What a joyful morning! Not only were we able to witness six people declare in front of their church family that they believe in and will follow Jesus throughout their lives, but we also received the blessing of hearing from our friend Pastor Steve as he continued our series, Honest Advent. Today we stared together at Fatherhood.

There are desires and expectations we have of our earthly Fathers. We want them to be present, loving, even corrective. It's a desire that is within us all. And yet, when our Fathers don't meet these expectations, there's a sense of longing, even disappointment. Often, these feelings are transferred and projected onto God. Feelings and beliefs that we need to work in order to get attention from God, that He is uninterested in us, that God is cruel or critical, or that God is absent and inaccessible. 

What advent shows us, is that God loves us so much, his desire to be with us so great, He comes to us. He enters the mess, vulnerability, and brokenness of humanity to be with us. Advent is proof that there is nothing God won't do to bring us back to Him. And in the mess of our daily lives, He continues to invite us into relationship, healing, and wholeness in Him.

Pastor Steve extended three invitations to us today:

1. Invitation into relationship with God. A prayer you can pray: Jesus, I trust with you my life.
2. Invitation to healing. A prayer you can pray: Jesus, I give you my _____ today.
3. Invitation to action. A prayer you can pray: Jesus, I'm here. Show me where you can use me.