Month: December 2023

“This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed—and a sword will pierce your own soul too.” Luke 2:34 

These words from Simeon are haunting, aren’t they. But what he says about Jesus is true. Jesus confronts us, each of us, with a reality we can either accept or deny. To accept Jesus as the son of God is to bow before him as Lord and praise him for salvation. To reject Jesus is to deny God and walk away from a path of life. Simeon knows that Jesus will stand at the center of history and each of our lives leaving everyone changed. The question is, how will we be changed. Will we rise or fall? As we enter a new year, it’s worthy asking how we will respond to Jesus in 2024.  

–Pastor Travis Norton

Looking for last week’s worship? You can find it here!

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“‘I am the Lord’s servant,’ Mary answered. ‘May your word to me be fulfilled.’ Then the angel left her.” Luke 1:38

I wonder how Mary was feeling when she said this. I wonder if she said it with a quiver. I wonder if she said it with confidence. What might she have been thinking after an angel appears to her and tells her the impossible is going to happen? We often are also faced with things that feel impossible, but we have a God that does many wonders. Nothing is impossible with God.

I hope you join us this Christmas Eve morning for our one service at 9:30 a.m. for an exploration of this important meeting between the angel Gabriel and Mary, the mother of Jesus. It’s the story that started the great story of our Messiah. It is the revelation that we are about to have Emmanuel, God with us.

-Michaela Eskew

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“He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light” John 1:7 

I’ve never really thought of John the Baptist as a humble man. He was loud and obnoxious. He drew crowds. He shouted down pharisees as a brood of vipers. Some people thought he was the messiah. Others believed he was a new prophet, maybe even Elijah. I imagine he would have been tempted to give in to the attention, to claim it for himself. But he knew exactly who he was, and that gave him the strength to resist the temptation. He pointed away from himself to Jesus. That is humility. Whenever the spotlight was on him, he used the moment to point it to Jesus, the true light. We can be like John in this.  

–Pastor Travis Norton

Looking for last week’s worship? You can find it here!

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“John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.”
Mark 1:4 

I’ve been advised not to preach about sin. It’s too negative, people say. People already feel bad, they don’t want to come to church and be made to feel worse, some say. But here, at the beginning of Mark’s gospel, as a way of paving the way for Jesus, John the Baptist preaches about sin. He urges people to repent, to be forgiven. And guess what, people came, from all over. It’s hard to imagine people emptying out of a city to come and repent and be forgiven. Why do you think John the Baptist’s negative message had such appeal? Maybe it wasn’t that negative after all. He had good news. 

–Pastor Travis Norton

Looking for last week’s worship? You can find it here!

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