As I prepare for tomorrow’s message on Ezra and Nehemiah, I am again amazed at our great God’s grace! As we begin this new year, may we be reminded of what life and ministry really is all about…God’s grace and our relationship to it. In the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, God gave Israel yet another chance to experience His grace. Their sin drove them into judgment in the form of captivity. Now Israel’s descendants find themselves in a strange place wondering how God’s promises regarding their blessing would ever come to pass in their present downtrodden situation. It is at this seemingly hopeless

Christmas is such an awesome time of year! We have all heard the ever-dominating “holiday” greetings lately. It is at this time of year the Christian community emphasizes the importance of keeping Christ in Christmas. I whole-heartedly agree, but let’s make sure we take it one step farther. This Christmas season, don’t just remember the term “Christ” in Christmas; be reminded of our great God’s sovereign plan of redemption!

If you’re like me,

I came across this quote from Spurgeon the other day: “If sinners will be damned, at least let them leap to hell over our bodies. And if they will perish, let them perish with our arms around their knees, imploring them to stay. If hell must be filled, at least let it be filled in the teeth of our exertions, and let not one go there unwarned and unprayed for.”

Really truthful video about what really matters in life (kind of a weird background music, but still cool video). Voice is taken from a John Piper message & video was posted on Bob Kauflin’s website, worshipmatters.com

http://www.worshipmatters.com/2009/12/14/treasuring-christ-above-all-things/

So the end of this week we hopped in the car for northern Michigan to visit Laura’s grandparents. As we drove further along the now tree lined two lane northern Michigan road, the scenery became increasingly blanketed with snow. When we woke up the next morning, the lanscape was now competely covered with snow, providing an ideal backdrop for Christmas decorating and window gazing.