Church Family,
A few days ago I asked our 5 year old son what Christmas is about. I never wanted to hear the churchy answer of "Jesus" more. I wanted to see what he really thought about Christmas and that he could cut through the decorations, lights, and the Christmas gifts to connect to the true meaning of this season. His answer was one simple word – but it wasn't the word I was anticipating. He simply looked up at me and said:
"GIVING"
His answer is not that far off from how many of us view and engage in this season. For 4 weeks our culture some-what celebrates and highlights giving to others over ourselves and generosity. From people ringing bells outside stores to the stories that fill the many screens in our lives, we are not hard pressed to find stories of how people are either given to or how they give during the Christmas season. As wonderful as this season is (in this way) one question remains:
What might Jesus say about this kind of giving?
Through a long, hard, and beautiful journey Jenny and I have been on, I am convinced that Jesus demands his disciples to think about giving and generosity beyond a season. Rather, Jesus calls us to a way of life that goes against the natural instincts we have as humans and against the values that the world champions, celebrates, and prepares us for. This is a weekend in which we will look at some of those hard (but beautiful) words of Jesus and see what he might be saying to help us not settle for a mere season of giving and generosity.
On this journey together,
Jeff Mattesich
Pastor of Student Ministries
