Welcome to worship today at Morrison Zion Lutheran Church.  We exist to glorify God.  We have set out to do this by gathering around the Gospel so that we may grow in the Gospel and go to others with this Gospel.

Message:

Today the kids are going to present the story of how joy has dawned.  My guess is there are several out there in the congregation/audience tonight that are pretty filled with joy because of what has happened in the last week and last night.  We have that White Christmas.  It’s something that makes it feel more like the holidays.  It maybe puts you in that Christmas mood.  I know some people are just waiting for that snow.  I saw people out here today on their snowmobiles.  I was talking this morning about how some people like snow and other people don’t and I saw people back there cheering about the snow because I know they like to go cross country skiing and they have been waiting for the snow.

But in the same way that we love snow on Christmas, snow also can bring some trouble.  It can make roads dangerous.  If you’re anything like me, we just reached that Winter Solstice and you kind of get tired of it getting dark at what feels like 3:30p.m.  You can have that Seasonal Depression of darkness and cold and snow.  Even though snow can bring joy today, there is a lot of depression and sadness as well.

Today you’re going to hear how joy has dawned.  You’re going to hear about joy.  You’re going to hear how this came from the beginning of time, how Christ created us, but then we fell into sin.  So we needed hope.  We are going to hear the hope that God gives as He promises a Savior and the joy that comes when that Savior comes and then how this message of Jesus’ coming to save us has changed everything.  It means that there is truth that we can have peace and joy in all times, even in darkness, even when everything is sad and hard.  When your sins are weighing you down, when you’ve hurt other people and you can’t do anything to make it up, when there is sickness or sadness, when there is death and pain, there are things that we need.  We need that joy and that peace that really only God can bring, that Jesus can bring.  That’s what we get to celebrate today—that God became man to give us joy.  To give us a joy of forgiveness, a joy of everlasting life, a joy that means we’re no longer separated from God and we now have peace with Him forever.

My prayer is that yes, we celebrate today that there is a White Christmas and we’re going to hear the kids singing Away in the Manger, we’re going to hear all our favorite songs, but let’s not just celebrate Christmas today.  Let that joy permeate your lives, especially when you have those troubles, when you are in pain, when there is sadness.  Let that joy dawn as the darkness is out there and you know morning is coming.  You know what brings you close is Christ and His Word that brings you peace and forgiveness.

So today, you get to hear of that joy dawning, but today is not the only day.  Take that home, take this message home, and let joy and peace and forgiveness be a part of your life every day.