Maybe all you want for Christmas this year is some family peace. To dial down the drama and get along. To feel some love and some togetherness. A sense of belonging. Maybe you just want some peace and quiet this Christmas. To stop hustling for one day. To be able to rest and not feel so tired—not feel so overwhelmed. Maybe you just want to be happy. To get back a little of that wonder you felt as a kid. Maybe you just want to wake up Christmas morning and feel like everything is going to be okay. To not be afraid. To know that better days are ahead. That the best is yet to come. The good news is that these are exactly the kind of gifts God wants to give us at Christmas. Jesus was born to give you more than just a holiday; He was born to bring you a new day in your life. He was born to bring you all the things you really long for. Hope. Joy. Peace. Forgiveness. Eternal life. Good news. The greatest gift of Christmas is one you don't have to open, shop for, or buy. The real miracle of Christmas isn't under the tree. The greatest Christmas present is God’s presence and you don’t have to wait to open it, because God is everything we all want. He comes with peace, with help, with direction for your life and with joy. Those are all gifts I hope we all open this year.

There is a simple joy in partnership with God. I believe walking with God in faith this holiday we can have a child-like joy, even in tough circumstances. Not child-ish, but childlike. You know, as I talk to people, I hear this a lot. I hear them say, “Christmas is for kids.” It is. It is for kids. It’s wonderful for kids. What I think sometimes is implied in that is that it’s not for adults either. But the greatest gift at Christmas is Jesus and He can be experienced in our hearts and lives, no matter what age we are, and I believe it can lead to simple joy in tough seasons.

If you have to choose between grace and haste, choose grace. This holiday season, spend the extra time listening to person who calls, even when they start complaining. Let other people cut in line or steal your parking space. Be thankful for the cards you receive, enjoy them, before you feel the pressure to respond because you haven’t gotten theirs out yet. Accept gifts graciously, thankfully, even if your gift-equality is out of whack. Watch those cheesy old movies with your family (snuggle even though your kids are wiggly or huge). Listen to the music, even though you have heard it all before. Go through all the traditions—slowly. Take time to notice the lights, smell the smells and most of all take in the story of Jesus all around you during this time of year. You might have a thousand things to do, but don’t skip out on church and don’t blow past Jesus. He’s the reason for it all. Have a personal encounter with Him. Feel that joy and awe again. That’s what we all really want, isn’t it? You don’t get that by going faster. Grace is incompatible with haste.

There are a lot of things we can celebrate at Christmas. We can celebrate being together as a family. We can celebrate finding a perfect gift or getting something awesome. We can celebrate the movies we love to watch and the traditions we love. But if you want to want to move from obligation to celebration, you need to celebrate Jesus within all those other things. You give those gifts because Jesus has given you the gift of grace. Hang those lights because Jesus has lit up the darkness. Enjoy your relationships because Jesus has made possible a relationship with God. Enjoy all the traditions because they are a way for you to celebrate the fact that wonderful counselor, the mighty God, the Everlasting Father and the Prince of Peace has come to be your leader and forgiver. Forget about having a perfect Christmas. Forget about living up to some standard. Pour grace on your Christmas, instead.

How many of you would like to have some heavy burdens lifted from your shoulders this year? This is what Christmas is about! It’s a celebration of the fact that Jesus has broken the burdens that others try to place on our backs. It means that when someone else makes you feel like Christmas won’t be Christmas unless you buy this or do that cook all day…that is not a burden you need to bear. If someone in your world, or societal standards, or that inner nagging voice is giving you a list of 10 or 20 or 100 things you feel like you should be doing, here is a word for you: Don’t bear a burden that Jesus has already broken. Guilt is a burden Jesus came to break so you don’t have to bear it. Don’t let the obligations of the season ruin the celebration of the season.

Jesus is the light. He can shine bright even in your darkest situation. He can bring light to the darkness of your divorce. Light to the darkness of your parenting situation. Light to the darkness of that legal battle you are facing. Light to that problem at work or with your health that seems to have no answer or no clarity. When the darkness closes in, you need to look for the light, because in the battle between Jesus’s light and your darkness, the light always wins. Darkness cannot snuff out light. But even a little light can push back the darkness, and Jesus is not a little light. He’s a great light. It doesn’t matter how dark the darkness gets around you, if you get around the great light, that darkness has no choice but to flee.  So no matter what you are facing, I urge you, seek out the light. Turn toward Jesus in prayer.

We all have a lot of things to get done. A lot of things we want to have happen this year. But don’t allow what is most urgent to get in the way of what is most important. Don’t water down the joy and grace you can receive this year by trying to keep up with last year or meet other people’s expectations. Let’s all do less and live more. Give presents, but also be present. That’s how you receive the gift of encountering Jesus this Christmas season. Slow down and soon you’ll find you have more time for what matters, and that means you will start to matter more.

No matter where you end up, no matter how far you run or how far you fall, God is there. He’s present in your darkest failure. He’s present in your most painful betrayal. He’s present in your most frightening illness. He’s present in your weakest moments. He’s present when you hit that mountaintop and life is going your way. He is present in the valley when everything is falling apart. The only place where God is not present is the areas of our hearts where we do not let Him in. The challenge for us all today is to ask ourselves: where do I need to lean in to the personal presence of God? How can I open up to Him more? He already knows everything about me, but does He have access to every part of me?

Sometimes when we think about God being everywhere, it kind of freaks us out. Is He tracking us to catch us in all our mistakes? Is He shaking His head in disappointment every time we don’t hit the standard, or give in to temptation? What’s the advantage of Him being all present? Psalm 139 answers this question with powerful statements. First of all, the psalmist says that God has examined my heart and know(s) everything about me. Here’s how that relates to your feeling alone. When you feel misunderstood—God gets you. Do you have those people in your life who just get you? It’s easy to be together because you are on the same wavelength. Then you have those people who don’t get you. You have to filter everything you say around them and communicate on a more surface level. It’s harder. Listen, God is someone who gets you (even though you may not fully get Him). He knows you better than you know yourself.

Has anyone tried to hide in some darkness for a while? You tried to give up on God, but He would not give up on you? God does not abandon you in the darkness, He guides you THROUGH the darkness. The bible tells is that Jesus sent his Holy Spirit to be our “comforter.” I love that word. How many people would like some comfort today? This means that the presence of God is not only all around us, but as a Jesus follower, the Holy Spirit is also within us to give us comfort. Many of us looking back on the dark times of our lives experienced a peace that surpassed understanding. We had an inner strength that kept us from being crushed. We had a hand directing us when we could not see the future through a cloud of uncertainty. That was the personal presence of God the comforter within.

Some of us struggle with the fear of not having enough. We wonder if there will be enough money to pay for all the things we need. Or if there will be time to do all the things required—like make it home in time for the holidays or get the house clean enough for the people that are coming. We wonder if there’s enough energy to get through the challenges at work or in the family. Think about your money, your time, and your stuff--no matter how much it increases, don’t you notice that your appetite grows to meet it? Studies have shown for a long time that as our income increases, spending increases, and the end result is people making minimum wage or six figures both complain of the same thing: there just never seems to be enough. Talk to a person who is totally into fitness and health and what is their greatest worry? Their health! Talk to a person with lots of money. What is there greatest fear? Not having enough! There is something in us as people where enough is never enough. So where do we go to satisfy this hunger for enough? In John chapter 6, Jesus gives us the answer when He says, “I AM the bread of life.” He says, “I AM the one who satisfies your spiritual hunger so that enough is enough.” Jesus is our hope for enough!

David Steindl-Rast, a Benedictine monk for many decades, gave a Ted Talk about gratitude and here’s what he said: “It is not happiness that makes us grateful. It's gratefulness that makes us happy.” So often we think, “if only this problem would go away, or if only this thing would happen the way I want it to happen, then I would be happy and then I would we grateful. I will be grateful when I have something to be grateful about.” But that’s not how it works. Don’t we all know people who have more stuff and fewer problems, but are less happy and grateful? And don’t we all know people who have more problems, less stuff, yet are happier and more grateful? Researcher Brene Brown found the same thing. She conducted interviews for 12 years, collected 11,000 pieces of data on what makes some people whole-hearted, resilient and happy. In all that time she did not meet a single person who would describe themselves as joyful or their life as joy-filled who did not actively practice gratitude. Take time to practice gratitude and begin to see how God works in that to make you happier.

Love others. Theologians call this God’s moral will. He wants you to do good in the lives of other people. This is the golden rule Jesus taught. He said do unto others what you would have them do unto you. Notice, it’s all about action. Do for others. Be active, not just reactive. If you like being thanked, thank others. If you like being let in traffic when you need to get over, let others over. If you like it when people care about what you think or feel, then YOU care about what others think and feel. If you like getting help when you are down on your luck, then help others when they are down on their luck. I don’t know what God’s specific will for you is, but I know the more you love others as you like to be loved the closer you get to it. Maybe what you need is not for the clouds to open and for God to say, “This is what you need to do…” But you need to open your heart and say, ‘Who should I be loving?’ You need to love that challenging family member. You need to call the person you are avoiding. You need to pitch in and help around the house. Maybe you just need to say thank you to someone. Or you need to forgive someone. Or you need to honor someone who you are currently harming or dishonoring. Maybe you need to end a habit or relationship that you know is hurting someone else or damaging your own character. When you aim to love others, you are aiming at God’s will.

When anxiety says, “it’s going to be worse than you think,” listen to God who says, “I know the plans I have for you, to give you a hope and a future.” When anxiety says, “you won’t be able to handle it”, the Bible says, “I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.” When anxiety says, “don’t make the wrong decision,” Jesus says, “come to me all who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest.” When anxiety says, “you don’t have the strength to face it” Jesus says, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” When anxiety says, “Your life is over” Jesus says, “I am the resurrection and the life. I have defeated death. He who believes in me will live and never die!”

God is the only one who knows the future. Everything He plans comes to pass. God literally has zero uncertainty. Nothing surprises Him. Nothing overwhelms Him. He never says, “I did NOT see that coming.” He sees it all coming. He is not limited in His ability to bring His plan to completion. God’s plans are your future. At the same time it’s important to say that not everything that happens is a part of God’s plans. Plenty of what happens in this world is a complete violation of God’s will and character. The bible says God desires for all to be saved—sadly we see plenty of people reject God. The world is a place where people are free to choose their own wills. That means it’s a place filled with uncertainty. But at the same time, God works out His certain plans in this uncertain world. And He is bringing it to a certain completion. What we need to do is aim our life at His plans. You can’t know what is going to happen in the future, but you can follow God, day by day, into your best future. You can choose today to direct your life at God and go where He is leading. This does not mean it will be all high fives and victory laps. There will be ups and downs. Wins and losses. Suffering and joy. But God will surround you with His strength, His protection and His people if you just seek Him. If you want to secure your future, the best thing you can do is seek God today. 

Lots of times we look to God to strengthen up all the places we feel weak. When your marriage or relationship goes sideways you call in God to make you feel strong. When you have a huge test or a major task at work or a parenting challenge you can’t handle, you call upon God to make you feel strong. We think, ‘I can do this if God helps. He will show up and take the weakness away.’ But that’s not what we see here. You need to move forward even though you feel weak. If you wait until you feel strong enough to deal with your addiction, you never will. If you wait for your crazy schedule to settle down before you deal with your health or some serious issue, you will never do it. If you wait for the fighting to simmer down before you seek counseling or outside help, you will never seek that help. And the best time to come to church is when you feel like going the least. When you walk with your weakness you start to live with God’s power. Your weakness releases God’s strength. It’s a faith thing. It’s a trust thing. It’s about more than just believing with your head… it’s about believing with your heart, your hands and your feet. God is good and God is powerful, but often we access that power in the areas we feel weakest.

God is not limited by your potential. His power IS your potential. His plans ARE your future. He can do more with your life than you can even imagine. You have to decide if God really is for you, and then trust Him. It might help to have you decide these things out in the open. We are going to bring up three simple questions. Answer them honestly to yourself. 1. Do you believe God is real? 2. Do you believe God loves you? 3. Do you believe God can help you? These are basic questions. But they have big implications. If you answered no to any of these questions, that’s where you need to focus. If you don’t really have the baseline to trust God and expect Him to work. I encourage you to keep asking those questions and showing up each week at Central as we describe more of God’s character. But if you said yes to all three…if you agree with all three in your head, that’s great! You are halfway there. Now you need to let those yesses drop down into your heart and start acting on those promises in your life. Where your head, your heart, and your hands come together—that  is the trust zone. That is where you start living like God is real, God loves you, and God can help. The more you trust the more you’ll grow.

Don’t let your problems determine your view of God; let your view of God determine your problems. If you let your life situation define God you are going to end up with someone you do not trust and cannot relate to. Your problems are going to seem bigger than God. Your own answers are going to seem smarter than God’s responses. Your own efforts are going to seem more important than God’s efforts. You are going to have to lean on your own strength rather than being able to accept your weaknesses and lean on God’s strength. Instead, you need to get a clear picture of God first. And then let that picture define your problems.

We need to trust that God is good even when life feels bad. To trust that God is powerful even when we feel powerless. To trust that God knows best even when we feel at our worst. To trust that God only says no to give us a better yes. To trust that He sees the big picture. To trust that He’s involved in the details. To trust that He knows our fears. To trust that He sees our enemies. To trust that He is on the job, He’s got our backs, He’s got our fronts, He’s got the ground under our feet, the sky over our heads, and everything in-between. You don’t need more clarity. You don’t need more security. You need more trust in the God who is real, who loves you, and has the power to do more than you can imagine.

Grief is a choice. You choose to be honest about whatever you are feeling and you take that to God. God wants us to release our feelings to Him in prayer. The Bible calls it crying out to God. You bring to Him your anger, fatigue, confusion, and frustration. Complaining ABOUT God is rebellion. Complaining TO God and crying out to Him is an act of worship. Some of us have been worshipping all week! There’s a right and wrong way to complain to God. What’s the right way? You do it in faith. You say, “God, I believe you’re going to hear me on this. I believe you can help.” You can tell Him anything. You cry out to God. God would rather have you be honest and release your feelings to Him than for you to fake it and pretend like everything’s all right because it’s not.