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There was an urgency in Jesus’ statement, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.” Why? Because He calls us out into the dark world to bring the light of His life, death, and resurrection so that all may know the salvation of the Lord through no other means than Jesus Christ. Let us have the same eagerness to sit down with the Ones in our lives that need to know the Lord’s suffering in order for them to have a relationship with God.
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.
How many of you want God to do something new in your life? *Raise your hand* Scripture reminds us that it takes faith, a small amount, a mustard size faith for the new to come, to change, but we must be willing to change. Making a fresh start begins by allowing God to do His will and way in and through us to make all things new. When we hold onto what we’ve always done, where we’ve always gone it doesn’t take faith. In fact we then are stuck in a rut. Let this Fresh Start Sunday become truly a fresh start walking with God, talking with God and allowing His to do some amazing new things through our faith in what He can and will do.
So much of what we do is empty without the love of Jesus fueling our actions. Throughout his life on earth, Jesus consistently showed compassion to others. That’s because Jesus is real and He invites us to follow his pattern of consistency in ways we live out our love for the people God puts in our paths. Jesus’ example invites us to make love and service part of our everyday life.
If you think back over your week, there probably was a time when you forgot something. Maybe it was you forgot to pick up something at the store. You forgot to say something to a friend or co-worker. Or even, you forgot a special day. Memorial Day is that day that reminds us to remember. Remember those who sacrificed their lives for our freedoms. We have a pattern of forgetfulness. Maybe its in how fast paced our lives have become but we not only forget the simple things we forget the all important spiritual things in our lives. This weekend, we will gather to remember and worship the God who remembers.
Each and every day brings us closer to the return of Jesus Christ. Today, we celebrate in remembrance His birth in the fullness of time. When the exact time God-ordained, He came in order to set the captives free from sin. That is why we can throughout this season have joy, peace, and hope for Jesus came and is nearer than we realize. He is coming! Soon and very soon. We invite you to join us as we celebrate His coming and His return.
Do you know our lives are to reflect the thankful heart we have for what God has done? We ought to desire to walk into His presence with singing because of what Jesus has done— He saved us, He redeemed us, He called us His own! That is worth giving God all the praise and thanksgiving for working in each of our lives. As we celebrate Thanksgiving this week, let us remember the cost and give thanks to God for His hand of mercy and grace upon our lives.
There’s something about serving and being served that inspires humility in a person. Learning to engage in good deeds brings us closer to understanding Jesus’ character. He emphasized the importance of serving by kneeling at the feet of his disciples and washing them as a slave would for his master. Loving our church is intertwined with serving each other. When Jesus commanded us to love one another, he expected us to show that love by serving each other the way he served people.
This week we will bring Joy to the World through our praise. God’s Word has so much to say about praise it could be a sermon series in and of itself. But as we look at the characters of Moses and Mary, we find that we can rejoice for our hope has come… and Jesus will soon be returning to restore all things. Now that is something we can have an expectation of praise shouted from the mountain tops!
There are physical, emotional, and spiritual benefits of being thankful to God and others. We are called as followers of Christ to encourage one another until the Day of Lord happens. Gratitude is one of those ways we can lift each other up.
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