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Celebrating a New Beginning is a joyful and transformative experience, akin to embarking on a fresh journey with Jesus. It's an opportunity to leave behind the past and embrace a spiritual rebirth filled with hope, faith, and the promise of a brighter future.
If you’re not excited about something, chances are you won’t tell many people about it. For many Christians, the excitement of the Christian walk has been dulled by everyday distractions, materialistic pursuits, and unconfessed sin. We can stay excited about our relationship with Jesus Christ and, as a result, tell more people about Him.
The Bible calls us to be transformed into being overcomers through becoming more like Christ. If you think back on your life before Christ, before knowing Him and being united to Him, there may have been times you were addicted to something— and it doesn’t have to be drugs or alcohol— it could have been your career, money, fame, influence. But when Christ came, He changed everything. There is power in our testimonies. We become the light of the world when we share about the blood of the Lamb and our testimony. By sharing with others they too can become overcomers.
On Christmas Day, Lead Pastor Steve Darr told a story about the Fourth Wiseman. His name is Artaban and he comes to us through “The Story of the Other Wise Man,” a book written by Henry Van Dyke and published in 1895. It is a beautiful story grounded in the teachings of Jesus. Through carols and Scripture, the story of the birth of Jesus the Messiah once again was told to remind us that He is God with Us.
We come together to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ our Savior. Through this service of communion and candlelight, we will hear prophecies spoken and prophecies fulfilled through this child who came to us in a manger. Joy to the World the Lord has come. Light has shown in the darkness of our lives.
There is no other light than Jesus. Jesus said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness.” The fact remains that if we don’t follow Him, we do walk in darkness. And where is that darkness? It is in the world. Those things that are opposite from what Jesus taught, what Jesus brought from God the Father to us here on earth are darkness. Jesus also said, “You are the light of the world.” Our light is not to glorify ourselves, but it is to reflect the desires and will of God to glorify Him. So, who is the Light? Christ Jesus the hope of glory is our light that is reflected through how we live out our lives through the power of the Holy Spirit.
You’ve maybe heard it said that “God’s NO is not a rejection. It’s a Redirection.” God’s goal for you is to become more Christlike and often, we take a number of turns that take us off God’s intended purpose and we need redirecting. The thing is, we don’t yet see things clearly, we know things in part, and we struggle perhaps in the wrong direction, but we will, one day, “will know fully, even as we are fully known” by God. Isn’t it amazing that we can hand over all our past, present, and future to a God who knows us and desires the best for us?
As followers of Christ, we are to continue to walk and be focused on Him. When you look at the world, it is easy to become afraid or lose hope. But in Christ, we have hope now until the end when He returns. This hope comes to us as Emmanuel, God with us. It is this blessed hope that came in a cradle that we focus on through the cross that gives us the gift of eternal life.
Who do you thank? Gratitude in all things comes through a renewed heart and mind. Being thankful is found in the Bible multiple times. As Believers, as followers of Christ, we are called to give thanks to God for everything— in all things, for all things, during all things. Thankfulness is to produce rejoicing in our lives to glorify God. Saying “thank you” to God hardly seems enough in light of all He has done for us. And yet, when we do, He gladly receives our praise.
As the hymn testifies, “To God be the glory great things He has done.” The greatest act of God besides creation is sending Jesus Christ to redeem the world from the slavery of sin and death. Through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, God is to be glorified and worshipped. He is the only one who deserves our praise and adoration.
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