What is the one thing you can do to make this year better than last year? According to Proverbs 4, it's get wise. But what is wisdom and how do you actually go about getting it? We kick off the year with an exploration of how to get wisdom and how it will change your life.

Luke tells us that Mary “treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.” This Christmas Eve reflection invites us to slow down, sit with the mystery of Jesus’ birth, and discover how God often works beneath the surface of our expectations.

At the very first Christmas, Mary didn’t just receive a promise—she sang a song. And her song wasn’t gentle background music. It was a declaration that God was turning the world upside down.

In this message from Luke 1, we explore Mary’s Magnificat as the first Christmas carol and discover what worship really is, where it comes from, and where it leads. Worship isn’t just something we do with our voices in a church service—it’s what happens when we lift something up in our hearts and look to it for meaning, security, and belonging.

Mary’s song shows us that true worship is rooted in memory—remembering God’s power, holiness, and mercy—and that when worship takes hold, it doesn’t stay private. It leads to lives shaped by mercy and pulled toward justice. The proud are humbled, the lowly are lifted, and the hungry are filled.

This is the kind of worship Christmas invites us into: a life oriented around Jesus, transformed by the gospel, and participating in God’s great reversal in the world.

Why was Mary chosen - and what does that say about God's blessing for us?

In Luke 1, we discover that God's blessing doesn't come from being impressive or deserving, but from receiving God's lavish grace with humility and faith.

This teaching explores where the blessing of God comes from, how we receive it, and how those who know they are blessed become a blessing for others.

Discipleship is a journey of being formed by the life of Jesus. Just as Mary bears the life of Jesus within her until he comes out of her, so too are we called to bear the life of Jesus until his life comes out of us. But what does that look like and how does that happen?

Mary the mother of Jesus isn't just a decoration to the story of Christmas. She is the first disciple of Jesus, the first to hear and receive the good news of God breaking into our world. Her journey in receiving the good news and making room for Jesus serves as a template for our journey of discipleship through the season of Advent.

The most famous letter in Revelation gives the most stark image: Jesus spitting lukewarm Christians out of his mouth. But is that really what the letter is all about? The letter to the church in Laodicea is a stark reminder that Jesus isn't moved by wealth, status, or comfort, but by simply abiding with him.

Jesus has opened the door of salvation to any and all who will come in. Disciples are called to keep the door open, even on those who oppose the way of Jesus, in hopes that they might enter through the door as well. Keep the door open.

The church in Sardis is called to stay alert in the face of the comfort of reputation and status that would lull them to sleep.

Jesus' challenge to his church is single-minded devotion in a world that offers an array of functional gods. He doesn't just want your habits; he wants your heart.