This week we share "good news of great joy." God was not content to stay distant. He did not walk away because sin separates us from Him. He sent His Son into the world to live among us to so that we could one day live with Him. God is with us.

James 1:19 says that, "Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry." This week we talk about getting a better handle on our anger and doing what the word says.

As we continue our series on James, it is clear that the values of our culture and the values of Christians are very different. This week we look at how God defines high and low positions and how our desires lead toward good or bad actions.

This week we begin a new series on the book of James. Trials come our way frequently. Have you ever taken the time to consider that our attitudes about those trials are under our control? In James 1, we learn that God can use those trials to develop our perseverance.

After learning about the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5, we see what the fruit is like at work. As we do life together as a church, a big part of our job is to do good.

In Galatians 5, Paul writes about the freedom we have in Christ. Even though we have been set free, we often return to the things that made us slaves. In the case of the church at Galatia, it was traditions that they tried to bind on each other. What keeps us from truly being free?

Between his resurrection and ascension, Jesus made several appearances to individuals and groups. As we close our series on the life of Jesus this week, we will talk about some of those appearances, the reasons they may have happened and the job he left for us to do.

Twelve apostles would follow Jesus for three years of ministry. Near the end, one would betray him and another would deny him. In those watershed moments, they each had to decide what to do next. The paths Judas and Peter chose could not be more different. In the aftermath of our greatest mistakes, we have the opportunity to choose the direction our stories will turn.

In John 13, Jesus and his disciples are at a table preparing for a meal, when he begins to make his way around the table and washes each of their feet. He gives them and us an incredible example of what it means to be a servant.

These three stories from Mark 11 and 12 might seem unrelated on the surface, but they share a common thread. If we are to bear the fruit of being Christians in our lives, what should that look like? How will it affect the way we treat others and can it even change the way we spend our money and time? When Jesus runs across a fig tree, these questions begin to be answered.

When people come to meet the King making his way into Jerusalem, they do not find the grand ceremony they expect. Instead they find Jesus riding into Jerusalem on a young donkey as he continues to challenge their idea of an earthly kingdom.

In Luke 18, a rich man approaches Jesus with a very important question, "What must I do to inherit eternal life?" Maybe he was looking for assurance; maybe he was looking for a checklist. The answer he received came as a surprise though, and he reacted out of sadness. This week we talk about how wealth can affect us and the things we hold on to. Most importantly, we are reminded that God can do what does not seem possible.