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Issue #290
12/20/2006
How to be used by God this Christmas
by Rick Warren
All of us in ministry want to be used by God. We want our lives to count. Mary gives us a great example of someone whom God used in incredible ways. What can we learn from her this Christmas season that can help us become more usable in 2007? [more]
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A Christmas wrapped in praise
by Dwayne Moore

When Jesus came to earth on that first Christmas night, God made sure he had the best of one thing from us. It wasn't our riches, or our royalty, or our fancy five-star hotels. But he got the best of our praise. Re-read the Christmas story and see just how central praise was to the birth of Jesus. [more]

Confessions of a Pastor
Craig Groeschel (Multnomah, 2006)  

Like many of you know already, being a pastor can be quite the tightrope. Parishioners have expectations of a pastor and his family that no one can keep – like a perfect faith, a faultless marriage, and your act always together. Keeping up that charade can be exhausting. In this new book, Craig Groeschel comes clean, breaking stereotypes by telling readers about his failures – like his difficulty taking criticism, battles with lust, feelings of inadequacy, and more. In the process, he introduces readers to an average man being used by God in spite of his flaws.

 

  
   


"God was thinking of you long before you ever thought about him." - Rick Warren


"And the angel said to her, 'Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.'" - Luke 1:30-33 (ESV)


Lee Strobel's Christmas FAQs - Check out Lee Strobel's answers to some of the most frequent questions about Christmas that he gets.
Free PD Church Launching conferences - There are several upcoming PD Church Launching conferences early next year. The conferences are free of charge (except for a $15 registration fee that covers snacks and drinks). Led by veteran church planter Ron Sylvia, the conference will take you from the planning state to developing your first weekend service. It's a great place to bring your entire planting team. You'll also find free church planting resources on this site.
Need for biblical worldview urgent, Colson says - A recent survey by Baylor University shows that even many professing Christians don't have worldviews that line up with Scripture.
Hubble telescope photos show God's miraculous creation - Check out these awe-inspiring images from outer space. Then remember that the God who created these stars came to earth as a baby on the first Christmas. What a Gospel we've been called to proclaim!
Holiday stats from the U.S. Census Bureau - You may be able to use some of these fun stats for your Christmas sermon. On this page, you'll find stats like how much people spend on Christmas trees, names of U.S. towns named for holiday themes, last December's department store sales totals, and more.


New poll says holiday season provides great opportunity to invite friends to church - Ed Stetzer

Finding healing through post-abortion support groups - Manda Gibson

Speak the truth in love about abortion - Randy Alcorn

Living wills or the will to live - David C. Gibbs III

Rocky Balboa: The building blocks of a sermon - Stephen Skelton

The joy of giving - Mary Southerland



"On that night in Bethlehem, God breathed our air for the first time." - Rich Mullins, An Arrow Pointing Toward Heaven (Broadman & Holman, 2000)

Shopping mall Santas may not have an easy job after all. According to a survey, 90 percent of all seasonal Santas say that at least one kid pulls their beard every single day – just to see if it is real. The same survey showed that these Santas get sneezed on up to 10 times a day. A third of Santas report being wet on by a child. Nearly three quarters of the kids who sit on Santa's lap say they were 'good' this year, according to the Santas. Yet the survey shows Santa may be getting cynical. These Santas believe that only 50 percent of the before mentioned children were actually good during the year. - Source: Reuters

"We call Mary's child 'Emmanuel' because we see in him the God who has always been with us, always in the midst. There is no need for him to intervene as a stranger from the outside world. He is already here." - John V. Taylor, The Go-Between God (quoted in 444 Surprising Quotes About Jesus)

"In the past, Christ was in the genealogies, stepping Bethlehemward. Every time a new descendant in the covenant-line was born, the voice of prophecy shouted: 'Christ is coming!' As ancestor was added to ancestor, the voice waxed louder and louder. Thus the shout was repeated and repeated until at last the angels and the magi and the shepherds and the watchers in the Temple answered back that shout with the gladder and louder shout, 'Christ has come!' That is the Christmas shout, which today Church of God throws to Church of God all through Christendom." - David Gregg


Fox News is scheduled to broadcast Saddleback Church's Christmas service nationally this year. Check your local listings to find the correct times in your area! - Staff

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