It’s Christmas time in the city, and the country, and everywhere else I suppose. I love Christmas! The music, decorations, lights and all of it are beautiful. But, let’s admit it, sometimes it can be stressful, burdensome, and a mess. It’s for these reasons and more we need to be reminded that it’s really all about Jesus! This is especially important if you’re having a tough time this season because of a loss of loved one, job, or illness. The good news is that you can experience a Merry Christmas anyway.

By looking at Mary, the mother of Jesus, we can find a way to have joy this season and potentially attract God’s favor as she did. Here are three characteristics she possessed:

She had a childlike faith. From Luke 1:38 we see that she lived in a simple faith that surrendered to God’s plan.

She had a giving attitude. We know she first of all gave her body to be used of God. So many in our culture think, “It’s MY body, so I’ll decide.” But, Mary said, “My body is your body God, so use it however you see fit.” No wonder God chose her!

She also shared the light with others. Before Jesus had ever done any public miracles, He and Mary were attending a wedding (Jn.2). When they ran out of wine and faced humiliation, Mary offered Jesus to help. Her words to the servants were priceless, “Do whatever He tells you.” You gotta love that! It’s one of the most powerful messages we need to hear.

To attract God’s favor in our lives we too can believe God with childlike faith, live life with an open hand, and share the hope of Jesus with others. Here’s hoping you have a very “Mary” Christmas.

Last weekend at Crossroads, we were challenged by Randy Ruiz to not give up. He read from one of my favorite passages, in Galatians 6:9 where Paul says, “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” Here are three main points that Randy made that I would like to remind all of us to put into practice each day:

1) I’m Not Going To Allow What I See – To Affect What I Know! All too often we allow what we see to determine our actions. Instead, what if you acted your way into faith? In other words, don’t see how it is today, begin to, in faith, act as though it is already done.

2) You Never Allow Your Present Situation to Name Your Future! Sometimes we allow what we are going through currently to dictate our future. History is filled with people who had every reason to believe they would never achieve in life, but they did anyway. Why? They didn’t allow their current conditions to forecast their future. (We know things can change as fast as Indiana weather!)

3) Israel Made a Permanent Decision Based on a Temporary Feeling. It’s sad when people act in the moment and quit a job, quit a marriage, or give up on their dream and then regret it later. Don’t allow what is a temporary discouraging season to cause you to make permanent choices in your life. Instead, let this be a mantra, “This too shall pass” during those seasons.

So many of you told me that you were encouraged by the message, so I trust this reminder will keep you running in the race!

How often are we waiting on God, when God is actually waiting on us? It goes like this, “I’m waiting on God to show me what job I should pursue.” Or, “I believe that if God wants me to meet that person, He’ll bring them into my life.” Maybe even, “If God wants me to do that thing, then He’ll make it easy for me to do it.”

Each of these scenarios is assuming that if something’s going to happen it is up to God. However, in studying the Scriptures, we discover that God is often waiting on us. We have been in the book of Joshua recently and when the people came to the river Jordan, rather than sit back on the bank waiting for God, God told them to go ahead and wade into the water. The record says that when the priests feet went into the water that the river dried up for them to cross. (Joshua 3:14-16)

What is God currently asking you to do? He speaks to us through the Bible, people, songs, and an inner voice or promptings. Is there an area that you feel God is speaking, but you’re not moving? When you step forward in obedience, that is where God will meet you and help you to cross over toward His promises.

So, just keep moving until the miracle shows up. Don’t be content, lazy or disobedient by sitting on the bank rather than wading into the water. It could be that the miracle is ready to happen and you’ll discover it as you decide to walk forward in obedience. What step do you need to take?

Many of us are sitting and waiting on God to do something special, while God may be waiting for us to do something simple. Obedience is not complicated. When a parent says, “I want you to go into your room and clean it up,” that is not unclear. Forty-five minutes later when you go check and it looks exactly like it did earlier, or maybe worse, that is not obedience. “But, I got sidetracked by organizing my pencil drawer” is not a good excuse. (This is all just hypothetically speaking)

How many times are we waiting on God to heal, provide, deliver, breakthrough, and create, while we sit in disobedience to what He’s already said? Today is a great day to start making commitments and stop making excuses. And, if you think that God can’t use you because of your past, then just pick up a copy of the Bible and start reading. It won’t take you too long to discover that God specializes in using imperfect people.

God’s grace is all you need to get started. It’s often in our weakness that His strength shows up the most. Rather than waiting on God to bring a breakthrough in your life, why don’t you rise up today and BE the breakthrough you need! God still honors faith and it doesn’t matter if it comes from a prostitute, prophet, politician, or plumber.

Just begin to press on in God’s grace, knowing that He often shows up after we take the first step. (We will see this big-time in this weekend’s message!)

What is your “first-step” of obedience today?

I can remember learning about the people who picked up and moved their lives to the western part of the United States.  They did this in order to explore new territory and built a settlement for themselves and those who would come behind.

All of that is proactive, energetic, risk-taking and exciting.  Settling is totally different.  The person who settles is someone that is lazy, compromising, has low self-esteem, and small goals.

Nowhere is settling admired.  We don’t look up to people who could have achieved more but chose not to.  Nor do we applaud people who quit simply because it got to be too tough.

If settling is not a virtue to aspire to, then why do so many choose it?  For followers of Jesus, I think one thing it comes down to a lack of faith in you and even more in God.  If we really believed in ourselves and God, then we wouldn’t dream of settling.  We would know that we were made for more, formed for a destiny that is greater than us, and unable to allow ourselves to stoop.

If you are single, don’t allow yourself to settle for less than what God has for you, wait for God’s best.  If you are married, don’t accept a mediocre marriage; inspire your partner to greater days.  Whatever you current situation, don’t settle for anything less that what God has destined for you.  Settlers are adventurous, brave and bold to lay claim on their future.  It’s okay to be a settler, just never settle for less than God’s best.

This Sunday will begin our 21 Days of Fasting & Prayer.  As a church family, we are going to be believing God through prayer to change lives (starting with us), change situations, change our country, change conditions, and overall do incredible things that only He can do!

It is going to be a powerful time personally as each of us put aside what we want for what He wants.  Options for fasting could be doing a “Daniel Fast” (just Google it if you don’t know what it is), partial fast (give up meat, soda, or other addictive foods), fast one meal a day, or fast social media or TV (this might be hardest of all for some).

When we give up we go up!  Bondages and addictions can be broken, captives to sin can be set free, and miraculous moves of God take place.  You can’t out-give God, so if you put aside time to be with Him, instead of food, TV, social media and whatever else, then you can be assured of gaining His attention.

Don’t miss this chance to grow in your faith and relationship with God.  I’m believing for more than we could ask or think to break forth as we seek Him during this focused time of prayer.  Get ready!

Over the years of ministry, I have known many people that desired to go on missions trips, but didn’t feel they could raise the funding.  This always saddens me because I know the power of going on a trip.  So, here are some simple suggestions of ways to raise funds:

• Start now – delaying only makes it more pressured and insurmountable.
• Start an account – open a special account to build up for a missions trip.
• Save – avoid needless or unnecessary expenses when trying to go on a trip.  Ask, “Do I need a new pair of jeans now?”
• Cut expenses – cancel cable, eat cheap, do your own manicure, etc.
• Become a coupon-er 🙂
• Write a letter to friends, family, co-workers, bosses, asking them to help you go make a difference in another country.
• Get a second job, sell things on eBay or Craigslist, host a garage sale, or sell some stock.
• Pray for God to help you.  (This should be the first thing you do!)  God can supply the need and give you creative thoughts on how to fund the trip.

These are just a few ways that I’ve used and seen others use to go on missions trips.  Maybe you have some other creative ideas?

I hope this helps you to have bigger faith and trust God to make it possible to go on a trip and make a difference in another part of the world.  You will get as much or probably more out of the trip than the people you serve.

The early followers of Jesus would occasionally make requests of Him.  Probably one of my favorites is when they requested, “Increase our faith!”  This appeal is found in Luke 17:5 on the heals of a conversation on forgiveness in which Jesus suggests that if someone comes back to you seven times a day to be forgiven, then you do it.

Now, I don’t know how it works with you, but if someone sins against me seven times in one day and asks forgiveness each time, I need Him to increase my faith too.  Jesus goes on to explain how faith works like a seed and can actually grow.

So, here’s my point, you may not have the faith you wish you had, but instead of being discouraged, let it grow.   If you do, then a year from now, your faith will be bigger and greater than it is today.  Begin to water it, fertilize it, and weed it, then just like growing crops in a garden; your faith will get stronger day by day.

Feel like giving up?  Are you tempted to quit?  If so, you are just like anyone else in life whether they be young or old, rich or poor, winners or losers.  As a matter of fact, winners are just losers that would never give up.

Everyone loses at some point in his or her lives.  The same team doesn’t win the Super Bowl every year, nor a golfer the US Open, or a movie star the Oscar each year.   In fact, what often happens is that those who get close but fail, only resolve to come back next time on top.

Wikipedia records:  In 1952, Florence attempted to swim the 26 miles between Catalina Island and the California coastline. As she began, she was flanked by small boats that watched for sharks and were prepared to help her if she got hurt or grew tired. After about 15 hours a thick fog set in. Florence began to doubt her ability, and she told her mother, who was in one of the boats, that she didn’t think she could make it. She swam for another hour before asking to be pulled out, unable to see the coastline due to the fog. As she sat in the boat, she found out she had stopped swimming just one mile away from her destination. Two months later, she tried again. The same thick fog set in, but she succeeded in reaching Catalina. She said that she kept a mental image of the shoreline in her mind while she swam. She later swam the Catalina channel on two additional occasions.

Each of us goes through seasons of testing, trying and difficult circumstances, but it is always too soon to quit.  If the disciples had quit, we wouldn’t have the New Testament or the worldwide church.  They endured persecution, rejection, loneliness and slander, but they never gave up.

I know your circumstances can seem overwhelming, but I hope you’ll believe that it is always too soon to quit.  You never know, the finish line may be just ahead and there’s always something to learn where you are today.

Have you faced situations where you didn’t think you had what it takes to make it?  The disciples were perplexed in Matthew 15:32-33 when Jesus wants them to feed a crowd of 4000 men, plus women and children.  What were they to do?  How do you obtain the resources to pull off such a need?  Here’s some things God dropped in my heart from this story:

• God has already figured out how to resolve the problem.
• I need to trust in God’s provision and power over my own abilities.
• I need to offer to God all I DO have so He can multiply it.
• God is able to more with little than I can with much.

I don’t know what you may be facing today, but take courage in this story and apply these principles.  The disciples should have known that Jesus could handle the challenge like He had other times before (He already fed 5,000 on another occasion).

Little becomes much when you place it in the Master’s hands!