Reflecting Love - Advent 2

Reflecting Love

Reflecting Love

For Kids:

Greatest Commandments in the embracing nativity

Me

Favorite Christmas Movies

A Christmas Carol

Elf

It's a Wonderful Life

How the Grinch Stole Christmas

?

We

Love stories in Christmas stories

Joseph who made it a love story instead of a sad story

Love reflected makes us forgive and forget the struggles we face in life.

Love not reflected is a sad thing indeed and only reminds us of how broken the world can be.

God

Initiated by God

Past Mercy

Vs. 1-2

1 You, Lord, showed favor to your land;

you restored the fortunes of Jacob.

2 You forgave the iniquity of your people

and covered all their sins.

God sought us out

Pause

Selah

Be still and recognize God

Vs. 3-4

3 You set aside all your wrath

and turned from your fierce anger.

4 Restore us again, God our Savior,

and put away your displeasure toward us.

God held back what we deserved

Plea in Present Anger?

Vs. 5-7

5 Will you be angry with us forever?

Will you prolong your anger through all generations?

6 Will you not revive us again,

that your people may rejoice in you?

7 Show us your unfailing love, Lord,

and grant us your salvation.

Gratitude and love, what we have to offer

We require God to save us first, before we can truly be grateful and love Him.

Why?

Always more room to love

Jon K. Wyant

TOULON - Jon K. Wyant, 62, of Toulon passed away on Sunday, October 8, 2017.

He was the son of Calvin and Mabel (Gillispie) Wyant, born in 1955. They preceded him in death. Jon married Debbie Wallace, his high school sweetheart in 1974, and she survives.

Also surviving are his son, Jesse; daughters, Mercedes, Lacey, Mariah, Shiloh, Jasmine, Corinna and Helena; 4 grandchildren; and 4 brothers.

Jon was also preceded in death by 2 brothers and 2 sisters.

Teachers

Youth and children's pastors

We all can get spread too thin.

Reflected by Us

I will Listen

Vs. 8-9

8 I will listen to what God the Lord says;

he promises peace to his people, his faithful servants—

but let them not turn to folly. 9 Surely his salvation is near those who fear him,

that his glory may dwell in our land.

Sh'mah: to hear, listen to, obey

Jonathan Edwards quote:

A Dissertation concerning the End for which God Created the World—included a close examination and exegesis of the concept of God’s glory throughout the biblical canon. Jonathan Edwards concluded that God’s glory consists in an internal and an external glory, the first a glory proper to God’s own being, and the second the communication of this glory—a glory flowing outward or shining forth in creation.

I will do

Vs. 10-13

10 Love and faithfulness meet together;

righteousness and peace kiss each other.

11 Faithfulness springs forth from the earth,

and righteousness looks down from heaven.

12 The Lord will indeed give what is good,

and our land will yield its harvest.

13 Righteousness goes before him

and prepares the way for his steps.

The tension of separate but touching

Holding the flood over our heads and watering our lives

We often receive more than we can handle in life

But God does not give us more of Him than we can receive.

He holds Himself back and waits for us instead of forcing His way into our lives.

When we stop reflecting that love of God we receive, we stop receiving it and won't receive more.

We receive God's love as we respond and reflect it.

You

What do you know of God's Love?

Do you know his saving grace?

Has he moved you from a place of peril into a place of peace?

How have you responded to and reflected that love to God and others?

We

Some of our biggest challenges in life are times when we need to reflect God's love.

We may feel like we do not have enough to give

Or we may just not want to love others in those moments

Yet it is those times of weakness that we rely on God the most and share His grace the most

Can we be a church like Joseph, that loves even when things are against us?

Or will we miss the greatest opportunity we may have to be close to our Lord and Savior?