We experience personal endings in many ways with those we love and care about. A loved one dies, suffers cancer or another severe illness, or we experience divorce, job downsizing, economic hardship, an affair, a broken dream — even the aging process itself. This is the inevitable suffering that comes during the seasons of life: “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens” (Ecclesiastes 3:1). We cannot control or stop the seasons. They come in God’s time.

As we follow Jesus, we need partners for the journey, a community to help us along the way. Jesus invites all who follow him to join a new family. This family of God is not a social club or a group of friends who look, think, and talk similarly but a community of disciples following Jesus’ way of life. And despite the work it takes, the fights we will endure, and the learning we will do along the way, we’re figuring out how to be with Jesus, become like him, and do what he did.

Very few of us want to revisit the past. But the reality is our past influences our present. Who we are has been shaped by where we come from. For most of us, our family of origin is the most significant influence on our life, for good or evil.  And no matter how healthy your family and childhood experience were, every family is dysfunctional at some level. We all inherit ways of living from our family of origin and culture that are out of sync with the way of Jesus. So an essential task in our apprenticeship with Jesus is re-learning how to be human in our relationship with the Father. But first, we have to go back to go forward.

One of the key tasks of following Jesus is discovering our identity and calling. Knowing who you are and who God made you to become is a profound realization for every follower of Jesus.

Christian spirituality, without integration of emotional health, can be deadly to -- yourself, your relationship with God, and the people around you.

Prayer is the center point of life with God. It should be woven into our morning routine and our weekly schedule. We should pray every day, even if we have to stay up all night. It is here where we get to enjoy the Father’s company. Prayer is our opportunity to interact with the Creator God and participate in his work of bringing redemption to earth. This practice will explore areas of prayer like contemplation, intercession, lament, unanswered prayer, imaginative prayer, and listening prayer.

Fasting is willing abstinence from food for a period of time. It is one of the most abused and least used of all the practices of Jesus. Yet, for millennia, it was a core practice of apprenticeship. We live in a culture not only of food but of excess, luxury, and addiction. For so many of us, the desires of our bodies have come to hold power over us. In the battle with our “flesh,” we have become its slave, not its master.

This week, Pastor Kyle completed our Legacy series by teaching us about grace giving. During this season of generosity, we must understand the motivation behind it. We never want to be led in any part of our faith with a “have to” mentality. Instead, through the overflow of love and grace, we have in a vibrant relationship with Jesus, we GET TO enjoy every part of our faith- including giving. Remember, God doesn’t just want our obedience, He wants our hearts!

In this message, Pastor Anna encouraged us to remember that Christmas is a celebration of Jesus’ birthday. The best way to celebrate Christmas is to give something to Jesus. But what do we give Jesus if we don’t think we have anything? We may not have the wise men’s gold, frankincense, and myrrh to give, but the wise men gave three additional gifts that we can all give as well. They gave Jesus their hope, following the light of the star. They gave Jesus their fervent pursuit, following the star for over two years. And they gave Jesus their worship, bowing down before Him in awe and reverence. Let’s all give these gifts to Jesus for Christmas — they are actually what He wants most!