Time of Grace With Pastor Mike Novotny

We are powered up by God's love and blessing that He showers upon us.  But what does he power us to do?  Often, we do sinful things, but take a moment to be powered up in the way of the Lord.  Reach out to an unbeliever and get out of your comfort zone for a moment.  Jesus ascended into Heaven leaving his disciples to teach others the message of salvation.  We are Christ's modern day disciples and it's time to get powered up for Jesus!

It is easy to stand at a distance and judge others.  We judge people on how they look, the color of their skin, how they act, and all sorts of other things.  Instead we should be giving thanks for the differences in God's children.  Remember that old saying, "Treat others how you want to be treated." Put that into practice in your life and God will surely bless you each and every day.

Peter, instructed by God, bravely travelled to meet with a Gentile military man named Cornelius.  He was surely afraid, as was Cornelius, to bring together Jewish and Gentile people.  We too can be struck with fear when it comes to reaching out to people that are different from us.  God is working in the hearts of the people sitting in the pews next to us, but the rest of the world is waiting to hear the good news of a Savior.

It's easy to fall into the trap of glorifying earthly things, but God's purpose for us is resolute and he will never settle for anything less than number one in our hearts. As believers, God blesses us with forgiveness for the sins we have not even committed yet.  If our relationships, marriages, and friendships fail we can trust that our relationship with God is steady and loving.  

The true meaning of Christmas is Jesus. He came to this earth as a human being and humbled himself to be like us. We have a perfect Savior to take all of the pressure off of us, even the pressure of the Holidays.

Despite all of the bad things that happen in the world, we can trust that Jesus is there to turn our darkness into light.  He washes away our sins and makes us right in the eyes of God our Father.

Jesus is our shepherd, our guide for our life here on earth. He provides for us, protects us, and loves us so much that he came to earth, born of a lowly virgin, to save us from our sins.

Christ was born a humble birth, but the Magi traveled a far and dangerous way to bow humbly before a little baby. This Christmas season remember that celebrating Christ's birth should be the first thing on our list.

We don't have to say good-bye to our loved ones when they pass because we know that we will be reunited in heaven through Jesus Christ. God has richly blessed us with eternal life.

Don't spend your time worrying about all of the change that needs to be made in the world, instead focus on working together with other Christians in the common goal of telling the Good News of Christ Jesus.