In one game this season Travis Kelce caught a touchdown pass and broke a record held by a former Chief’s tight end, so Kelce celebrated like this former tight end, Tony Gonzalez celebrated, he “dunked” the football over the goal post. Since

this celebration has caused delays in the past the NFL now makes this celebration a penalty. Sometimes there is reason to

celebrate no matter the difficulties we experience. The book of Romans gives us reason to celebrate and that reason is

summarized in the first seven verses of the book.

We can forgive, because we have been forgiven.

Christmas is over. My tree at home is already down (Cherie doesn’t mess around)! It’s like this every year. So much anticipation and within 20 minutes the presents are unwrapped, the kids are claiming to be

bored, and nothing is left in the fridge but leftovers. So what should we do when Christmas is over? Remain faithful, because God is faithful!

Christmas is often a little louder than other times of year. It is a season, after all, that is filled with jingle bells, caroling, reindeer hooves on rooftops, squeals of delighted children and the scraping of plates at holiday feasts. There are other noises as well. The eery silence of a loved one lost,

the yelling of family gatherings gone bad, or the hum of a Christmas movie reminding you of your own loneliness are all sounds some of us experience at Christmas. Maybe more than any other year we could use some good news to cut through all the noise of Christmas.

Most years I talk about being distracted at Christmas by lights or presents, holiday events at school or office Christmas parties, but this year seems different. There will still be family gatherings to stress about

and school events to add anxiety, we just might be worrying about whether or not they will actually take place. Christmas is all about what we can truly count on. Christmas is all about who we should always pay attention to. Christmas is about God and the worship He deserves.

One of the more frustrating things in the last year was realizing how divided our nation is. We are divided politically, economically, racially and philosophically. It is ironic that in a world that doesn’t believe in absolute truth we so stringently hold absolutely to our own opinions leaving no room for others’. So the question for followers of Jesus becomes how do we cut through the noise of division? We serve like Jesus.

This year has been so noisy. There has been lockdowns and quarantines, kids

have gone to school in a new way, we’ve had to deal with illness personally and in those we love and then there was an election and the struggle that followed, not to mention the everyday issues of life! This Christmas needs to be a time when we grab the opportunity to listen to God more!

One of the best ways to learn something is to follow the example set by an expert. Throughout Paul's letters he prays very specific prayers for the people he cares about. We can follow the model of Paul's prayer in Ephesians 1:15-23 in order to shape our own prayers for the people around us.

The last “have” that God wants for us is a source. We have a plan to give and we have a heart to give and God provides the well we need to draw from in order to live generously!

Nobody wants to be a scrooge. Everyone would rather be know as generous rather than stingy. People want to be known as a cheerful giver. We want to be a people with a good heart.