Every season we mark our calendars to celebrate advent, the arrival of Jesus. More than just candles to light and readings to recite, this time of year is designed to help us anticipate this arrival with our heart, mind and spirit. Over the next four weeks leading to Christmas Eve, we will heighten our anticipation through the traditional lenses of hope, peace, joy and love. Each of these topics is steeped in Scripture, and each of them also find their true meaning and fulfillment in Jesus.

Other than our family, no one forms us more than our friends do. For better or worse, those we spend time with and listen to closely will have a dramatic impact on our life. Because of this significant role, how we choose our friends - and how we carry out that relationship - matters greatly. The story of David and Jonathan provides an important biblical example of what a spiritually healthy friendship looks like. It shows us that true friendship is heartfelt, committed and productive.

There are far more questions than answers when it comes to our understanding and experience of spiritual warfare. This can lead us to ignore the topic altogether, but is blissful ignorance a biblical solution? Scripture reveals that when it comes to spiritual warfare, the struggle is real. Our enemy is real and we need to be on alert. All the questions and tensions we face with this subject fade into the background of the overwhelming truth: Jesus has conquered all, and the battle belongs to Him

Psalm 23 is one of the most memorized passages of Scripture. Many of us learn the words at an early age in Sunday School, and hear this chapter quoted during many services and funerals. It is used so often because it holds deep meaning and comfort, but what happens when we hear something so familiar that we begin to miss the deeper truth? What if you did not grow up in church, and others just assume you know what it means? Join us as we unpack the words of truth and comfort in Psalm 23.

Five times in his telling of the Christmas story, Matthew lets his audience know that a specific prophecy has been filled during the birth and early life of Jesus. These fulfillments reveal to us a loving God with an unwavering, eternal plan of salvation. Connecting back to the Old Testament roots us in God's story of redemption; a story that changed forever when God Himself took on flesh and dwelt among us.