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Luke 1:26-56

December 11, 2022 • Jeff Maness • Luke 1:26–56, Philippians 4:4, Zephaniah 3:17

Can you imagine the exhilaration you'd feel if an actual angel from God appeared to you to tell you that God had chosen you for a very special mission? This is what Mary experienced. She was filled with so much awe and joy hearing the angel explain what was to happen. Can you imagine how thrilled you'd be?

But stop to think of the reality that actually make this situation not so joyful, but dangerous and heartbreaking. Mary was not yet married. This was going to cause a great scandal for her family. They might even turn her out on the street! She could try to explain that God is the Father of her Baby, but no one is going to believe that. Add to that that she was engaged, and her fiancé Joseph would be crushed! By law, he could have her stoned to death, or at least divorce her. She would be damaged goods, and no man would marry her after that. With no family and no husband, how is she going to raise this child on her own? This is not a joyful situation at all, not when you stop to think about the consequences.

But Mary was able to remain full of joy, because she did not stop to think about it. She didn't weigh the options with logic. She fully trusted that God had a plan and was humbled to be a part it. She chose joy!

How do we choose joy in times that fill us with fear, or even in everyday life? Watch "Joy" from Senior Pastor Jeff Maness to learn how to live filled with the joy of the Lord, even in the hardest of times.

Peace

December 24, 2022 • Jeff Maness • John 14:27, Luke 2:8–20, Romans 5:1, Isaiah 61:1–3

We wrap up our Don't Be Afraid series with a Christmas Eve message entitled, "Peace". Senior Pastor Jeff Maness explains that peace is not a feeling, nor a quiet tranquility, nor the lack of conflict. It is much more than that. The peace God gives flows from the Person Jesus is. What kind of peace flows from Jesus? 1) A saving peace 2) A strengthening peace 3) A staying peace Watch the message to learn about the only true peace, the peace that flows from Jesus, and how you can experience it always.

Love

December 18, 2022 • Jeff Maness • 1 John 3:16, Philippians 2:3–11, Matthew 1:18–25

Could the world use a bit of love right now? In this message entitled "Love", we are continuing our Don’t Be Afraid series by talking about displaying godly love. Earthly love is based on feelings, but a godly love is based on faith. Pastor Jeff Maness shows some key characteristics of a godly love played out in the life of Joseph. Watch to answer the question: What does a godly love look like?

Hope

December 4, 2022 • Jeff Maness • Psalm 4:3, Psalm 116:2, Malachi 4:5–6, Luke 1:5–24, Hebrews 11:1

During Christmas, we hear many different greetings. "Happy Holidays!" "Seasons Greetings!" Or, "Merry Christmas!" What we don't hear is, "Don't be afraid!" But as we read the Christmas accounts of Matthew and Luke in Scripture, the angel always greeted people with this statement, “Don't be afraid." This greeting reveals the Christmas truth that Christ came into the world to overcome our fears. In this series, we'll look at the four times an angel interacts with humans in the Christmas story and see how we might leave our fear to live out the four classic Advent virtues of Hope, Joy, Love, and Peace. In this first message of the series, Senior Pastor Jeff Maness teaches what hope is and why we have hope no matter our experiences.