Good morning. It is wonderful to see you this morning. Thank you very much for being here today. We hope that you are excited to be here this morning. I'm sure when you came in this morning you felt the excitement in the building. Today is a little bit different for our Sunday morning. Today we are doing our Kids Choir Christmas program, and you are in for a real treat. this morning. I've been able to catch snippets of it at practice yesterday and a little bit this morning and I am just super excited for what our kids have put together for this morning and I know that you will enjoy our children this morning as they do their, their program in just a few minutes. Couple of announcements, don't forget Wednesday evenings, Pastor Gary's midweek service meets over in the fellowship hall at 6.30, the teens in the gym in the youth room at 6, and then our three-year-olds through fifth grade for Kids for Truth, they meet over here in the kids' chapel. We have several Bible studies on campus, Friday morning for men's Bible study, Tuesday morning for a ladies Bible study. We have a new adult Bible study that will be kicking off in January, which we'll be giving you some more information on that in the coming weeks as well. It's also that time of year where we need to remind you that all contributions, if you want to give to Grace Baptist Church to include on your 2023 contribution statement, they must be received or postmarked by December 31st, which is a Sunday this year, so that helps a little bit with that. This is a super busy time of year, and we do adjust our church schedule just a little bit. Christmas Eve is a Sunday this year, and so on Christmas Eve, December 24th, we will not have a 9.30 hour in the morning. We will only have a 10.30 service in here. We will have cookies and coffee in the atrium at 9.45, but then just one morning service at 10.30. We are adding an evening service on Christmas Eve. We are doing a Christmas Eve service this year at 6 p.m. So December 24th, we'll have a 1030 service and then a 6 p.m. service for Christmas Eve. And we would love for you to all come to that. We'd love for you to invite your neighbors and your friends to a Christmas Eve service. Many times people will come to a Christmas Eve service that won't come to any other service. There are some index cards like five by three by five or four by six cards on the back tables and in the atrium that you can take and hand out to invite people to come to our Christmas Eve service. And then on December 31st, New Year's Eve, we will just do one service and that's at 1030. as well. Again, a huge thank you to those who brought in so much of the stuff for the blessing bags. They're on the back table. If you would like to pick those up and hand them out during this holiday season, we would greatly appreciate you doing that. Pray for Pastor Jay. He and Michelle are over at Montreat today. It was Jalen's Christmas concert last night, and so they traveled over there. They'll be traveling back this afternoon, so pray for he and Michelle as they travel today. Let's go ahead and begin with a word of prayer. Lord, we thank you for your love. We thank you for the Christmas season. We thank you for our time this morning to be able to sing Christmas carols and fellowship and see the children tell us the story of Christmas. And Lord, I do pray that the message will be conveyed, that Christmas really is about you. And we thank you for that privilege this morning. In Jesus' name, amen. The Lord himself will give you a sign. The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son. And we'll call him Emmanuel. She was growing into a teenager and was living then in the obscure village of Nazareth in Galilee. She gathered the grain during the day and tended the lamp late into the watches of the night. Her father knew the dedication of her work, her mother the kindness of her heart, her friends the curve of her smile. She stood on the threshold of womanhood. Among all the girls in the village, she had been noticed, chosen, betrothed. A child bride before whom lay only possibility. Her father could walk with pride in the city gates, her mother could rest in the comfort of her daughter's future security. But then he came, unexpected, unannounced, spoke openly and without shame of pregnancy, virginity, and his son, things men never discussed and women only whispered about behind closed doors. She questioned him about the particulars. but not about the promise. She knew the prophecies, and the angels' words rang true. She would be scorned and rejected, labeled an adulteress in whispers and glances. There would be no more carefree walks to the market, no more happy trips to the well. Four hundred years her people had waited for hope, but God had been silent. Now he had spoken. The wait was about to end. Forty weeks. And then, Emmanuel. God with us. Good morning. We're excited to be here this morning for our Christmas children's program. But before we get to that, we want to give you guys a chance to sing a couple of Christmas songs today. We're going to sing one traditional song and one modern song this morning. Let's stand as we sing, Oh, Little Town of Bethlehem. O little town of Bethlehem, how still we see thee rise. Above thy deep and dreamless sleep the silent stars go by. Yet in thy dark streets shineth the everlasting light. The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight. How silently, how silently the wondrous gift is given. So God imparts to human hearts the blessings of his head. No ear may hear His coming, but in this world of sin, where meek souls will receive Him still, the dear Christ enters in. O holy Child of Bethlehem, descend to us, we pray. Cast out our sin and enter in. We hear the Christmas angels, the great glad tidings tell. O come to us, abide with us, our Lord, ye When love came down to earth and made his home with men, the hopeless found a home. The sinner found a friend, not to the powerful, but to the poor he came. And humble, hungry hearts were satisfied again. What joy, what peace has come to us. What hope, what help. What love When every unclean thought And every sinful deed Was scourged upon his back And hammered through his feet The innocent his curse The guilty are released The punishment of God, on God has brought me peace. What joy, what peace has come to us. What love. Come lay your heavy load down at the Master's feet. Your shame will be removed. Your joy will be complete. Come crucify your pride and enter as a child. For those who bow down low, He'll lift up to His side. What love, what joy, what peace has come to the world. Walla Walla you While the shepherds now rest in the first fairness in the fields near ♪ O shepherds, dream of a mighty king ♪ ♪ The promise of prophecy ♪ ♪ O come to us now, Lord save us ♪ ♪ We are seeking the newborn King ♪ ♪ O'er the fields near Galilee ♪ ♪ He will come, the King in salvation bring ♪ ♪ He will come in victory ♪ ♪ O come to us now, Lord save us ♪ ♪ We are seeking the newborn King ♪ We are seeking the newborn King. One starry night, as the little shepherds gathered around the campfire, Stumble said, Come to save us. Over 700 years ago, God spoke to the prophet Micah, promising salvation for the poor and judgment for the leaders who had disobeyed God's laws. Micah said God's people will live in exile until a woman gives birth to her son. Her child will be a great shepherd, and he will reunite God's people, ruining them with the strength and majesty of the Lord, and he will bring peace. The little shepherds were confused by this story. The next day, after a game of hide and seek, Grumble said, I don't understand Grandfather's story. It was like a riddle, and I hate riddles. Did Grandfather say that the new king will be a shepherd? Hey, I'm a shepherd. Maybe I'll be a king. You? Huh. Why would God make you a king? God's king will come from heaven riding clouds like a chariot. A woman will give birth to a son, and he will be a great shepherd. Will you stop mumbling, stumble, what did she say? Wait, I think Momo stumbled on something. The king that we are seeking won't ride a cloud from heaven. He'll come to us as a tiny baby, and he will lead us like a great shepherd leads his flock. At that very moment, in the nearby city of Manhattan, the angel Gabriel appeared to a woman named Mary, with great news that God had chosen her to bring His Son to the world. The angel Gabriel from heaven came to earth one day. ♪ As though his eyes were glowing like a flame ♪ ♪ All hail he's dead to Mary my ♪ ♪ All hail to lovely Mary ♪ ♪ You are the one to bear God's son ♪ ♪ The Lord Emmanuel ♪ you ♪ God said, Angel Gabriel, oh, do not be afraid ♪ ♪ Your child will be the holy one, a king in Gethsemane ♪ ♪ I will, she said to Gabriel, I will do as God pleases ♪ ♪ Thou fair God's Son, the promised one, the Lord Emmanuel ♪ ♪ Hail the heavens of peace ♪ ♪ Hail the sun of righteousness ♪ ♪ Life and life to all he brings ♪ ♪ Rich in healing in his wings ♪ ♪ Glad he lays his glory by ♪ ♪ Born that man no more may die ♪ ♪ Born to raise us from the earth ♪ ♪ Born to give a second birth ♪ ♪ Hark the herald angels sing ♪ ♪ Glory to the newborn king ♪ For the next few days, when the little shepherds played hide and seek, they took turns pretending they were the great shepherd king. Grumble tried to ride on the sheep, pretending they were chariot crowds carrying him from heaven. She fell and hurt herself, which made her grumble even more. Around the campfire that night, she said, Grandfather, we've been playing hide and seek all day, pretending we were the great king that Micah promised. We're tired of waiting for him. When will he come? My child, you must be patient. During Micah's time, there was another great prophet named Isaiah. He was a gifted preacher who warned God's people that they had become like proud, selfish nations, blind to God's vision of peace, love, and justice. Isaiah said, behold, a virgin will be with the child and bear a son. And they will call him Emmanuel, which means God with us. The little shepherds grew sleepily and gazed dreamily into the fire. Meanwhile, in Nazareth, a man named Joseph was tossing and turning in his sleep. He was engaged to Mary, and he had been grumbling because Mary was going to have a baby. But an angel appeared to Joseph in a dream, telling him that Mary was carrying God's son. God commanded Joseph to take care of Mary. Joseph obeyed his command, even though it was a great riddle to him. What a ritual, what a fight Angels visit in the night What a ritual, what a dream Lord, what can it mean? ♪ He is a simple, humble man, a carpenter by trade ♪ ♪ Now God has sent his son to him through very lovely maid ♪ ♪ What a ritual, what a dream, help him Lord, what can it be? ♪ He is just a humble man, please help him if you can. He is a simple, humble man, the son of David's son, that God has sent his son to live a stable life. What a riddle, what a dream Calvin, Lord, what can it be? He is just a humble man Please help him if you can What a riddle, what a dream Help him, Lord, what can it mean? He is just a humble man But he'll do what he can Obeying God's command Obeying God's command As the days passed, the little shepherds searched every hill and valley and every rock and stream, looking for the king that Micah and Isaiah had promised. Finally, one night, Stumble said, Grandfather, we've searched high and low for King Emmanuel. We can't find him anywhere, and we are about to give up. The one whom you seek will be found in Bethlehem. God spoke through Moccasin, let you Bethlehem of Judah. For you are one of the smallest cities in the whole country. Out of you will come the reward of Israel, whose family line goes back to the ancient days. Hey, maybe that's why we've seen so many people traveling the roads to Bethlehem, home caravans of families and their animals. Maybe they're looking for a new King Emmanuel. Muggle, have you heard the news? The Roman emperor declared that everyone must go to their hometown to be registered. So all the descendants of David's family are traveling to Bethlehem to pay taxes, not to find the King Emmanuel. As the little shepherds argued with each other, Joseph was traveling with his wife Mary from Nazareth to Bethlehem. Mary was great with child. And when they arrived in Bethlehem, the time came for her to be delivered. She gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the air. And Joseph named him Jesus, which means God saves. ♪ Away in a manger, no crib for a bed ♪ ♪ The little Lord Jesus lay ♪ ♪ Lay down his sweet head ♪ ♪ The stars in the bright sky ♪ ♪ Look down where he lay ♪ ♪ The little Lord Jesus ♪ ♪ Lay free on the hay ♪ Infant holy, infant lovely, for his bed a cattle stall. Odds and lonely, little knowing, Christ the baby's Lord of all. Swift are ringing, angels singing, noel's ringing, ♪ Christ the name is Lord of all ♪ ♪ Christ the name is Lord of all ♪ Silent night, holy night All is calm, all is bright Round yon Virgin, Mother and Child Holy infant so tender and mild Sleep in heavenly peace Sleep in heavenly peace sleep in heavenly peace. ♪ Grandfather interrupted the little shepherd's argument. King Emmanuel will come to us a child. Isaiah said, unto us a child is born, unto us a son is born. And he will be called a wonderful counselor, a mighty God, an everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace. Suddenly the night sky was filled with the light of a thousand blazing stars, and God's angel appeared. The little shepherds were terrified, but the angel said, Then a heavenly angel choir appeared, saying, Glory to God in the highest, and peace to all on earth. The little shepherds listened in awe and wondered. When the angels went back to heaven, Grandfather said, The ancient prophets' stories are true, my children. Their promises have been fulfilled. Go and seek the child in David's city. Rise up, little shepherds, and go to Bethlehem. The Lord, the stars, will guide you. ♪ Rise up, shepherds, and follow ♪ ♪ Follow the star to Bethlehem ♪ ♪ Rise up, shepherds, and follow ♪ ♪ The Bethlehem star ♪ ♪ Hark, the herald angels sing ♪ ♪ Rise up, shepherds, and follow ♪ See him now, the tiny king, Rise up, shepherds, and follow. See him in the manger lay, Rise up, shepherds, and follow. ♪ Sing a jolly merry song ♪ ♪ Rise up, shepherds, and follow ♪ ♪ The Bethlehem song ♪ ♪ Follow, follow ♪ ♪ Rise up, shepherds, and follow ♪ ♪ Follow the star to Bethlehem ♪ ♪ Rise up, shepherds, and follow, follow ♪ ♪ Go and tell the joyful news ♪ ♪ Rise up, shepherds, and follow, follow ♪ There's more for me and you Rise up, shepherds, and follow The Bethlehem Star The Bethlehem Star Follow that star After worshiping the crashed child, the little shepherds hurried to tell Grandfather all that they had seen and heard. Grandfather, we saw the baby, and he was in Bethlehem, just like you said, with his mother and father, Mary and Joseph. But Grandfather, he was lying in a manger with a bunch of animals around. It's still a riddle to me. Why would God's Son be born in a cattle stall and not be in a palace somewhere? My children, God sent us to come to us like a humble shepherd. As the prophets foretold, kings will travel from distant lands to humble themselves before him. Isaiah said, arise, shy, for God has let us come. Great caravans of camels will come from eastern countries. Wise men will bring gifts of gold and incense and reclaim the goodness of God's gift to us. The next day, the little shepherds returned to the field and their game of hide-and-seek. This time, they pretended they were riding camels, looking for Jesus. While they played, kings were traveling from the east. They were wise men, like grandfather, and they had been watching for heavenly signs when the star appeared on the night of Jesus' birth. They saddled their camels with precious gifts and followed the star, seeking Jesus, king of the Jews. From a distant country, traveling from afar, Came the Eastern Wise Men, following the star. Singing the King, whose praises now we sing, From a distant country, following the star. ♪ From a distant country ♪ ♪ Fought the gifts of old ♪ ♪ Frankincense and myrrh as prophets had foretold ♪ ♪ Singing the King whose praises now we sing ♪ ♪ From a distant country as prophets have foretold ♪ ♪ Wise men seeking Jesus, shepherds seeking too ♪ ♪ Join them on their journey ♪ Won't you seek him too? ♪ Seeking the King ♪ Whose praises now we sing ♪ Wise men seeking Jesus ♪ Won't you seek him too? ♪ Now let us all our praises sing To Jesus Christ, our heavenly King This tiny child so mild and mean ♪ It's a promise, a promise ♪ ♪ Who was, can see ♪ ♪ Noel, Noel ♪ ♪ Noel, Noel ♪ ♪ Born is the King ♪ ♪ Praises we sing ♪ ♪ Born is the King of kings ♪ The prophet Isaiah said, seek the Lord while he may be found. Call upon him while he is near. Let the wicked turn from their evil ways. Let them turn to God, who will mercifully forgive them. Now you may go out with joy and be led forth in peace. May the mountains and hills burst into singing before you, and may the trees afield clap their hands for joy. Seek King Jesus in scripture and in prayer, and all that you say and do. Look into your hearts, for there you will see King Jesus. ♪ In the valleys ring the news that the angels bring ♪ ♪ Blessed she stands for joy at the birth of the boy ♪ ♪ We are seeking tiny King ♪ ♪ Oh come to our hearts King Jesus Christ the Lord ♪ You're the one that we seek, tiny King, mild and meek. There is room in our hearts for Thee. Joy to the world, the Lord is come. Let earth receive her King. Let every heart prepare Him room, and heaven and nature sing. ♪ And heaven and nature sing ♪ ♪ And heaven, and heaven, and nature sing ♪ ♪ To the earth the Savior reigns ♪ ♪ Let all their souls employ the fields and floods of heaven ♪ Repeat the sounding joy. Repeat the sounding joy. Repeat. Repeat the sounding joy. Joy to the world. Joy to the world. Sing joy. ♪ I've got such a mess to clean Thank you very much, children, and our directors, Taryn, Teresa, and Cindy Bunker there on the piano. Appreciate all of the work that the kids did for this. And again, thank you for your parents. Have the kids here. early on Sunday mornings for the last several months as they were prepping and getting ready. And then, of course, all day, they were here for several hours yesterday for their tech rehearsal. Again, thank you for those who have had a part in putting this program on this morning. If you're visiting with us this morning, thank you very much for being here at Grace Baptist Church with us. I'm moving those so I don't trip on them later. Appreciate you being here on this Sunday morning with us. There is a little card in the back of the pew in front of you. If you can take your smartphone and scan that, that just gives us a record of your attendance being here this morning, allows us to reach out to you later on in this week to be able to answer any questions that you may have about Grace Baptist Church. And again, we thank you for being with us this Christmas season. It was 10 and a half years ago on Christmas Eve that we celebrated the birth of our daughter, June 24th, 2013. It was a day that I believe I will always remember, as those of you who are parents will understand. We were doing a planned C-section, so it wasn't really a big rush. It wasn't like there was a big panic. We had picked our date and our time, and we had our schedule, and we had to arrive at the hospital at a certain time. And I remember driving there to the hospital. Amber and I are chatting. I missed the exit. That was the first of many issues and problems that arrived, not that Talia was a problem when she arrived, but issues that came that day. When we were all set, Amber's in the OR, they're getting everything all prepped and ready, and found out the lights in the OR didn't work. So they had to undo everything, move to new rooms, redo everything. And it was kind of a stressful time. And there were some problems that arrived going through. And Ty was finally born. They rushed her off to the NICU for a couple hours. And because of some complications, we ended up staying in the hospital for five days. And I had grown up in the church there in Connecticut. I had moved there when I was nine, and I tried to tell Amber ahead of time, when our daughter is born, and Amber and I had been married for almost 10 years before God gave us Talia, and I tried to tell her, this child will not be ours. She will belong to the church. It's just the way it's gonna be. And we had, hundreds of people that came and visited us in the hospital, it seemed. Now, none of them brought gold, frankincense, or myrrh. I was a little disappointed. But we did get some nice gifts, and we had a lot of people that came. And again, we were there for five days. And so we had a lot of people that came through, and they came, and they held tie, and they took pictures, and they, you know, congratulations, and some stayed way too long, and some didn't stay very long at all. But with all of them, they all went home. At some point. Now some came and visited more than once. The grandparents came and stayed for hours it seemed. But they all went home. And at night, when Talia was finally out of the NICU and she's in there with the room with us, it was just Amber and I and Talia. And we couldn't leave. And that day, 8.03 in the morning on June 24, 2013, my life changed forever. And those of you that are parents, you understand that. I remember talking to people who were parents prior to Amber and I having Talia, and them saying, oh, this is gonna change, and this is gonna, I'm like, yeah, okay, I got it, I know. But you don't got it, and you don't know. And at this time of year, I can't help but think back to Mary and Joseph and the angels that came to visit them. And as we saw in the video, Mary, probably a teenage girl, and her life was radically changed in ways that nobody would ever understand. Joseph's life was radically changed. The angel had to tell him, yes, marry Mary, because the child she has is from God. but it would have radically changed their life. And then we have the birth of Jesus. We have in Luke 2, the birth of Jesus, and we read that, and we read it many times throughout the Christmas season. They quoted some of it today during the program. The shepherds and the angels, and they come to the manger. And then we come to verse 15 of Luke chapter 2, and it says this, when the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing which has happened, which the Lord has made known to us. And they went with haste, and they found Mary and Joseph and the baby lying in a manger. When they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child, and all who heard it wondered at what the prophets told them. But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart. In verse 20, the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen as it was told them. The shepherds came, they visited the baby, and they left. They went back to their fields. It was a night that they may have told stories about for years to come, But it was a night that nobody even knows when it happened. We celebrated on December 25th, but nobody knows for sure if that was the night Christ was born. There's a lot of debate. If you read, there's a lot of debate on what, that it may not have even been this time of year. And it was just kind of forgotten about. We see the wise men coming at some point later. And Matthew chapter 2 records that. It says, after listening to the king, they went their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary, his mother. They fell down and worshiped him. And then opening their treasures, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. and being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way. They came, they brought gifts, they worshiped, they were joyful, they were excited. Then they went home. They went back to their country. Oh, I'm sure they told stories about it. I'm sure they talked about it. But we have no other record of anything from the shepherds or from the wise men. But we have a little bit about Mary and Joseph. You see, the shepherds, the wise men, they came and visited, went back home. We don't know how it really affected them, but we know how it affected Mary and Joseph. We know that as anybody who has ever had a child before, the birth of a baby changes your life forever. Mary and Joseph had their lives changed. They didn't return from seeing Jesus. They stayed with Him. Oh yes, they moved multiple times. They moved to Egypt. They took Jesus with them. They moved to Nazareth, they took Jesus with them. And yes, there was that one point that scripture records for us when Jesus was about 12 years old and they went down to Jerusalem and they thought he was with them on the journey home, but he wasn't. And what did they immediately do? They left the caravan and they went back to Jerusalem to find Jesus. You see, Mary and Joseph, Couldn't just say, oh, birth of a baby, no big deal. My life's just gonna go on the way it was. It radically changed their life. It radically changed everything about their life. For Mary and Joseph, Christmas was more than just a once a year celebration. They had Christ with them all the time. It was a day-to-day reality. Mary and Joseph also nurtured a relationship with Christ. The Bible tells us that Jesus grew in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and man. Can you imagine what it would have been like to be the parent of a perfect child? Now, I know from a teacher's perspective, a lot of you parents think your kids are perfect. Come sit in a classroom for a day. But can you imagine what that would have been like for Mary and Joseph to have a perfect child? And we know Mary and Joseph had other children, and I'm sure they weren't perfect. And I'm sure there were issues, and I'm sure there were problems that arose because of that. But Mary and Joseph nurtured Jesus. It was a day-by-day thing. As a parent, when you first have your first child, you learn and you grow with them. And as they grow, you grow. Now, we only have one, but I've heard from people that have had multiples that the first child doesn't really prepare you for the second child. You have to grow and you have to change. And as this child grows and becomes an infant that must rely on you for everything, to a toddler that refuses everything, to a teenager. Mary and Joseph's relationship had to grow with Christ as they were his Parents raising children is a growing experience the relationship requires constant care constant work as all relationships do and then we see that Mary kept all that Jesus said and everything that was said about Jesus and pondered it in her heart and We see this in a couple of places. We see it in Luke chapter two, we just read a minute ago, but Mary kept all those things and pondered them in her heart. Later on in verse 33, after they have gone to see Simeon, and the Bible tells us that his father and mother marveled at what was said about him. Luke 2.51, and they went down with him and came to Nazareth and were subject to him, but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart. When Talia was born, Amber started writing down every day things about Talia. She still does, still keeps a list of things. In fact, just the other day, Talia said something that was comical and she looked at Amber and says, don't put that in your book. Because we want to remember it. We have pictures and we have our phones that we carry around. And I saw as I looked around the auditorium today, many of you were recording what was going on up here because you want to remember, you want to send it to somebody else. You want to share it with somebody. You want to keep it. You can go back later and look at it. The Bible tells us that Mary kept all those things in her heart. She thought about them. She meditated on them. The words that were said about Christ by Anna and Simeon, the words that were said by the wise men, the words that were said by the shepherds, she kept it all. She pondered them. She thought about it. When you ponder the words of Christ, it will change your life. When you meditate on The words of Christ, it will radically change you. Mary and Joseph had their life radically changed that day. Others, they just came and visited. Others just came and saw the baby, they rejoiced, they gave gifts. But they went on their way. Mary and Joseph were changed forever. The question is today, what about you? You're here this morning, a lot of you came this morning to watch the kids' program. It was a great program. They put a ton of work into it. And it was great to see, and it was great to rejoice, and the applause afterwards is great for them, and it's wonderful to show that appreciation. And we'll go away, and we'll go out to dinner today, and we'll talk about it with Talia, and we'll rehearse some of the things that she did, and some of the, maybe the mistakes that were made, and we'll talk about it. And we have a lot that goes on this Christmas season. If you pull up the church calendar, it's like, bam, bam, bam, bam, bam, school program, school program, church this, Christmas Eve service. And a lot of you will come to a lot of those, or you will go to other things, nativity scenes, other things where you will go and celebrate the Christmas season. But will it change your life? Has it ever changed your life? or is the birth of Christ just like when you go visit a child in the hospital and you go home afterwards? It is cool, we talk to the parents, we give them a gift, but it really doesn't change us. What will you do with the birth of Christ? When we're done with our programs, When January 3rd rolls around or January 4th or whatever day it is that we kick back off school and we get back into the grind of starting out a new semester and starting a new year, will we remember the Christmas season? Will we remember and meditate and ponder on the words of Christ? Or will it be, ah, Christmas is over, we're moving on to something else? I hope you will allow the birth of Jesus to radically change your life. I hope like Mary and Joseph, you will never leave Christ, that you will keep focused on him, that you will nurture that relationship as we have to with all relationships, that you will spend time reading his word, that you will spend time meditating on his words, pondering them. Growing that relationship with Him. That you won't leave Him. That you won't turn your back. And oh, there will be times when we backslide, there will be times when we sin, there will be times when we forget Christ. But turn around and make a beeline back, because He's waiting there with open arms to accept us. We confess our sins, He forgives us. and allows that relationship to grow. Keep the things Christ said as you study his word. Keep them in your hearts. Don't get so caught up with the world. Don't get so caught up with what's next. Don't get so caught up with, oh, I have to do this. We have this program and this thing. Take some time. and meditate on Christ. Allow the birth of Christ to radically change your life like the birth of your own child has radically changed your life. Keep Christ close. Meditate on who He is and what He's done. As we go through the Christmas season, when Christmas year is over, Will we simply return to life as normal, perhaps praising God for the chance to celebrate Christmas, but really no different than we were before the season? Or will we, like Mary and Joseph, have our lives radically changed because of Christmas? If you're here this morning and you've never accepted Christ as your Savior, that's the first step. Talk to somebody. Find somebody that can tell you how to become a Christian. If you're here and maybe you've just drifted a little bit, let this be a reminder to get back to Christ, to nurture that relationship, to ponder His words. Let's pray. Lord, thank You for our time this morning. Thank You for the kids, for their program. Lord, for the adults that worked with them, put so much time and energy into it. Lord, we thank you for allowing us the opportunity and the privilege to worship you. And Lord, we do pray that this Christmas season, we will keep our focus on you. And Lord, that we won't just forget about it when January rolls around, but Lord, that we will ponder your words, keep them in our hearts all year long, and allow our lives to be radically changed because of the birth of Christ. We thank you for today in Jesus' name, amen. Amen. Let's stand. I'd like us to close our service today by repeating the last verse of this song that we sang earlier in our service, this time as a song of invitation, inviting us to allow our hearts to be changed by what we've heard this morning and to allow our lives to be changed by this Christmas season. Let's sing it together. Come lay your heavy load down at the master's feet. Your desire will be complete. Come crucify your pride And enter as a child For those who bow down low He'll lift up to his side What joy, what peace Has come to us what hope, what help, what love. What joy, what peace has come to us. What hope, what help, What love. What love. Amen. Let's go off from here, allowing the Lord to change our lives through what we celebrate this time of year. Have a great week. You are dismissed.