Newton’s Third Law of Motion & Christmas

 

What is true in physics is also true in the human heart when it is confronted with what happened at Christmas. An individual who truly understands and believes the message that God became a human being in the person of Jesus Christ cannot walk away from it and ever be the same. The Christmas message is no soft and sentimental Hallmark movie which we turn on and off depending on our emotional state.

The birth of Jesus Christ forces us to ask the eternally important questions about our lives, God and what happens after we die. The answers to those questions which Jesus offers are spectacularly wonderful. So much so that they create a powerful reaction in people which demonstrates itself in changed priorities, attitudes and behavior. For those who are convinced the Christmas story is the historical account of God executing the greatest rescue mission of all time, a powerful and positive reaction which makes itself evident in their lives is not an option, it is a natural result of the Message.

Worship service times: Saturday: 6:00 pm, Sunday: 9:00 am & 10:30 am.

The Longest Step

Taking the first step in reconciling with another person very often doesn’t even involve moving our feet, but it can be the most challenging of experiences we go through in life. The need for reconciliation means we are in conflict with someone. In other words, we’re fighting and there are plenty of hurt feelings and bruised egos to go around. Our heart has been pierced by some kind of betrayal by a person we’ve trusted and no matter how much similarly we have treated them, our hurts blur our perception of our portion of blame for the whole mess.

Reconciliation excuses are some of Satan’s most effective tactics in destroying Christian joy and undermining our relationship with Christ. He convinces us that the other person is much more responsible for the conflict and therefore the burden of initiating reconciliation is with them. We are the offended party. And the longer we brood over our hurts, the more certain we are of our rightness and the other person’s total and complete guilt. The most tragic result of unreconciled conflict is the bitterness and resentment it grows within us. Like an acid it eats away at our hearts, reducing even our relationship with God to a cynical, hands up attitude, “But can I trust you?”

The message of Christmas is that God sent his Son into the world to reconcile us to himself, to end the war between us which our self-centeredness has created. As a result, we have every reason and all the motivation to be reconciled with other people. If you have that aching feeling you should send a text or an e-mail to someone you would rather forget, join us for one of our weekend worship services. Christmas is a time of reconciliation.

 Worship service times: Saturday: 6:00 pm, Sunday: 9:00 am & 10:30 am.

 Christmas Eve Service – Thursday at 7:00 pm

This Christmas Eve at 7:00 pm we will be holding a beautiful song and Scripture reading service to commemorate the birth of Christ. Join us for a time of worship and celebration on this most special evening!

 

Imagine the emotions of joy, relief and gratitude which rushed through the man bobbing to keep his head above water when he looked up and saw the rescue diver being lowered to save him. He was helpless and he knew it. Without the helicopter pilot and diver, he was a dead man. He might have felt lucky. He might have felt blessed. He might have had a sense of awe. But the one thing he did not say to himself was, “I am invincible. I saved myself.”

Christmas has lost its impact on many of us because we have lost appreciation that spiritually, we are as helpless to save ourselves as the man in the ocean was of making it home alive without the help of a highly trained rescue team. Christmas is a time of salvation. It is a time to recognize how small our place in this universe is. It is a time to admit we are nowhere near good enough to demand God’s acceptance. It is a time to confess we need someone to save us.

If you feel like you are having to force yourself to get excited about celebrating Christmas, maybe you’ve lost your focus. It could be you are letting the circumstances of your life determine whether or not you should celebrate Christmas this year. Join us for one of our weekend services. The message of God’s Christmas salvation not only naturally leads us to celebrate, it opens our eyes to the truth about ourselves – a truth which changes us forever.

Worship service times: Saturday: 6:00 pm, Sunday: 9:00 am & 10:30 am.

This Ain’t No Pep Rally

 

Pep rallies are a part of high school. And even though most of us weren’t part of the athletic activities, we still felt it important to scream, jump and clap our hands to encourage those participating to do their best. If it wasn’t stated explicitly, we all thought we were being loyal to our school; we were part of something bigger than ourselves. Of course, there were always the skeptics, the ones who didn’t shout or clap or jump. They just stood there with their arms folded wondering out loud what anything that was going on had to do with them?

As the years passed, we might have looked back on those pep rallies and asked the same thing, “What did all that have to do with me? What did I get so excited about?” The irony of it all is that pep rallies don’t end with high school. Our society is built around a pep rally mentality, whether it is the latest movie, or concert, sporting event or political election, we are constantly being revved up into a frenzy over something which often has little to do with our lives.

The Christmas season is upon us once again. In the Christian Church it is definitely described as a season for celebration. Unfortunately, due possibly to over familiarity with the message or repeated non-celebratory presentations of the Christmas message, we often don’t experience the celebration of the season. We wonder, as we did with our high school pep rallies, “What does Christmas have to do with me?” The short answer to that question is, “Everything.” If you want a more detailed explanation, join us for one of our weekend worship services either in person or online. Until then, here’s something to think about: Christmas celebrations have been around for 2000 years. Doesn’t that kind of history itself warrant a closer look?

Learn what Christmas is all about and you’ll find the celebration ain’t no pep rally. Come celebrate with us!

 Worship service times: Saturday: 6:00 pm, Sunday: 9:00 am & 10:30 am.