Yesterday I mentioned that over the last year, our congregation stopped taking up a physical financial offering in worship. Remembering that giving is more than just about money, we shifted to a more general invitation: During this time of offering, I invite you to give your hearts and lives again to Christ.

But how does that look – concretely?

Yesterday I spoke about showing up with an open heart.

But there is more…

A few weeks ago, I was in the hill country of Texas with a clergy group. I’ve been gathering with this same group now for 22 years. We usually have a couple of books to discuss. We talk about ministry-related issues. And, we check in with each other in four areas of our lives: vocationally, personally, physically, and spiritually. This is a way of holding each other accountable. What are you doing to take care of yourself in these areas?

While checking in on her spiritual life, one of my friends said, “You know my prayer life is okay… but what I think I’m really missing is giving some of my time to serve the poor…” This is where she senses Christ’s presence in the deepest way. This is where she is fed.

Her comments reminded me of the inner growth that happens through serving others – whether that is inside the church or beyond it. On top of that, we deepen when we begin to build relationships with those who are very different than ourselves.

When we reflect on offering our lives, we might pray: God, you have called me to be a part of your Body here on earth – your hands, your feet, concretely doing your work. You have called me to share my life with others. In response I set time aside (mark it on my calendar), to use the gifts I’ve been given, to bless the world.

Let us pray: Open our hearts to trust you, O God, and to surrender. Even in our own need, especially in our own need, help us find ways to give and to serve; in Jesus’ name. Amen.

We recently celebrated our Scottish Heritage in worship, complete with bagpipes and drums. This reminded me of traveling to Scotland two summers ago… worshiping in Saint Giles Cathedral in Edinburgh. That church will celebrate their 900th anniversary next year. 900 years!

As I sat in that ancient sanctuary on that Pentecost Sunday, and the choir began to sing, I thought about generation after generation after generation – worshiping in that same place. And, I thought about the deep well of resources that our faith offers. Far beyond Scotland, people have gathered at churches all over the world for nearly 2,000 years – coming to drink deep of the living water Christ offers… coming to offer their hearts and lives to him.

Back at the beginning of the year, I asked my congregation why they come to church. There were any number of reasons: We come to give glory to God. We come seeking healing. We come seeking guidance. We come seeking wholeness, meaning, and community.

And we find, that what Jesus asks of us – is to trust, to surrender, and to give our hearts back to him. And then, in that trust, in that surrender, in that giving, there is a deepening… and there are the seeds of healing and wholeness.

I wonder if there are areas of your life in which Jesus is asking you to trust… or surrender. I wonder if there is something you need to let go of, or something he is calling you to give. This week, I invite you to commit these questions to prayer. Ask him to speak into your life. Offer your hearts and lives, and drink deep of the living water.

Let us pray: Open our hearts to trust you, O God, and to surrender. Even in our own need, especially in our own need, help us find ways to give and to serve; in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Today’s message was written by Rev. Dr. Roger Kunkel, founder of Dial Hope.

Because of the coming of Jesus Christ, Christmas is the good news that hope is real. Hope is always a faith possibility. In Hebrews 10:23 we read: “Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who has promised is faithful.”

One day, very close to Christmas, a child was coming down the hall at church. He had in his hand a little ceramic tray that he had made for his mother. As he ran down the hall, he tripped and fell. The tray broke into several pieces. The child was devastated. He began to cry loudly and uncontrollably. People tried to comfort him with all kinds of advice: “It was just a tray.” “You can make another one.” “You can give your mother something else.” The child was inconsolable. Finally, his mother arrived on the scene.

She immediately realized what had happened. Bending down beside her son and his broken gift, she said, “Well, now, let’s pick up the pieces and take it all home. We’ll put it together and see what we can make of it.”

Isn’t that exactly what the Christmas message of hope is about? The world is broken into many fragments, as are our lives. God stoops down beside us. “Well, now,” God says, “Let me help you pick up the pieces. We’ll put it back together and see what we can make of it.”

On a night long ago, God walked down the stairs of heaven with a tiny child in his arms. That child is a source of hope in human life. Friend of Dial Hope, be a sign of hope in a fragmented world. God has blessed you to be a blessing to others.

Let us pray: Loving God, in this season of waiting and yearning, give us the grace to wait for your coming to the bottom of our toes, to the edges of our fingertips. Come and make all things new. Be born in us today and lead us to the light of your love. Help us, with your grace, to make this day a masterpiece. Through Jesus Christ, the Messiah. Amen.

Today’s message was written by my friend, Rev. Tasha Blackburn.

I wonder if you are ever anxious about getting Christmas “perfect.” Certainly, the theme of lots of holiday movies tells us this is something to worry about. If this has been a concern for you, I want to remind you today of the first Christmas.

The way Luke tells it, he wants you to know two things for certain. First, Jesus and his family were oppressed. The Roman Empire had its thumb on Mary and Joseph, forcing them to travel to register with Rome so they could be taxed even further by their foreign overseer. Luke wants us to know that the first Christmas occurs in the shadow of oppression.

Second, Jesus is born into a family that is in danger. We know this by the mere fact that Mary traveled with Joseph at all. Why would she do that when a baby was due? Only Joseph needed to go. Did she go because she was in danger if she didn’t? Under the law, Mary could have been stoned for being pregnant with another man’s child. So, she stayed close to Joseph and he stayed close to her because, that first Christmas there was danger in the air.

Oppression and danger, Luke tells us is the setting for the first Christmas. This means the conditions were far from perfect and yet God sent his Son anyway. Maybe, not “anyway.” Maybe because conditions were far from perfect; maybe that is why God sent his Son that first Christmas. And every Christmas since. Because Christmas is most fully Christmas, at its most perfect, when Jesus shows up in the middle of whatever we face.

Let’s pray: This Christmas, Jesus, help me remember it is about you. It is not about getting it perfect or getting my life cleaned up enough for it. Remind me again that it is about you, that all of my life is about you—you showing up for me and for this world in the middle of our mess. Amen.

Today’s message was written by my friend, Rev. Tasha Blackburn.

In decorating for Christmas this year, I’ve been putting out some nativity sets and, as I put them out, I’ve been thinking a lot about Joseph. In my sets, I always place Jesus right in the middle with Mary next to him on one side and Joseph next to him on the other. As I do this, I remember that there are many nativities that look quite different. In those nativities, baby Jesus and Mary and shepherds and animals are all center stage but Joseph, is off in a corner on his own.

Well, not completely on his own. In these nativity scenes, there is an old man leaning into a worried-looking Joseph as if speaking to him. For the Orthodox believers who made the image, the old man is doubt. This makes sense because, when you think about it, Joseph is the first human being ever asked to believe in Jesus. Mary is asked to believe, of course, but she has quite a few things happening to her own body to help verify! But Joseph doesn’t. He is simply asked to believe. In a dream, he is told, “Don’t be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.”

I cannot say exactly how I would respond to such a dream and such an ask but I can promise that old-man-doubt and I would have a lot to talk about in the corner! Which is what makes Joseph so amazing. Because, we are told, that when he woke up Joseph did as he’d been told in the dream. In the face of Doubt, he was faithful.

This Christmas, I have a lot to learn from him. I think we all do. For doubt is always there–in the corner–and it might even be leaning into you this season. But that doesn’t keep you out of the scene. You are there. There is room for you in the Christmas story. Whether this year you find yourself right next to him or almost at the edge of the frame, there is room for you.

Let’s pray: Lord Jesus, you know everything about us. You know our great love for you and you know our doubts. In this season, transform our doubt into trust and continue to make us believers. Amen.