JOY

I love the message of Christmas.

I love the old carols, and the new stuff (check out I Heard the Bells by Casting Crowns here). I love to hear about joy, hope, peace, love, the virgin birth, the deity of Christ. I love our home traditions of giving PJs on Christmas Eve, listening to Scrooge and drinking hot cocoa. I love the food. I love decorating as early on Thanksgiving as possible (while driving JoLynn crazy) as the kids and I remove everything that isn’t Gold, Silver, Red or Green. But that’s not the message of Christmas

I love our new Advent Conspiracy traditions of spending less and giving more meaningful gifts here, so we can send our money to those who need it more. I love that our little church gave Christmas to six families here, while at the same time sending over $700.00 to Haiti for families there. But mostly I love the message.

I love thinking about the JOY that the Shepherds, Simeon, Mary, and Joseph felt; and about the JOY those six families in Rio Rancho and those in Port-au-Prince will feel. But, the reason we give is because of the message. The message is…

You matter to God.

That’s the message of Christmas. That’s why He came – that’s why He was born, why He lived, why He died, and why He rose again. You matter to God. That’s the message I love. That’s Christmas.

How great our JOY!

Dan

Reminder:

CHRISTMAS EVE SERVICE 7PM. Food, hot cocoa, lights, hot cocoa, manger, and you.

NO SERVICE DEC 26. Take a break from our set-up and tear-down portable church work over Christmas. Join your home team or another church and worship with them. Just don’t like them more than us!