Luke 1:8 -18

8 Once when he was serving as priest before God and his section was on duty, 9 he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to enter the sanctuary of the Lord and offer incense. 10 Now at the time of the incense-offering, the whole assembly of the people was praying outside. 11 Then there appeared to him an angel of the Lord, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. 12 When Zechariah saw him, he was terrified; and fear overwhelmed him. 13 But the angel said to him, ‘Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will name him John. 14 You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, 15 for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He must never drink wine or strong drink; even before his birth he will be filled with the Holy Spirit. 16 He will turn many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. 17 With the spirit and power of Elijah he will go before him, to turn the hearts of parents to their children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.’ 18 Zechariah said to the angel, ‘How will I know that this is so? For I am an old man, and my wife [barren] is getting on in years.’ 

Have you ever experienced the pain of working really hard on a project, putting in hours of work, making sure everything was done just right to have it fail?

Reading today’s passage I can’t help but wonder how Elizabeth felt about being barren. Luke writes that both Elizabeth and her husband Zechariah were righteous. They were living blameless, following the commandments of God. In other words, they were making sure to live in a way that honoured God in everything they did and said. But something was missing in their lives, the blessing of a child. As the years passed, it seems that their righteous living did not diminish, they continued to follow the commandments of God. 

How do we stay faithful when our prayers seem to go unanswered year after year? How do we hold onto God, when He seems to be “holding out” on our heart’s desperate plea?

Then one ordinary day, just like any other, it falls to Zechariah to go and offer incense to God. This is where an unexpected visit from an angel brings a promise that would have been far beyond anything Zechariah expected. The righteous couple who are barren will conceive; they will have a son. And this son has an incredible path before him, including you may notice to bring the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous. Zechariah finishes by saying, in a nutshell – but we are old and barren…

This story encourages me to remember that even though it may look like my circumstances haven’t changed – there is always a promise to hold onto. And that promise may not change my immediate circumstances, but I can still choose to do the right thing, believe, trust and follow God.

Pastor Rose Andrykanus

When I was about 12 years old I had my very own, real newspaper route.  It was an exciting, rewarding job that taught many valuable life lessons, like which dogs to avoid. (It was always the little ones that nipped your heels.)  Now, I didn’t create the news, I just delivered it to all who subscribed to receive it.

During the week I delivered the “Oregon Journal,” an afternoon paper, and on Sunday morning at oh-dark-thirty, “The Oregonian.”  Back then the papers would be delivered to my home where I rubber-banded them, stuffed them into my paper bag, and after draping the bag over the handlebars of my blue, five speed Schwinn away I went to deliver the news. 

It took a while, but eventually I could sling the papers with precision to land on the porches of my customers.  However, some were specific and asked me to place the newspaper on the porch or in the paper holder.  It seems they didn’t want to retrieve a wet paper, or have their screen door damaged.  Go figure.  On occasion I would get a new customer added to my route and sometimes others would cancel their subscription.  I guess not everyone wants to read the news. 

As Christ’s followers we have the privilege of delivering the good news of God’s love for all.  Sure, there is preparation, but a beautiful result of walking with Jesus is that it gets easier to share the good news with joy.  And it helps when we remember Jesus, not us, is the good news.  Doing so helps us to respectfully deliver the gospel by our words, and more importantly, by our lives.  As we get more comfortable delivering the news some will want to know more about Jesus and receive His saving news.  When that happens, love them and praise God!  But don’t be discouraged when others bark at you with their words, and nip at you by refusing the gospel.  That’s okay, love them anyway.  Keep living and delivering the good news! Because it is about Jesus and His love for you.  It is His news that brings joy. 

Pastor Jim Bollin

What will heaven be like? That certainly depends on your definition of "heaven." What do you imagine the New Jerusalem to be like? Once again, we don't know for sure. However, we do know this, that “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man, the things which God has prepared for those who love Him (1 Cor. 2:9.)

Everything we have ever seen, everything we have ever heard, and everything we could ever imagine, cannot compare to what's coming. We do get some glimpses in Scripture, though. 

If you've ever studied the dimensions of the New Jerusalem, you’ll notice that it’s a perfect square (Rev 21:16). The only other perfect square that exists in Scripture is the Most Holy Place of the sanctuary. The New Jerusalem has 12 foundations made of various jewels (Rev. 12:12-13, 21) and these are the same jewels found on the High Priest’s breastplate. 

Why is this significant? In the Old Testament, the Most Holy Place was so sacred and so holy that only one person in the nation of Israel, the High Priest, had access to it. When you see the same symbols used in the New Jerusalem you will notice that humanity has a special access to God.  He has made us “Kings and Priests” (Rev 1:6) - the King was the highest ruler in the political realm and the priest in the religious realm. God is giving the redeemed a very special access to Himself, once reserved for the High Priest alone. As you read though Revelation, you'll notice that the language used includes crowns, thrones…the language of royalty.

Reader, you are valued. You are part of heavenly royalty! God loves you so much that He sent His Son, Jesus, for you! In the Book "The Desire of Ages" Ellen White shares that, "Jesus did not count heaven a place to be desired while we were lost." Read it again and let it sink in. As you do, I invite you to walk in this truth today.

Pastor Rosemary Andrykanus

I really enjoyed our recent testimony Sabbath together in anticipation of this Thanksgiving holiday.  Hearing our church family and visiting friends of all ages sharing what they are thankful for spoke to my soul.  Something sparks inside of me and fuels my fire spiritually as a result.  Later that afternoon we had Pastor Dale Ziegele’s memorial service.  We heard wonderful testimonies of Pastor Dale's life.  Person after person praising God for his positive influence in their lives.  I came away feeling unbelievably blessed.  My heart was and still is so full.

Nehemiah 8:10 says, “Do not grieve for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”  Expressing joy in the Lord is a great energizer.  Maybe it’s an energy source that the world far too often leaves untapped.

Pastor Dale demonstrated joy in the Lord undeniably well.  For the past year he continued to stay thankful even in the midst of his incredible health challenges.  Instead of focusing on what frustrated him, he continued to foster an attitude of gratitude for all the many blessings God had given him throughout his life and he even consistently found blessings from God in the midst of his declining health.  Pastor Dale embodied Nehemiah 8:10 to his core.  God made a positive impact in his life and as a result Pastor Dale had a positive impact on others.

I’ve heard it said:

“-JOY has 3 letters and so does SAD;

-LOVE has 4 letters and so does HATE;

-JESUS has 5 letters and so does SATAN."

There are two opposite paths we can choose in life.  Choosing God leads us down an increasingly positive path.  I want more and more positivity in this life.  How about you?

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!  Let's give thanks to God the great Giver of joy!

-Pastor Michael Brackett

Our children teach us many valuable life lessons if we pay attention.  For example, when Joshua was about 4 we had a strawberry patch in our garden.  He watched as the berries grew, but had a hard time waiting until they were ripe.  Occasionally he would pick the green ones and then ask, “is this one ripe?”  Every time his question would garner the same response, “no, the berries have to be red, so don’t pick them until they are, otherwise the fruit will taste bad.”  As Christians, it may be tempting to think that handing out a flyer, giving an invitation to church, even answering Bible questions is all we need to do to bring about a harvest of souls, not understanding that people, like plants, take time, and investment of ourselves, in order to ripen. 

Lesson: Be careful, then, not to move people faster than the Holy Spirit is ripening their hearts for Jesus.

Another time when Hope was very young, I was going on a church building mission trip and gave her the task of planting the garden.  Everything was ready, and I showed her where to plant each vegetable.  I returned home to a planted garden and was grateful for her hard work.  When the vegetables began to grow I noticed there were no squash plants coming up where she was to plant.  Patiently I waited and still, no plants. Upon inquiry I discovered from her childlike wisdom that since she didn’t like squash, she didn’t plant any.  As Christ’s followers we may think that what we have to offer others is insignificant and be tempted to do nothing.  Everyone of us can do something, and that something will be uniquely us and valuable in the preparing of God’s harvest.

Lesson: You won’t harvest what isn’t there.  Even one squash seed can produce a basket of squash.  Don’t sell God or yourself short.  Your friendship, however small, prayerfully invested in the life of another, may produce an abundance of fruit that wouldn’t happen without you. 

Pastor Jim Bollin

Whether you play or watch sports, you know from experience and observation that the clock determines the play. Take football as an example. In the opening quarters, when there is plenty of time on the clock, you won't ever see a “hail marry pass.” Instead, you see normal running and regular passing plays. However, when the games on the line, and only three seconds remain on the clock, all of a sudden the play changes. Teams start throwing way down the field, hoping for a last-minute touchdown. That's all because the clock determines the play.

In 1 Peter 4:7, Peter writes, “The end of all things is near.” Said another way, “time is running out” or, “Jesus is coming back soon.” Friends, if we truly believe that we are living in the “end times” or in the “last days of earth’s history,” we should let the clock determine how we live our lives. Instead of living our lives primarily for ourselves, Peter encourages us to live our lives dedicated to prayer and by being devoted to others by loving and serving them.

Is Jesus coming back soon? Yes. Thus, may we let the clock determine our lives.

Pastor Evan Davies

I’ll never forget when the Second Coming of Jesus captured my mind for the first time.  I was a freshman in Academy.  Our dorm worships, Bible classes, chapel programs, and church worship services, all at various times spoke of Jesus’ soon return.  It was on my mind so much that I began to have dreams about it.  Within a timeframe of 1-2 weeks, I had three dreams to be exact.

In the first dream I was at the beach with my brother at night when suddenly the sky cracked open.  A thunderous lightning bolt split the entire night sky in two.  I grabbed my brother and said, “Jesus is coming back!”  In the second dream, golden angels were reading from a golden list the names of those who could board a golden train to the heavenly kingdom.  In the last dream we were in a van driving through a vast desert expecting Jesus to appear at any moment.

I’m so grateful for the wonderful school faculty and staff who spoke to me regularly about Jesus’ coming.  It opened magnificent pathways in my mind that pointed me closer to the beautiful realities of Heaven.  As a result, I soon afterwards asked Jesus into my heart and received His awesome promise of salvation for me.

Why don’t I speak more often about Jesus’ return so that others might have the same thing happen for them?  Father in Heaven, bless me with boldness to speak more about Your coming kingdom so that I might help others catch the vision for themselves.

Pastor Michael Brackett