Global Stories
The Shepherds: Willing to Share
Read Luke 2:4-21 Who would have imagined that the first news of the Messiah would be given…to shepherds? Ordinary, unimpressive, scruffy, lonely, hard-working sheep-herders on the fringe of society. Why? Why not? The social structures of the day may have treated these lonesome laborers as outsiders, but shepherds are dear to God’s heart. After all,…
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Advent: Willing to Share–the Shepherds & Navaj
With God, one is a big number. One plan for our salvation and redemption. Jesus, God’s one and only Son, sent to accomplish this. And for each one who believes in Jesus as their Savior, He has one mission: To share this Good News with the people of every language, tribe, nation, and religion. But…
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Simeon: Willing to Wait
Read Luke 2:22-38 We spend much of life waiting. Waiting for the kids to come home, the paycheck to clear, the game to start. We wait in traffic, in lines, for our coffee to brew, and our pain to ease. We wait on doctors, on buses, on financial reports or lab results. We wait for…
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Advent: Willing to Wait–Simeon & Banda
Well, the wait is nearly over. Christmas is a season of anticipation, waiting for the big day. Sometimes, especially as a child, it seems like you’re waiting forever! But in the waiting, something happens: activities, shopping, baking, decorating—all the work of preparation for the big celebration. In the years leading up to the first Christmas…
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The Wise Men: Faithful and Focused Expectancy
Read Matthew 2:1-12 Imagine following a star, a single light among many, a sign only seen in the dark of night. When we look at the story of the wise men, we do not know how many there were, how long their travels took them, but we know they set their sights on a star and followed it. They traveled on with…
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Advent: Willing to Follow–the Wise Men & Muslims
As I ponder and prepare for Christmas, I’m reminded that God loves to work through the one, through the individual. To draw us into His plan with Him. Take the wise men. I don’t know if there were two or three or more, or exactly where they came from. But what faith! They knew this…
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Joseph: Willing to Risk
Read Matthew 1:15-2:25 What are you willing to risk to be part of God’s mission? That’s not the question you usually get asked at Christmas, is it? Maybe you have more on your mind in this season than how you will fulfill God’s mission. Christmas is about God’s mission to bring the Savior into the…
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Advent: Willing to Risk–Joseph & Innis
At Christmas, I’m reminded of how often God uses just one person to move His plan along. And we know that with God, one is a big number. Think about Joseph. He doesn’t get the attention that Mary does but when God spoke to Joseph, he obeyed. God asked him to do a hard thing,…
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Mary: Willing to Serve
Read Luke 1:26-38 Oh, Mary! She gets all the good press each Christmas. She enters the story in this amazing scene with the angel, hearing the news that God has chosen her to be part of fulfilling His promise for the Messiah. We’re so familiar with her role in the story, we can easily…
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Advent: Willing to Serve–Mary & Nira
With God, one is a big number. He often uses just one person to make a difference in multiplying His Kingdom. Even in the Christmas story, we see how one can be significant in the Father’s plans. Think of Mary. She was a young woman with nothing to commend her, no position or wealth or…
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Learning from Rehoboam: Leaders Choose to whom they Listen
To whom do you listen when you have a tough decision to make? Rehoboam, like all leaders, had a choice to make. And the choice of who the leader listens to can have significant outcomes, as it did for Rehoboam. We have already seen that Rehoboam learned that failing to listen would cost his leadership.…
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Stewards Seek Wisdom in Trials
James 1:1-5 is a passage rich with words to those whom God has entrusted with leadership responsibilities. As stewards operating in leadership roles, it is wise to be constantly reminded we serve one Lord and one Savior, who is King over one Kingdom. Acknowledging we are bond-servants following the direction of our Lord helps us…
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