God shows up in our lives right in the middle of our messes, whether they are messes we made, or ones that we've been given. God showed up in Joseph's mess where he had a pregnant fiancee that he had not known yet and he had to deal with the fallout of that.

Mary has been told that she will be the mother of the Messiah. This is big news for anyone, but for a young girl from a small town who may have never seen herself as anything more than a wife and mother, this is huge. Her submission to the will of God brings about joy in heart as she bursts forth into a prophetic song. This song is often referred to as the Magnificat due to the Latin translation of the first line - “Magníficat ánima mea Dóminum” - My soul magnifies the Lord.

Christmas invites us to feel cozy and warm, but to get there, we have to go through the wilderness. In Matthew 3, John the Baptist encourages us to repent so that we can find peace.

The hope we have in Christ, is not just for a future day, though it definitely is, it is also hope that we can lean on today.

Luke 23 details one of the accounts of Jesus' crucifixion and is the only gospel account to talk about the thief on the cross beside of Jesus. Jesus' response to the thief who repents tells us a lot about who Jesus is, and what the kingdom of God is like.

We cannot control most things in this world, but we believe in the one who can. Through the hard times, God is revealing the love and care that he has for us. We are encouraged to trust and not to be afraid. Though the world may fall apart, our relationship with God is not shaken.

In Luke 20 Jesus is confronted by Sadducees. They didn't believe in Heaven, so they were Sad, You See :). Jesus reminds them, and us, that God is the God of the Living. All of us are precious children of God.

This Sunday we took some time to remember the saints who have passed in our community this past year and we were reminded who they were because of their relationship to Christ and who we are now because of it. All of those who have placed their faith in Christ are saints, not because of anything we have done but because of the supreme love that Christ has for us.