Every year as a church we do a magical, powerful Christmas Eve service. We sing carols, we hear someone’s story of faith, and we have the opportunity to tell the greatest story ever! That Jesus came to earth as one of us to bring us back to God. In 2 Corinthians 8:9 it says, “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.” That’s why we gather and celebrate this miracle. And as we gather, God does stuff in people’s lives.
One woman a couple of years ago said, “at the Christmas Eve service I was ready to receive Christ and begin a new journey with him. That night it felt like Jesus was giving me a second chance and I decided I wanted to follow him with my life.”
A man came to Christmas Eve service a number of years ago really angry with his neighbor and earlier in the day he found out about another thing his neighbor had done that he specifically had ask him not to do. He said he couldn’t even listen at the beginning of the service because he was so mad at this person. But as the service went along, He felt this overwhelming peace flood his heart and mind. So much so that his anger just melted away and his new desire was to forgive his neighbor, not get back at him. He just surrendered the whole incident to God and forgave as God had forgiven him.
Then just a few weeks ago we hired a man to trim our trees. As he was working, he saw our sign up in our yard about our Christmas Eve services. We started talking and I told him I was a pastor and he said his dad was a pastor, but he and his wife didn’t go to church anymore. I invited him to our church and encouraged him to come on Christmas Eve. He talked to his wife that day and then the next day he came back and told me they were coming to the 4 pm service. All because we had a sign in our yard and God used it! So I would encourage you to invite a friend or a family member and come to our Christmas Eve services on Saturday.
I can’t guarantee that something like that will happen if you come this year to our Christmas Eve service, but I can say you will encounter God through the music, the stories and message of the evening. I would encourage you to come to one of our three services this Saturday, at 1 pm, 2:30 or 4 pm. It will be a great time to focus on Christ and the miracle of him becoming poor by stepping down to become one of us, so that we might become rich. See you on Saturday!
Kevin
P.S. Will you help us finish the year strong financially? Your year-end gift will help us make up our fall deficit and put us in position to continue to do great ministry in 2023! You can give online, or by mail or drop it off at the church office. If you mail it, your gift needs to be postmarked on or before December 31st.Thanks for your support.