Christmas Perspective
Why Worry?
January 1, 2023 • Pastor Phil Burdoin • Matthew 6:25–34
Why worry? It won't help anyway. The people of Jesus' day were not all the dissimilar than us. They were facing challenging and uncertain times and that means they worried. They worried about having enough to eat, they worried about having enough clothing. Jesus spoke them and said it was useless to worry. I would not add a single hour to their lives. He told them to focus on something else. As we face a new year with new challenges Jesus words are still true. Why worry? It won't help anyway. But how do we face the obstacles in front of us without getting overwhelmed with worry? That is what we will talk about New Year's day.
God Shows Up Where You Least Expect
December 24, 2022 • Pastor Bill West • Luke 2:1–7
Christmas tells us that God showed up in a manger in human history. He showed up to two teenagers and to lowly shepherds. He lived in this world and ultimately showed up on a cross to pay for our sins. This tells us that there is no place where God will not show up and nothing that he will not do to reach us. You may try to run away from him or hide from him but you can't. This means that we are not safe and that God can and does pursue us wherever we are. He is pursuing you here tonight... Will you turn to Him?
God Asks the Unthinkable
December 18, 2022 • Pastor Phil Burdoin • Matthew 1:18–25
We will take a look at Joseph's life and faith. He was a man who was committed to doing the "right thing". He wanted to both honor God and protect Mary by the things that he did. But God intervened and asked Joseph to step out in faith and to do the unthinkable by taking Mary home to be his wife. Christmas tells us that God does not always work in the way that we think he would. Just as he asked Joseph to do the unthinkable, he sometimes asks us to do the same with our lives. He asks us to step out in faith to follow Him into some uncertain and challenging situations. God asks us to change our world view-He wants us to adopt different values and live by a different perspective in our world. Following God’s plan for our lives requires the faith that sometimes causes us to look foolish to the rest of the world. We will ask each of us to consider what is God asking us to do today that seems foolish or unthinkable and are we willing to obey Him just as Joseph did. God Asks the Unthinkable
God Accomplishes the Impossible
December 4, 2022 • Pastor Bill West • Luke 1:26–39
We live in a world that often appears to be heading for self-destruction. There are wars everywhere, confusion and uncertainty at every turn. Families are falling apart, relationships are crumbling and people are wondering if there is any hope for us. This is much like what was happening in the First Century when the angel Gabriel showed up to this young virgin named Mary. We will look at the message that the angel gave to her and the impact of that message upon her life. We will also look at the response that she gave with the information that she had. We will seek to encourage us by the knowledge that the God who could accomplish the impossible by bringing His Son into the world through a virgin can move in our lives and accomplish impossible things as we trust Him. God Accomplishes the Impossible