Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and[c] will call him Immanuel.
Isaiah 7:14 NIV
10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
Luke 2:10-12 NIV
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
John 3:16 NIV
A while back, I wrote this as a sort of internal rant when my core team member cancelled our life group preparation day appointment. Time is a valuable resource, and when I set events in my calendar, I mean for them to push through, as schedules are usually set in advance so that we can accommodate the demands of our busy lives, work and play included.
Also, LG prep is not just making sure that the guitarist plays well during worship, or that the game master has all the materials ready for their game. I used it as an opportunity to bond with my leaders. It’s an essential time for group prayer, life catch up, and a little bit of mentoring.
So I get miffed when they cancel.
I hold my church teams to the highest standards in terms of accountability, commitment, and punctuality. Even though it is not a perfect world, there’s nothing wrong with striving for these values. Admittedly, I am also guilty of falling short of these from time to time. However the intention should always be there. God’s appointed are God’s anointed, and with this empowerment comes a great responsibility to uphold His principles.
Because God’s Words are not made lightly. His promises are guaranteed certainties. When He said that, “the virgin will conceive and give birth to a Son,” and that Son will be the Messiah, and the Messiah will save everyone with His love, rest assured that that pronouncement will be fulfilled.
Christmas is being celebrated all around the world during this season, and it easy to be distracted by the food, the festivities, the fellowship, and the fun. But brothers and sisters, do not lose sight that this season is only possible because of the fulfilled promise of God to His people. The blessing of Jesus Christ.
Once upon time, I led lifegroup preparations. They were an expected part of pastoral ministry. They were an essential part of serving in the lifegroup. Even though every lifegroup has the same basic structure, it is not intended to be a weary, worn down program, where people just do the same things over and over again. A lifegroup is an event that you invite people to, a warm, inviting environment where someone could potentially be introduced to Jesus for the first time, or where someone could be continuing their committed life to Jesus Christ in the presence of like minded individuals. These are very big deals, and so that’s why we prepare for them, are excited for them.
These days, I no longer have this role. I still believe these tenets, still believe that lifegroups are integral to the life of an active Christian, and preparing for them are paramount. But I am at a different season in my Christian serving life, and that’s also ok.
Anyway. The girl who wrote the above, she got lost a bit at the end. I would have preferred a neater tie in to the LG prep narrative she had going on in the beginning of it. Just to call back. To make a proper ending.
Oh well. She’s written better.