I hope you understand this about life: It’s often when we run out that Christ begins. We don’t always feel God’s presence. But he’s here! It’s often when we feel like we have nothing left that Christ begins to make his presence felt. Because that’s when grace kicks in. What’s grace? God’s undeserved love. Before Jesus did his first miracle, he let it become an emergency. He let all other solutions get tried first. That’s often how God teaches us about his grace. No one can receive God’s grace who hasn’t run out. Of goodness. Of strength. Of self-righteousness. When we run out, Christ begins. I hope you can listen to this sermon about Jesus’ first miracle—changing water into wine. Jesus loves you!

Where do you find Jesus? He once said, “Didn’t you know that I had to be in my Father’s house?” (Luke 2:49). Finding Jesus isn’t complicated. You find Jesus wherever you find the Word of God. Jesus is never lost. Jesus is never far away from any of us. He’s always as close as those Bible passages you have memorized. Jesus is always as close as the Bible app on your phone or that Christian friend or pastor who encourages you with God’s Word. If it seems like Jesus is lost, it’s not Jesus. It’s you and me. Come on back. Jesus is waiting for you! I hope you can listen to this sermon: “Losing Jesus, Finding Jesus.” Jesus loves you!

Jesus is the Savior of the nations. Do you realize what good news that is? If Jesus is the Savior of Jewish people in the year 0, how many of us are included in that? Zero. But if Jesus is the Savior of all nations on earth from every time and every place, how many of us are included in that? All of us! If Jesus’ birth was for blue collar Jewish shepherds and scholarly Gentile wise men, how many of us fall somewhere in-between? All of us! That means that Jesus is your Savior and my Savior. I hope you can listen to this Epiphany sermon: “Savior of the Nations.” Jesus loves you!

Jesus loves you with eternal love. Want proof? Think of how many opportunities Jesus has had to stop loving you and me. Over the history of the world, over the history of your own life, Jesus has had a million opportunities to change his mind about his love for us. Yet, he still came. He was still born for us in Bethlehem. He still died on the cross for us and our sins. Jesus had a million reasons not to do any of that. But there was one thing that was even more powerful: His eternal love for us. This Christmas, I hope your heart was filled with Jesus’ love for you. I hope you can listen to this Christmas Day sermon: “Eternal Love.” Jesus loves you!

I don’t know what your darkness is today. But I know it’s there. I don’t want you to leave this Christmas without knowing this: You have a Light. You have a Savior. Jesus was born for you. For you! Jesus died for you. For you! Jesus rose for you. For you! Whatever darkness is in your life, Jesus doesn’t shy away. He enters your darkness. He crawls deep into every hole that you’ve dug. To save you. To forgive you. To give you light. There’s hope for you! God wants you to know that Jesus was born for you. That there are people who care about you. Jesus loves you, and we do too. That’s the truth! I hope you can listen to this Christmas Eve sermon: “A Light in the Darkness.” Merry Christmas!

Take your family to Bethlehem this Christmas. By that, I mean take your family to Jesus. Often. There you will find something even Amazon doesn’t offer: Peace. Forgiveness. Joy. For you! Do you at your house read the Christmas story together around the Christmas tree? I hope you do. Do you sing Christmas carols at your house, with candles lit? I hope you do. Before you open gifts, do you say, “The reason for these gifts is because today God gave us the greatest gift of his one and only Son”? I hope you do. It’s hard to keep Christ in Christmas. May God give you the grace and faith to say with the shepherds: “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that his happened” (Luke 2:15). I hope you can listen to this sermon for our Sunday School Children’s Service. Jesus loves you!

What’s on your bucket list? I bet there are things you’d like to do before you die. Maybe it’s to take a trip or see your grandchildren get married or buy your dream house… There was a man in the Bible who has a bucket list. Do you know what Simeon’s bucket list was? One thing: See the Messiah. See Jesus. When he saw Jesus, Simeon sang, “Lord, as you have promised, you may now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation” (Luke 2:29-30). Do you want peace in life and in death? Have the same bucket list as Simeon: See Jesus. Jesus is our salvation. Jesus is our light. Jesus opens our eyes to realize: This life isn’t all there is. If I don’t get to do everything I want to do, it’s okay, because Jesus already achieved everything for me. I hope you can listen to this Advent devotion: “My Bucket List.” Jesus loves you!

Life doesn’t work out the way we expect. What we believe about Jesus often doesn’t seem to match with what we see in our lives. Even John the Baptist had moments of doubt. Jesus gently responded, “John, don’t let life fool you. Look at what I’ve done for you. Look at the good news I say to you. Trust in me!” This Christmas, don’t let life fool you. When it seems like there’s no reason for joy, don’t let life fool you. When it seems like you’re all alone, don’t let life fool you. Look at the manger where God was born for you. Look at the cross where Jesus died for you. Listen to the good news: “A Savior has been born to you!” What you see doesn’t tell the whole story. I hope you can listen to this sermon: “Don’t Let Life Fool You!” Jesus loves you!

God is faithful. To every promise. To every Word. Even when we’re faithless, God is faithful. That’s hard for us to believe. It’s easy for us to doubt. So sometimes the best thing for us is to stop talking. To be silent. To listen. Because hope comes through the Word. Just ask Zechariah. When he doubted God’s promise, God took away his ability to speak for nine months. Zechariah learned to listen to and believe the Word of God, and it led him to say, “Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has come to his people and redeemed them.” I hope you can listen to this Advent devotion: “From Doubt to Faith.” Jesus loves you!

All around us, we see signs that Judgment Day is coming. So do you know what Jesus says? “Lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near” (Luke 21:28). If you long to never sin again, long for Judgment Day. If you long for the conflict in your life to be gone for good, long for Judgment Day. If you long for the end of sickness and disease, long for Judgment Day. If you long to actually feel loved…If you long to see people get along with each other… If you long to never feel sad again… Long for Judgment Day. Don’t focus on earth. Lift up your head to Jesus and his salvation. Lift up your eyes to heaven. Jesus is coming! I hope you can listen to this Advent sermon: “Look Up! Your Redemption Is Near!” Jesus loves you!