New Year's resolutions often set us up for disappointment by focusing on our efforts. The same can be true for Christians resolving to be "better" through more prayer, Bible study, or church attendance. This year, instead of self-dependent resolutions, we need ones that rely on God. Using Psalm 135, Rich Crosby offers an alternative vision for spiritual growth: allowing, celebrating, and expecting God to be God.

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Angels are a predictable feature of Christmas traditions, whether on a card or a tree. But when Jesus was born, the appearance of angels to shepherds in the field was both surprising and terrifying. Perhaps more surprising was that it was to shepherds, who would have been thought of as lowly and insignificant by society, whom God chose to have angels announce the birth of his son first. The good news of Jesus is for all, and the lowly and forgotten are often among the first to receive blessing from God.

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There isn't a lot that we know about Joseph, the earthly adoptive father of Jesus, but we do know he was 'a just man.' What does Matthew, the gospel writer, mean by that, and what do the other brief details of Joseph's decisions show us about a biblical view of masculinity? In this sermon, Rich Crosby looks at how Joseph's determination to show mercy to Mary points ahead to the mercy shown to us by Jesus.

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