It is so absurd, this King of the galaxies lying in a feed box for animals, this Creator crying in a stable.  Anyone can see at this point that this story isn’t man-made.  Who would ever believe it?  If I were making up a religion that I wanted people to believe in, I’d never insert stuff like this.  Only God could tell a story this ludicrous and then claim that it is true.

Mary’s tiny baby would separate light from darkness.  This child would cause a line to be drawn in the sands of eternity and in the hearts of all people everywhere.  He would shine into, and then through, the lives of all who would choose to follow Him.  As Jesus said later, “I am the light of the world.  If you follow me, you won’t be stumbling through the darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life… I have come as a light to shine in this dark world,  so that all who put their trust in me will no longer remain in the darkness” (John 8:12; 12:46) and “Believe in the light while there is still time; then you will become children of the light” (John 12:36).

The words of Jesus have the power to impale the darkness and create offspring of light.  Life was in Him, and this life gives light to the world.  A world as dark as ours is in need of the light of God, and it arrived one night in a manger.  All of creation had been waiting since Eden for the dawning of this baby’s birth.

That first Christmas God sent a light so strong we would never have to be afraid of the dark again.

(Taken from “Story” by Steven James) 

Making Your Own Christmas Box 

Instructions:

Materials needed:

• Cardboard
• Printer paper
• Old Christmas cards
• Ribbon or elastic
• Bow

1. Cut a cube shaped box out of the cardboard (6 equal 5” squares)
2. Line and glue the inside of box with printer paper
3. Select and cut out a nativity “with baby Jesus ” from an old Christmas card, glue to inner square of the cross shape.
4. Line and glue the outside of the cubed shaped box with Christmas wrapping paper.
5. Label the five outer squares – LOVE, PEACE, JOY, FAITH and ETERNAL LIFE.
6. Fold box into a cube, hold together with elastic/ribbon and top with a bow.

*Unwrap this gift on Christmas morning to reveal the essence of Christmas, “JESUS”.  Explain God’s gifts to us!

What would it look like if we entered into the Christmas story?

Worship Fully

Spend Less

Give More

Love All

Here are a few options (click below):

- World Hope Gift Catalogue

- World Vision Gift Catalogue

Watch this video (from http://www.adventconspiracy.com) and what is your initial reaction?

What would it look like for us to truly experience Christmas where we SPEND LESS, GIVE MORE & LOVE ALL?

Watch this 15 mins video by Andy Stanley, one of my favorite communicators, (on his dads TV show) concerning what God Thinks About You.

How will you live differently today, now that you know the truth of who you really are?

May the TRUTH set you free from your insecurities.  May you find security in yourself because of how God thinks about you.

Watch this video of Ashley Rawls as she talks about the insecurities she wrestled with growing up.

In some form, or another, everyone struggles with insecurity.

The enemy wants us to compare ourselves… to feel we are too much or not enough compared to him/her in order to make us feel insecure.

Next week – 1) We find out what why we have these insecurities and

2) what God says about each of us as he speaks to our insecurities.

How do you think God feels when you doubt?

Perhaps it is exactly what He will use to build a firm foundation for your faith as you trust in Him.

Watch this short video clip about Dealing with Doubt - 

Read through the following passages

• James 1:2-8
• John 14:1-6
• Matthew 14:28-32
• Luke 24:1-12

Thanks for joining our Coffee Group at Orchard Perk.  We hope you enjoyed the conversation we began at Orchard Perk.

As follow up from that time, to continue the conversation, watch this short video (below) of different questions other Christians are struggling with and go through the Next Steps Section below:

Next Steps

Remember what we said at our Coffee Group:

“Some view times of doubt, questioning and even wonder as an enemy to faith. But as theologian Paul Tillich puts it, “Doubt is not the opposite of faith; it is an element of faith.” When someone has questions and doubts, it simply means they’re unclear about where they stand on a given issue. And the ironic thing is clarity is often gained by asking more questions. When a person eventually stands firmly on a conviction, it’s usually because they’ve worked their uncertainty through a series of questions and eventually landed at a place of intellectual satisfaction. So again, wrestling through our doubts is a key element to faith development, not an enemy to it.”

Take some time to write out those things you have questions about. Think about some of the questions brought up in the video. Maybe you have similar questions or possibly entirely different ones. Either way, articulating them can be a very healthy process.

Additionally, write down areas you’re certain of—things you’re not currently questioning at all.

For instance, do you believe God exists, or that the Bible is in fact God’s Word? Do you believe that you’re forgiven, or that you cannot in- crease or decrease God’s love for you? When faced with what you don’t know, it helps to have a foundation of things you do know. Write these certainties down and continue to bring the dialog back to these areas. This helps keep a foundation for our faith, while still leaving the door open for further discussion and uninhibited exploration.

Our goal is not for you to exhaust yourself in each of these areas. Rather, the goal is to simply begin discussing and working through them. Your questions don’t have to rattle your faith, but they can if we don’t process them.

Feel free to check out the following resources as well: More than a Carpenter or The Case for Christ.

Often the simple task of talking through those questions we have with another person and looking into Scripture for ourselves can answer a lot.

We will continue this conversation next week together at our Coffee Groups.

- Kevin

“Greed, the drive to increase one’s bank account and to defend it at all costs, is among the most destructive of spiritual forces.  It regularly creates conditions of contentiousness, incivility and alienation.  It flows from the darkest part of our being that believes that we never have enough, that money is the solution to all our problems and that wealth is the key to our personal value as people.” – Generous Giving

In Luke 12:13-15, Jesus speaks about the issue of building your foundation upon money and greed.  He basically says, that the true nature of greed is a highly destructive force that will eat away at your heart. He warns us to “Be On Guard” against all kinds of greed and not to build our life on what we acquire or seek to acquire.

The Principle of the White Elephant.

In ancient days, when the king of Siam had an enemy he wanted to torment and destroy, he would send that enemy a very unique gift… a WHITE ELEPHANT… a live, albino elephant. Now, these animals were considered sacred in the culture of that day, so the recipient of the elephant had no choice but to intentionally care for the gift.  This undertaking would take an inordinate amount of the enemy’s time, resources, energy, emotions and finances.  Over time, the enemy would destroy himself because of the extremely burdensome process of caring for the white elephant.

Do you think that our enemy, Satan, has made just such a gift to many of us in America.  Most of us in America are rich by the rest of the world’s standards.  In fact, if you make more than $2.00 a day, you are considered rich compared to the rest of the world. So perhaps our prosperity has come by our acceptance of the “white elephant of wealth”… the self-focused “good-life” that consumes most of our energy and has the potential to destroy us.

The GOOD NEWS… there is a way to overcome GREED and the “WHITE ELEPHANT” and that is to build your life, your foundation of Jesus Christ.  Nothing more, nothing less.  The key is to put your trust in God and not possessions or the pursuit of more things that will “make us happy.”

Paul writes in 1 Timothy 6:17-19 – “Teach those who are rich in this world not to be proud and not to trust in their money, which is so unreliable. Their trust should be in God, who richly gives us all we need for our enjoyment. Tell them to use their money to do good. They should be rich in good works and generous to those in need, always being ready to share with others. By doing this they will be storing up their treasure as a good foundation for the future so that they may experience true life.”

Watch out for White Elephants, live with your hands open and keep your eyes on Jesus – the only solid foundation.