Wessel family- Isaiah 9:6

For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9:6 NIV)

It's kind of overwhelming when we consider the birth, death and resurrection of Jesus. The kids ask so many thought provoking questions like "Why would anyone want to kill babies?" as they listen to the story of King Herod. "How long ago was Jesus born and how come some people don't believe He is real? Santa is harder to believe than Jesus !" Good questions and thoughts! I know this.... He was born of a virgin as prophecy foretold, he lived a human life among us who wrote of the accounts and He died an awful death at our hands and because of that I have life.... I have purpose and meaning and I will live the rest of my life in gratefulness for the great things he has done for us.

Good news of great joy......Christ is born and I live.

Gina - Exodus 4:10-12

Moses said to the Lord, "Pardon your servant, Lord. I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue." The Lord said to him, "Who gave human beings their mouths? Who makes them deaf or mute? Who gives them sight or makes them blind? Is it not I, the Lord? Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say." (Exodus 4:10-12 NIV)

Moses was very insecure and had doubt that God could use him. I love how God reminds him that he made him and that he will help him.

How many times in our lives to we think that we are not the "right person" for the task and yet there we are right smack dab in the middle of it.

Let's lean hard into our faith in a powerful God who says to us this morning..."now go!"

Devin - Proverbs 4:1-7

Proverbs 4:1-7 Awesome scripture to hear your son read. Learning what wisdom is and how to get wisdom. Learning from your father. Dev's favorite part : "take hold of my words with all of your heart, take hold of my commands and you will live"

Livia - Proverbs 11:2

When pride comes, then comes disgrace,
but with humility comes wisdom. (Proverbs 11:2 NIV)

Livia's thoughts: Pride is when you think awesome of yourself and that no one can know anything better than you. Humility is being comfortable with how God made you and putting others before yourself.

I want wisdom over disgrace. I want to learn God's ways and make decisions that matter. When I get prideful I will actually make people think poorly of me and my God.

Let's be like Jesus. Ephesians 2:5-11!

Kadin - Colossians 1:9-12

For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light. (Colossians 1:9-12 NIV)

Kadin says "This is my prayer today. "

Enough said.

Gina - Jesus!

Just overwhelmed with His love this morning. We shared testimonies of God's faithfulness today. Hearing my husbands heart, so tender and pure is more than I can take! I read the prayer by John Wesley this morning that says :" I am no longer my own, but thine put me to what thou wilt, rank me with whom thou wilt. Put me to doing, put me to suffering. Let me be employed for thee or laid aside for thee. Let me be full, let me be empty. Let me have all things, let me have nothing. I freely and heartily yield all things to thy pleasure and disposal. And now, o glorious and blessed God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit thou art mine, and I am thine.....so be it. And the covenant which I have made on earth let it be ratified in heaven. Amen. "

My heart is full of passion for Him!

Tim - Phillipians 3:8

Who is the most successful person you know? What are the most valuable things in this world?
(some answers: Oprah, bill gates, daddy, king David , houses, money, gold, people. )

People like Tim Tebow who proclaim "my lord and savior Jesus Christ"...are great examples of giving glory to God with our lives.

I consider everything a loss compared to knowing Jesus. You can have everything but once you have Christ nothing is more valuable. Nothing.

We must give God glory with our lives.

He is the most valuable thing we have.

Devin - 1 Corinthians 2: 6-10

Gods secret wisdom.
No eye has seen , no ear has heard...

Have you ever felt like God revealed His wisdom you? Mom shared how she has times where she had no answers or words and yet it flowed from her....and then later she thought- where did that come from???

Daddy shared of a situation just yesterday where the truth was being revealed to him as it was coming from his mouth to someone else.

We desire His great wisdom and all he will give to us. We must yield to the Spirit so we can obtain His wisdom.

Livia - Proverbs 14:30

"A heart at peace gives life to the body but envy rots the bones. "


Anger happens to all of us.
Your response is best when you trust God and meditate on His word.
The book of proverbs is filled with wisdom regarding envy, starting quarrels and overlooking an offense.

I want peace!!! I pray that God will make me a person who is not easily angered. I don't want to quarrel or cause problems in my relationships.

Kadin said "we don't Want peace in our home we Need peace!"

Hum.... He's so right!
From the mouth of babes.

Tim - 2 Corinthians 7:10

Godly sorrow works repentance to salvation. Repentance means to turn away from sin. The relationship with God, is the most important one. By true change we honor His work in is. Repentance is a gift from God. Examine yourself and see if you have forgotten how to be sorry. We must understand our relationship with God and that forgiveness and change does not come by hard work but rather surrender to Christ.

Kadin - Matthew 2

Jesus was born!
Kadin said he picked this chapter because he saw Jesus's name and anything with his name is interesting to him.

"Great joy is a good thing so I wanted to know more about it" said Kadin.

It's a good time of the year to remember how Jesus came to us and what happened. The King was worried that he would be overtaken so he sent some people to check it out. They ended up worshipping Jesus.

Jesus must be worshipped!
Let's do that today !
Our savior. Our King!

Devin - John 3:16

For God so loved the world that He gave His only son, that whosover believes in Him will have eternal life!"

It's Kadins birthday and we took turns telling him everything we love about him After we had Tim hortons donuts for breakfast!!! It's going to be an awesome day!!!!

We are so thankful for His goodness and faithfulness to our family.  We pray today that our hearts would be pure before Him and that we would be open to His voice and belong completely to Him.'

Livia- Revelation 9

Gods judgement. Wow, We know what will happen according to scripture that in the end Jesus will call for us and take us to heaven. This scripture really makes you think about life and what is most important.

What will make us turn from our sin, our idolatry, our selfish desires? What? God is worthy of our attention but are we giving it to Him ?

What does a man gain if he gains the whole world and loses his soul?

Tim - Titus 3:1-11,14

Remind people to - respect leaders, slander no one, be peaceable and kind and generous to everyone. We are all the same! God did not save us because we are good or because we deserved it but rather because He chose to show us mercy through the washing of re-birth and renewal - poured on us generously through Jesus Christ. We have hope on Jesus name! Stress these things and devote yourself to doing good for everyone around you.

Be full of grace as He was full of grace.

Gina - Phillippians 4:10-13

I rejoiced greatly in the Lord that at last you renewed your concern for me. Indeed, you were concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it. I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength. (Philippians 4:10-13 NIV)

Content.  That's a word I have been wrestling with alot lately in my life.  I'm not sure if it's a "holy" discontentment, like I just can't seem to get enough of "junk out and God in" kind of discontentment.... while I'd love to pridefully say , that's it.....unfortunately there's this other really ugly kind of discontentment.    It's embarrasing.  It's not good.  I'm so mindful of what I want and what I don't have that I suffocate the ability to be grateful for what I do have.   Okay I said it.  I heard a quote recently that's echoing in my head by St Clair Furgeson  "Contentment is a direct fruit of having no higher ambition than to belong to the Lord and be at His disposal."   

Paul says in the scripture above " I HAVE LEARNED THE SECRET OF BEING CONTENT"....
and I am on a quest , with my family.... to learn that secret too!  I'm thinking it has something to do with full surrender..... what about you?

Livia - Psalm 68

"....Let God arise! ...The righteous will be glad. ....Let the earth rejoice! .... Our God is a God who saves!! ....Summon your power oh God - show us your strength as you have done before! ....You are awesome oh God! .."

Livia said : "This is what I find cool - God is our shepherd and even when all is wrong we can rest in Him"

Gina - Proverbs 22

I really want to live this out. That having things and wealth does not help others and that it's better to be esteemed by others than to have things.

Being generous brings blessings to your life. Thanksgiving is a good time to consider what we can do for other people.


To live is Christ, to die is gain.

Kadin - Genesis 22

Abraham Is willing to sacrifice his only son, Isaac. God stopped him before he did and He said ..."I see that you are fully devoted and will hold nothing back".

Isaac said to others as he returned..." I have learned the cost of faith and the reward of faith."

Kadin said that this teaches us to obey God and trust God completely. It might be really hard to do but the reward is awesome.

This story is a foreshadowing to what would happen with Jesus.

Amazing.

Devin- Romans 3:9-20

People were trying to "be good" but Jesus came and provided grace and a way. He is our righteousness.
Nobody's perfect and we've all sinned and without Jesus we would not be able to approach God. His love for us is perfect. It's good to be loved today.

Tim- 1 Corinthians 10:31

Whatever you do, do it all for the Glory of God.

We are to glorify God always even when people are not looking. Its not about what we accomplish , but rather how often we point to Him.

Faithfulness in human life , again in ALL we do not just our Christian activities.

Gina - Psalm 15

The one whose walk is blameless. Hum?? Speaks truth from the heart, utters no slander or slur, who does no wrong to a neighbor, who keeps oaths even when it hurts, who does not change their mind....whoever does these things will never be shaken! This is no small call however in the light of living my life to honor and glorify God it resounds in my soul this morning. It's right. It's what he requires of me. May the flesh and selfish desires today be beaten down by the truth that lives within me.

Kadin - Exodus 20

The 10 commandments! When Moses went to the mountain to get the 10 commandments the people got anxious and decided to make their own gods. They made a gold statue so they could have a god they could see. It looks just like a god that Egypt had. The people brought their offerings to this god but then Moses came down and gets very upset and breaks the tablets. Moses burns the statue and tells the people to ponder their faithfulness. He went back to the mountaintop and begged God for forgiveness for the people. When Moses came down his face was shining as bright as the sun for the glory of God was on him!! Today we are reminded to ponder our faithfulness.

Devin - Revelation 12

Wow. When Christ overcame death now Satan has no control over us through Jesus' power. Kadin's mouth was wide open the whole reading. This text is very intriguing and makes you think. Devin talked to us about end times and how Jesus will come back for us. Kadin asked when? Times certainly do point to the end, however no one knows the day or the hour! Devin said "if we are living for eternity why do we need to go to school or college? Let's just go to church everyday! ". Nice!

Livia - Proverbs 10:4

"Lazy hands brings poverty but diligent hands bring wealth."

King Solomon was a wise man and his words tell us that hard work is one of the greatest things we can learn. If we sit around and do nothing that's just what we will get out of life. We must choose to work hard at what God has called us to do , even if it's hard or something you don't like to do.

Mom and Dad think Liv is right on and we are going to practice hard work tonight on all the leaves in our yard! Great idea Livia!!!!

Tim - Colossians 1:24

"Now I rejoice what I am suffering for you, and I FILL UP in my flesh what I still lack in regards to Christ's afflictions, for sake of his body, which is the church. "

Oswald Chambers recap: The Christian worker. Identify with your Lord. It's not the strength of a man's personality that brings people to Christ but rather Christ in us!! If we preach the effects of redemption on human life INSTEAD of the revelation regarding Jesus the results in those who listen is not new birth but refined spiritual culture. The Spirit of God cannot witness to it.

Ouch.

What chance does the gospel have of getting through our personality? We must not glory in men but rather in Christ our Lord.

FILL UP with him alone and point to him alone.

Livia - Matthew 17:14-20

The healing of a boy with a demon. I don't understand why Jesus would say "how long shall I put up with you?". Maybe because he expected his disciples to stop wallowing in unbelief? A faith as small as a mustard seed ( which is very, very small) will "move mountains" which is like moving our problems! It says that" With faith, nothing is impossible. ". I want to live out my faith - and build my faith everyday and really believe that NOTHING is impossible with God. Daddy said he pictures Jesus watching us in our day to day saying "come on! I can help you with this! Have faith, look to me! I can move this mountain! Don't try so hard on your own!!" HAVE FAITH!!!

Tim - Matthew 4:1-17

The temptation of Jesus. Right after Jesus' baptism he was led by the Spirit (the SPIRIT, not the devil) so this was intentional after His baptism to show He would not overcome the enemy by supernatural powers but rather by the Word of God! The devil tempted Jesus in every way, just like we are - yet was without sin. The devil will tempt us even in ways that might seem right to us so we have to test everything with the Word of God and confirmations from the Holy Spirit. The devil LEFT HIM (gave up, 3 strikes your out) and the angels attended to Him. Meet your temptations with scriptural truth... "it is written!!!"

Gina - 2 Corinthians 10:5

"....and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. "

The Holy Spirit should be our filter so that everything that comes out of our mouths honors God. The center of who we are becomes fully subject to the lordship of Jesus Christ. We have divine power in Christ to defeat all strongholds in our lives. A good friend just told me last night that one practice she does in her life before responding in certain situations was to "take a moment" and think before she speaks. Sounds very practical, however she said it changed her life! Amen- Jesus as lord changes everything in us!!!

Kadin - Exodus 2:21-4:17

The burning bush. Moses hears a voice from the bush that says "don't come any closer, take off your sandals for you are standing on holy ground.". Livia thought that in that moment of Gods presence - it must have been terrifying! Like you are a small little ant!  Later God tells Moses to lead the people and Moses gets worried because he has a speech problem. God promises to be with him and prove that he has been called by Him. He tells Moses" I gave you your mouth and I will provide what you need. "  That's pretty cool!   God can do that for us today too!

Gina - Romans 8

So this morning my heart hurts for a good friend, Ellen.  She lost her 5 year old grand daughter last night in a tragic accident.   As I think back over the past several weeks I recall a few conversations her and I had, one being about my ambitious idea to memorize the whole chapter of Romans 8! Wow, what was I thinking?   She said right away " I'm in!" and I just loved that she had that kind of passion for the Word of God.  A few weeks pass and we see each other at church and she asks how I'm doing on it, and I shamefully admit I've not even started ........ Today I wake early to her unbearable,  devastating news and I open my Bible to Romans 8.... and  I can't breathe.  I'm in awe of HIS power and how personal He is.  After being wrecked by the truth in this chapter, I humbly commit to memorizing the whole thing in honor of my friend Ellen.  He is Near today, my friend.

Romans 8:18, 26-28, 35, 37-39 NIV

"I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God's people in accordance with the will of God. And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Kadin - Jonah

Jonah is disobeying God but God swallows him up by a big fish and gives him time to think and pray. Jonah knew he was disobedient and so God made the fish spit him out on dry land and then Jonah obeyed God and went to Ninevah like God told him to in the first place.    So in our lives God may ask us to do something that we might not want to do but it's best to obey God from the start.   It's also good to learn from Jonah that we should recognize our disobedience and repent. 

Tim - Matthew 3:13-17

The baptism of Jesus. Jesus said "this is proper to fulfill all righteousness". Which means to fulfill prophecy to prove the truth of who he was. When he was baptized the holy spirit In the form of a dove rested on him. A voice from heaven said "this is my son, in whom I am well pleased!". Can you imagine if you were there? Wow! He's here! The Messiah. The one they said would come and take all the sins of the world upon his shoulders. Devin shared that it reminded him of Joshua 1:9 "be strong and courageous , do not be terrified for the lord your god is with you wherever you go!"

Livia - Matthew 25

A parable Jesus told:  verse 13 & 14 says it all!
 "I don't know you!"
The parable is about 10 virgins that are seeking a groom. Some of them are ready and some are not.  Just like us waiting for Jesus' return, some of us are ready and some of us are not.  We must have "the oil in our lamps" which means "Jesus in our hearts" so that when Jesus comes he will "KNOW" us.  You can go to church every Sunday, have the big part in the Christmas program and say all the
right things and  still not KNOW God.  The point is - make sure you KNOW  God  and keep your "lamp full of oil" everyday because "no one knows the day or the hour" that Jesus will return for us!   

Kadin - Matthew 3

John the baptist.  "A voice of one crying in the desert, prepare the way of the Lord!"
John the baptist was  hardcore telling them to repent and be baptized.  He told the "churchy" people  that they were vipers because they did not think they needed to repent and be baptized because they thought they were already good. We have to be careful to think that just because we live a good life that we are okay, because we need Jesus to be saved.     He told them "I baptize you with water but there is one who will come and is more powerful whose sandels I am not worthy to carry.  He will baptize you with fire and the Holy Spirit."  That's pretty cool.   That means the Holy Spirit  lives in me and helps me in life and his "fire" gets rid of all the bad stuff in our lives.

Devin- Psalm 8

How majestic is your name!! From the lips of children your praise is ordained! Who am I that you are mindful of me? God is awesome and His creation is perfect. We have been created for His glory! This awesome, big God wants a relationship with us! Wow.

Livia - Matthew 7:13-23

Livia read this scripture to us and shared a paper she had received from Girls Club this summer.  She talked about the difference between narrow and wide gates. When she got to the part about bearing good fruit she said "whoa!"  She said it made her think about bad fruit and good fruit and the fruits of the Spirit in Galatians 5. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control. People can be good without bearing fruit. You can do good , cool things but without God you Don't bear fruit that lasts. Kadin mentioned that idols can get our eyes off the narrow road. Idols are things that you put before God.