Through Jesus’ miracles of feeding the crowd, we find the gospel message: rest your heart to feast on Jesus and you will live. (John 6:51). Only in Christ will we find forgiveness, satisfaction, and life eternal. We can turn to Jesus and be reminded that in Him we have all we need.

When someone you know is sick, how do you respond? Do you press in with compassion and prayer, offering to take a meal? are you temped to withdraw and leave their needs to others? In today’s passage, we will see Jesus repeatedly draw near to people in their time of need.

When Jesus calmed the storm, we read that His disciples experienced tremendous fear. Their fear was so great, they believed they would perish in the storm. Yet, Jesus experiences the same violent storm and rather than quake in fear, He slept.

The ultimate example of God's love is Jesus, who said "Love one another. Just as I have loved you, you are also to love one another" (John 13:34). God is love, and God is loving. As we grow, may we remember this more often in our lives. Lord willing, others will see Him through our reflections of His love.

Jesus met a Samaritan woman at a well and told her that whoever drinks from the water He gives will never be thirsty again. This led to the woman realizing that Jesus offers something better than physical water; He gives us Himself. Jesus gives the Holy Spirit to everyone who comes to Him by faith. We can worship Him as Lord and Savior wherever we are because He loves us so much.

Nicodemus was a Pharisee who studied the scriptures in the time of Jesus and wanted to know more about Him. While meeting, Jesus said some confusing things that Nicodemus didn't understand yet - because he knew God, but not yet that Jesus was fulfilling His plan. Jesus hinted that He would be saving us all from our sins on the cross and giving us new life - and told Nicodemus that God loved the world so much that He gave His only Son for us!

When Jesus first began calling disciples, He used two words: "Follow Me." He didn't say "clean yourself up" or "work harder." The call to follow Jesus is a call to our souls to find rest. He invites us to be with Him and enjoy Him. Let's look at the story of Jesus calling the disciples.

In the Gospel accounts of Jesus' baptism, we see John the Baptist offer words of warning that lead us back to the question “what gives you hope?” John warned the Pharisees sternly that no family, tradition, or outward practice is sufficient to pay for the consequences of sin. It is only by accepting the grace of God received through faith and repentance that we are saved. That is good news and John the Baptist preached that news!

This week is our third week of Advent: Joy. The shepherds in our story were outside the city limits, and often seen as not important. But when they heard the good news of Jesus birth from the angels, they were filled will joy that they received this special and very important message!

This week is our second week in our Advent Countdown with the story of the birth of Jesus. The events around Jesus’ birth were not all that easy for Mary and Joseph, who had to travel a long way and couldn’t find a place to stay the night Jesus was to be born. But God had a plan all along, and He would save the world He loved through His son Jesus.