The greatest of these...

is LOVE! Right? Have you ever heard that before? Jesus said that the greatest thing between peace, hope, and love would have to be love. It is - isn't it?

Many times in our lives there is a disconnect between what we say and what we do. Most of the time we have an easy time saying "I love you" or "I appreciate you," but do our actions really follow the things that we say? Often, we find ourselves upset and lonely because we haven't really loved people around us well. We feel like we're doing the right thing by saying nice things, but really we haven't followed up our words with action.

Think about this - what if God looked down on the earth when it was in it's filth and sin and just yelled, "Hey! Hey everyone! Just wanted to let you know that I love you so much! I would do anything for you! I want a relationship with you!" Then - did nothing. Image how we would feel. Imagine what our lives would be like if God never demonstrated his love by sending Jesus? Where would we be?

You see, true love always comes at some cost or sacrifice. There has never been a genuine act of love given that hasn't involved some effort. Think about this - God sacrificed his Son to show us love, but what do you do? What does it look like for you to show someone love?

Maybe it means spending time with someone.
Maybe it means sacrificing your money and buying a gift.
Maybe it means answering the phone at an inconvenient time to answer the phone.

I don't know what it looks like for you to love the people around you, but I do know that it will take some sacrifice on your part.

This Christmas season don't give gifts just because it's a tradition - really think about what you're doing. Think about the sacrifice and time you are putting into showing someone you love. But, think even further out than Christmas - how can you show love and sacrifice on a daily basis? How can you show your parents or friends that you really value and appreciate them? In 2009 let's really work hard to make sure our actions make our words come to life.

"Give Peace a Chance"

"It's the most wonderful time of the year!" Yeah right - give me a break! It is really the most stressful time of the year, isn't it? I mean, when else do you have parties for hosting, marshmellows for roasting, and caroling out in the snow? Honestly?

I have to admit - if there's one thing we need during Christmas it's peace. Take a look at this teaching video from Kevin West...

Hope...

How many of you have seen the movie A Christmas Story? The main character, Ralphie, is wanting the perfect present for Christmas. A bb gun. He thinks getting this gun with change everything - that it will make his life better.

So many of us want a Wii or a cell phone with unlimited texting. We think these things will really change our lives and make them better. To some extent you're right, but in the end these things break and fail us.

Some of our hopes are much deeper than that. Maybe you hope that you’ll get a college acceptance letter. Maybe you are hoping that your mom and dad won’t fight during the holidays. Some of you may just be hoping that this year your dad will actually remember to send a card.

Each one of us have something that we hope for, some event, some relationship, something that we believe will make our lives different, better. Maybe your parents hope that there will be more money in the bank next year. We all have hope that the troops will come home and the war will be over. All of us have hope in something. IT is only human to have hope…

When Jesus came it was an answer to hope, but it looked different than what everyone expected. The Jewish people were waiting and hoping for a Messiah to come and free people from sin. They were waiting for this one person to come and help them become a better, stronger nation. These people who were waiting had their hopes built up on the Messiah being a king or a mighty warrior, but little did they know that the Messiah would be a baby.

You see, God had different plans for the nation of Israel. He wanted them to trust that He knew what was best for the nation. Instead of putting their hope in the God that saved them so many times they actually put hope in their own plans.

What about you? Where is your hope this Christmas? Is your hope in someone or something that you think can change your life? OR Are you hoping in a God that is bigger than anything we can even dream of?

what's coming?

This Christmas, probably more than any other in recent years, we are hoping that life will get better. We are hoping that life will look differently next year, even if we're not sure how. We realize that no one person or institution holds a solution, but we're expecting something different, even if we're not sure how that is going to work out. Words like hope, peace and love have a new meaning this year, don't they? We're waiting to have hope, peace and love in our lives, in our communities, in our world. Even if we're not sure how it will all work out. And just like thousands of years ago, Jesus is the one who came to bring hope, peace and love to our lives then . . . and now. Jesus taught us how to find hope, bring peace and initiate love even when our circumstances are less than ideal.

Week One: Hope (12/7/08)
Christmas is a time filled with great expectations. (Just ask Clark Griswald.) We expect snow to fall on Christmas morning. We expect that Martha Stewart-esque gathering. We expect a gift from that special someone. And for many of us, we expect our lives to look a certain way. But what happens when life doesn't meet our expectations? How can we have hope in something bigger than what we want or dream? And how can that hope in something bigger really affect our lives-for the better?

Week Two: Peace (12/14/08)
Why is it that Christmas is one of the least peaceful times of the year? Whether it's the long lines at the stores or the stress of even how to make the holidays happen in this economy, Christmas can easily become something we just want to get through and survive. But peace, true peace, has little to do with what is going on around us. In fact, Jesus came to bring peace to our lives in a way that defies logic, and He also invites us to participate with Him in bringing peace to those around us as well.

Week Three: Love (12/21/08)
Love is a word that we hear a lot. People love Christmas time. People love carols. People love casseroles, cookies and candy canes. But when it comes to loving other people, sometimes we are all talk. The word "love" is easy for us to say, but really hard to back up with action. Sometimes loving other people is hard, whether that person is within our family, or living half way around the world. It's why we needed an example, a living breathing visual for what love in action looks like-and that's the heart of the Christmas story.

Get ready for this busy month!

Also, on December 20th we will be having a movie night in The Warehouse...

we serve

Yesterday Dave talked about serving others...

Where are you serving? There are so many ways to get involved and help others at NewPointe. We have people who set up chairs, work with babies, make food, pass out weekly guides, work in the Cafe, etc...

If you are in HSM and you need help finding a place to get plugged in email me at mberes@newpointe.org and I'll get you hooked up!