesus is born at night. The angels appear to the shepherds at night. The magi saw His Star in the East at night. Joseph has a dream at night where an angel warns him, "Get Mary and the baby out of here - NOW!" But that Christmas night in Bethlehem, the Light of the World was birthed in the darkness, pain and the mess of that cattle stall to TURN OFF the dark; to deal with all the stuff that happens in the dark: loneliness, fear, despair, guilt—and especially death.

The strange thing is that God’s ALL IN was pretty much invisible the night it happened. All these broken pieces of the world were still broken, but things were starting to come together. The angels filled the night sky with their joy and amazement. The shepherds saw it; GOOD NEWS - GREAT JOY - FOR ALL PEOPLE! That means YOU. So... do you see it? Do you know it?

Sometimes people interpret the ALL IN on Christmas as being an over-the-top, year-round, Christmas Geek. A Super Elf. Extravagance that takes a year to pay off... but really? Turning Christmas into a competition for attention, love and admiration is a giant exercise in missing the point. God’s focus is NOT on searching a cosmos-wide catalogue to find gifts for people who have everything; His focus is on giving us what we need most.⁠

Mary couldn’t be half-in or even 90% ALL IN on Christmas. Being ALL IN on anything involves hard decisions. It’s a burn-the-ships decision. No turning back. Being ALL IN isn’t based on the emotion du jour... In fact, it means every thing else gets what's left over. What are you ALL IN for?

Christmas is a little like Christianity in our world; it gets encrusted with all kinds of stuff that really has nothing to do with the wonder of a simple breathtaking event. All the traditions and expectations that have grown out of Christmas are not exactly a gift to weary people—like it is intended to be! So... if you're tired already, maybe it's time we took the lid off Christmas, and see what's really there.

The people who are looking for love, true success, inner peace, acceptance, inclusion, a win, an end to the chaos in the world - are all looking for Jesus. But they don’t know where to find Him. And that’s the map Jesus gives us at the beginning of the most succinct, yet most powerful message ever given.

There are times in life that knot our stomachs and paralyze our ability to think. In those times, it takes all of our self restraint to NOT react. Jesus, the Prince of peace, wasn’t just a peace lover, He was a peaceMAKER. And that’s what shines through His life: His calm...when everyone else is scared to death.

There is a myth that shows up quite often among the followers of Jesus: once you receive Jesus your Saviour, that this means you'll never experience sickness, hardship and patterns of sinful behaviour in our lives. 
And it’s simply NOT true — we still struggle! Where do we get this idea from? And how do we think about the struggles that we face now?

There is a dark side to what goes on in this world. Jesus often encountered these forces, and it was clear that they were no match for Him. We often think that we need to focus our energy being on our guard against these same forces... but Jesus' message was otherwise. He said, "Love your enemies. Pray for people who make your life miserable." It was unheard of in that culture. It was shocking and revolutionary. And in our culture, today? It's still revolutionary.