DECEMBER 31, 2025

   “For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach.” 

― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King

MALACHI

16Then those who feared the Lord talked with each other, and the Lord listened and heard. A scroll of remembrance was written in his presence concerning those who feared the Lord and honored his name.

17“On the day when I act,” says the Lord Almighty, “they will be my treasured possession. I will spare them, just as a father has compassion and spares his son who serves him. 18And you will again see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.(3:16-18)

REVELATION 22

6The angel said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God who inspires the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place.”

7“Look, I am coming soon! Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy written in this scroll.”

8I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I had heard and seen them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who had been showing them to me. 9But he said to me, “Don’t do that! I am a fellow servant with you and with your fellow prophets and with all who keep the words of this scroll. Worship God!”

JOURNAL 

As another year closes and a new one begins, I am reminded that hope is what fuels the days ahead. The real question of life is whether we are being transformed, and if so, into what. True transformation does not happen through our effort alone, but through surrender to all that God intends for us. We surrender to His future reality, and in doing so we surrender to truth, love, and discipline, the very heart of 2 Timothy 1:7, the verse that has shaped my life.

We are called to worship God and to live in faith and hope. When we do, we learn to live in love. Love is the defining characteristic of God. It is what gives hope its meaning, and it is why we follow Him.

It is interesting to look back at how we came to mark the ending of a year and the beginning of another. Over time, different systems arose, but eventually the Julian calendar introduced by Julius Caesar became the standard, leading to the Gregorian calendar we use today. In one sense, the turning of the year is simply another day, but it also gives us a moment to pause and reflect as the earth completes another circle around the sun.

As I say goodbye to another year, Scripture continues to remind me of my purpose and the purpose of every human life. Every life matters to God. There is not one person He does not treasure. This is why Jesus tells the stories of the prodigal son and the lost sheep, to remind us that each soul is infinitely loved and pursued. Our purpose is to love one another and, in doing so, to honor our Creator. In obedience to Him we find hope, faith, joy, and love. Love is the defining nature of God. It is what our hearts long for most deeply, and its power is what makes this life worth living.

So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.

1 John 4:16

DECEMBER 30, 2025

 “Remember, Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing ever dies.” 

― Stephen King

ZECHARIAH 13-14

9The Lord will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one Lord, and his name the only name.(14:9)

REVELATION 21

1Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,”^a for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. 2I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. 3And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. 4‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’^b or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

JOURNAL 

When I read about a new heaven and a new earth, I am reminded of how little we truly know about the universe. We barely understand our own world, much less the galaxies beyond us or the deeper nature of time, consciousness, and spiritual reality. In recent years, as governments acknowledge UAPs and formerly hidden programs, and as interest grows in altered states and unseen dimensions, it seems clearer than ever that reality is far larger than what we can measure. Instead of weakening Scripture, all of this strengthens the ancient biblical witness. The Bible has always spoken of layered realities, spiritual beings, unseen realms, and a future restoration that stretches beyond the limits of human language.

Scripture gives us glimpses of heaven, angels, and resurrection, yet it leaves mystery in place. We are told enough to trust, but not enough to claim mastery or full understanding. Perhaps this is intentional. The message comes through clearly: there is more going on than what we see. More than science can map. More than our senses can perceive. Another realm. Another home. A deeper reality beneath this one. And this truth resonates deeply with something I have sensed all my life: God is real, and the story of existence is far greater than what we currently understand.

Hope rises naturally from this awareness. A new heaven. A new earth. A future where God wipes away every tear. This is the promise for the suffering, the oppressed, the grieving, and the searching. Hope runs through the entire Bible and through the teachings of Jesus like a steady river.

Even psychologically, hope sustains us. Research shows that people grounded in hope often experience better health, greater resilience, and deeper peace. Hope steadies the mind and strengthens the heart.

But hope is more than optimism. It is the soul’s longing for a world beyond this one. C. S. Lewis expressed it beautifully when he wrote, “If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world.” That longing for justice, goodness, love, beauty, and permanence is not an illusion. It is a compass. A homing beacon. A reminder that this life is not the full story. It is the hunger nothing here fully satisfies, and for me that longing itself is evidence that God exists and that life continues beyond the boundaries of what we see.

Thank you, Father, for planting hope within us. Thank you that in You nothing truly good ever dies. Thank you for the promise that one day everything broken will be restored.

11Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. 12Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. 13Share with the Lord’s people who are in need.

ROMANS 12:11-12

DECEMBER 29, 2025

  “Stop trying to protect, to rescue, to judge, to manage the lives around you . . . remember that the lives of others are not your business. They are their business. They are God’s business . . . even your own life is not your business. It also is God’s business. Leave it to God. It is an astonishing thought. It can become a life-transforming thought . . . unclench the fists of your spirit and take it easy . . . What deadens us most to God’s presence within us, I think, is the inner dialogue that we are continuously engaged in with ourselves, the endless chatter of human thought. I suspect that there is nothing more crucial to true spiritual comfort . . . than being able from time to time to stop that chatter . . . ” ~ Frederich Buechner 

ZECHARIAH 10-12

1Ask the Lord for rain in the springtime;

it is the Lord who sends the thunderstorms.

He gives showers of rain to all people,

and plants of the field to everyone.

2The idols speak deceitfully,

diviners see visions that lie;

they tell dreams that are false,

they give comfort in vain.

Therefore the people wander like sheep

oppressed for lack of a shepherd.(10:1-2)

REVELATION 20

 And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God. They^a had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years.

JOURNAL 

When I read Buechner’s words, I cannot help but think how right he is, even from a health standpoint. So much of our stress comes from clenching onto control that was never ours to begin with. The body keeps score. Our minds race. Our hearts carry weight they were never meant to hold. But when we trust God, when we truly release the illusion that we are responsible for managing everyone else’s life, something inside us relaxes in a way that is both spiritual and physical. We breathe again. We soften. We heal.

“Stop trying to protect, to rescue, to judge, to manage the lives around you. Remember that the lives of others are not your business...”

They are not my business in terms of control or ultimate outcome but they are my business in terms of engaging and loving them as God directs.  One of my lifelong struggles, and I think this is true for almost everyone, is the constant inner conversation. The nonstop stream of opinions, judgments, assessments, worries, and imagined scenarios. It is part of what makes us human, but it also pulls me out of the present moment and into a swirl of thoughts that are often neither kind nor helpful.

Years ago at Onsite, I learned some simple but powerful tools for quieting that noise. For the first time, I experienced stillness in my mind. It was like a deep exhale that I did not know I had been holding. Sadly, the chatter still shows up every day. But now I recognize it for what it is. And when I remember the truth behind Buechner’s words, I find perspective again. I am reminded that the world is bigger than my thoughts. God is at work in ways I cannot see. And I get to live in a time and place full of beauty, opportunity, and grace that people centuries ago could not have even imagined.

So I sit with gratitude. Gratitude for this life, this world, this small but meaningful place God has given me in it. I ask Him to open my eyes to the color, the variety, and the wonder that surround me each day. I ask Him to free my mind from worry and apathy so I can step into joy, purpose, and presence right here and right now.

And I hold on to Paul’s prayer in Colossians, that God would fill me with the knowledge of His will, strengthen me with His power, and grow in me patience, endurance, gratitude, and love. Because in the end, everything belongs to Him. Even my life. And trusting that truth might be the greatest relief my soul and my body will ever know.

We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives,^e 10so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, 11being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, 12and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you^f to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light. 13For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, 14in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

COLOSSIANS 1:9-14

DECEMBER 28, 2025

  “I believe that Jesus would have given His life for just one person. Jesus emptied Himself, He humbled Himself and He so yielded Himself to His Father's love that He had no ambition of His own. He was not looking to build an empire, He did not want praise or adulation or to impress people with who or how many followed Him. He stopped over and over again for just one person, for just one life.” 

― Heidi Baker, Learning to Love: Passion, Compassion and the Essence of the Gospel

ZECHARIAH 7-9

8And the word of the Lord came again to Zechariah: 9“This is what the Lord Almighty said: ‘Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another. 10Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner or the poor. Do not plot evil against each other.’(7:8-10)

REVELATION 19

9Then the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!” And he added, “These are the true words of God.”

10At this I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “Don’t do that! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers and sisters who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For it is the Spirit of prophecy who bears testimony to Jesus.”

JOURNAL 

Everything about following Jesus is meant to awaken and activate within us a life shaped by love, truth, discipline, humility, surrender, and real power. Not the kind of power that dominates, but the kind that transforms. It spreads quietly and beautifully through ordinary people who simply choose to love. We become the conduits of His Spirit, carriers of His compassion, passing it along one life at a time.

Zechariah reminds us that obedience to God looks like caring for people who cannot repay us. Administer justice. Show mercy. Protect the vulnerable. Refuse to harm. Revelation reminds us that true worship begins with surrender, not admiration. To worship God is to align our lives with His heart.

So when I say I worship God, what I am really saying is that I desire to obey Him. And obedience always leads me outward toward people. Toward love. Toward sacrifice. Toward compassion. To love others in the way Jesus loved, I must surrender my need to protect myself or control outcomes. True obedience means God comes first, always, and my life becomes an offering of love to others.

Scripture promises that this surrender opens the door to peace and joy that go far beyond human understanding. It feels upside down in our culture. Everything around us insists that more possessions, more comfort, more affirmation will make us happy. We are tempted to love only those who love us back. Yet that way of living stands in direct opposition to the life and heart of Jesus.

The older I get, the more I understand why Christmas matters so deeply. We forget the story so easily. Jesus came into the world in obscurity, born in a place no one would envy, and His birth was first announced to nameless shepherds. People the world would overlook. I believe this reveals His mission. He came to meet us in the places where we feel least worthy, least polished, least put-together. And if that is the heart of Christ, then that must be our heart as well.

I am grateful to live in a place where I can celebrate Christmas openly. Yes, the holiday can become twisted and commercialized, but beneath all of that remains the truth that God stepped into the world in love and still reaches across time and space to call me His own.

So I return again to Paul’s words, choosing joy, choosing prayer, choosing gratitude, choosing to dwell on whatever is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, and admirable. And then, not just thinking about these things, but doing them. Practicing them. Living them.

Because the God of peace really does meet us there.

4Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

8Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. 9Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

PHILIPPIANS 4:4-9

DECEMBER 27, 2025

 “For the first time in my life I saw the truth as it is set into song by so many poets, proclaimed as the final wisdom by so many thinkers. The truth - that Love is the ultimate and highest goal to which man can aspire. Then I grasped the meaning of the greatest secret that human poetry and human thought and belief have to impart: The salvation of man is through love and in love.” 

― Viktor E. Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning

ZECHARIAH 4-6

 12Tell him this is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘Here is the man whose name is the Branch, and he will branch out from his place and build the temple of the Lord. 13It is he who will build the temple of the Lord, and he will be clothed with majesty and will sit and rule on his throne. And he^e will be a priest on his throne. And there will be harmony between the two.’ 14The crown will be given to Heldai,^f Tobijah, Jedaiah and Hen^g son of Zephaniah as a memorial in the temple of the Lord. 15Those who are far away will come and help to build the temple of the Lord, and you will know that the Lord Almighty has sent me to you. This will happen if you diligently obey the Lord your God.”(6:12-15)

REVELATION 18

“ ‘Come out of her, my people,’^b

so that you will not share in her sins,

so that you will not receive any of her plagues;

5for her sins are piled up to heaven,

and God has remembered her crimes.

JOURNAL 

Time keeps moving forward, day after day. As I look back over this past year, I know the past is already written into the story of my life. I cannot go back and change it, but I have been given the gift of today. And today is full of opportunity. The opportunity to love. To create. To surrender what I am and what I have to God, trusting that He can do something beautiful with it.

I think of Viktor Frankl and what he discovered in the midst of one of the worst hells on earth. Stripped of everything in a German concentration camp. Family gone. Identity erased. Future uncertain. And yet, in the center of that darkness, he came to see that love was not only the highest human calling, but also the pathway to meaning itself. Even when everything else had been taken, he still had the freedom to choose love. To offer himself. To care. To hope. And from that surrender came a deep, unshakeable purpose.

If God could bring that kind of revelation from such horror, then how much more can He work through the ordinary moments of my life. My efforts. My struggles. My hopes. My small acts of obedience. When I offer them back to Him, He has a way of weaving them into something far greater than I could ever create alone. That is the real magic of life. Not that I control outcomes, but that God transforms offerings into grace.

So today I want to live as someone who participates in what God is doing. Someone who creates. Someone who loves courageously. Someone who surrenders the results and simply trusts God with the story. Because life is a gift, and it becomes richest when I stop clinging and start offering.

Thank you Father for another day to step into Your work. Thank you for letting me be part of Your world, Your people, and Your unfolding redemption. I cannot wait to see what You do with the offering of my imperfect but willing heart.

What a life. What a world. What amazing grace.

13May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

ROMANS 15:13

DECEMBER 26, 2025

  “The world is indeed full of peril, and in it there are many dark places; but still there is much that is fair, and though in all lands love is now mingled with grief, it grows perhaps the greater.” 

― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring

ZECHARIAH 1-3

7“This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘If you will walk in obedience to me and keep my requirements, then you will govern my house and have charge of my courts, and I will give you a place among these standing here.

8“ ‘Listen, High Priest Joshua, you and your associates seated before you, who are men symbolic of things to come: I am going to bring my servant, the Branch. 9See, the stone I have set in front of Joshua! There are seven eyes^b on that one stone, and I will engrave an inscription on it,’ says the Lord Almighty, ‘and I will remove the sin of this land in a single day.

10“ ‘In that day each of you will invite your neighbor to sit under your vine and fig tree,’ declares the Lord Almighty.”(3:7-10)

REVELATION 17

 14They will wage war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will triumph over them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings—and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers.”

JOURNAL 

The day after Christmas always carries a strange weight. The presents are opened, the schedule slows down, the music is softer, and the lights do not seem quite as magical. The anticipation is gone. The excitement has already happened. In that quiet space there can be a real sense of letdown, almost like the air slowly drifting out of a balloon. All the buildup and wonder slip into yesterday.

Yet when I think about the first Christmas, the day after was not the end of the story. It was the beginning.

The day after Christ was born, the world still looked the same on the surface. Rome still ruled. Work still needed to be done. People still carried grief and unanswered questions. Life was still complicated and hard. But beneath all of that, everything had changed. The Messiah was now here. Salvation had stepped into time. The love and power of God had taken on skin and entered into the same kind of life that often feels daunting and disorienting to me.

The quiet after Christmas was actually the opening chapter of everything that was and is to come.

Zechariah spoke of the servant who would come, the Branch who would remove sin in a single day, and of a future where people rest together in peace and safety. Revelation reminds me that even when darkness and conflict seem overwhelming, the Lamb triumphs. God brings hope through chapters that can feel heavy. The hope is sometimes subtle and not always easy to see, but it is always present.

That mirrors our own lives. Another year passes. Headlines are heavy. People in our communities hurt. Some days it feels as if God is silent. There are seasons where tragedy or worry seem to wait around every corner. Yet Scripture shows again and again that God has always worked in the middle of such times. He has never abandoned His people and He has not abandoned us now.

Christ came not only for the bright moments but also for the ordinary days that follow the celebration, the days when real life returns, when joy and grief live side by side. That is the world He entered and that is the world He still loves.

So if the day after Christmas feels flat or empty, I can remember that the manger was never meant to be the final scene. It marked the beginning of redemption unfolding, slowly and faithfully, through time and through people like us.

God’s promise remains true. He knows the plans He has for us. They are plans filled with hope and a future, even when the day feels quiet and unremarkable.

The celebration may be over, but Christ is still here in the ordinary days after, and that is where the real story continues.

11For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

JEREMIAH 29:11

DECEMBER 25, 2025

  “...talent means nothing, while experience, acquired in humility and with hard work, means everything.” 

― Patrick Süskind

HAGGAI

 4But now be strong, Zerubbabel,’ declares the Lord. ‘Be strong, Joshua son of Jozadak, the high priest. Be strong, all you people of the land,’ declares the Lord, ‘and work. For I am with you,’ declares the Lord Almighty. 5‘This is what I covenanted with you when you came out of Egypt. And my Spirit remains among you. Do not fear.’(2:4-5)

REVELATION 16

9They were seared by the intense heat and they cursed the name of God, who had control over these plagues, but they refused to repent and glorify him.

JOURNAL 

 “...talent means nothing, while experience, acquired in humility and with hard work, means everything.” 

― Patrick Süskind

HAGGAI

 4But now be strong, Zerubbabel,’ declares the Lord. ‘Be strong, Joshua son of Jozadak, the high priest. Be strong, all you people of the land,’ declares the Lord, ‘and work. For I am with you,’ declares the Lord Almighty. 5‘This is what I covenanted with you when you came out of Egypt. And my Spirit remains among you. Do not fear.’(2:4-5)

REVELATION 16

9They were seared by the intense heat and they cursed the name of God, who had control over these plagues, but they refused to repent and glorify him.

JOURNAL 

Haggai reminds us that strength, courage, and work are not things we muster up on our own. God says, “Be strong…and work. For I am with you. My Spirit remains among you. Do not fear.” The miracle is not that we are strong, but that God’s presence makes strength possible. When we surrender to Him, the ordinary becomes sacred. The everyday becomes holy ground. That is where the magic happens.

Left to ourselves, strength turns into pride and work turns into striving. But when my heart is surrendered to God, strength becomes trust and work becomes worship. Fear fades, not because life is easy, but because I know I am not alone. To live boldly and courageously requires humility. It is the posture of a soul bowed before a God of love.

And this is why the birth of Christ matters so deeply. God did not stay distant or aloof. He entered the dirt and noise and risk of our world. He came small. Dependent. Vulnerable. He stepped into a manger so that I would know He understands the mess of my life too. If God chose humility, then the path to life is not found in power or talent or control. It is found in surrender.

The real miracle is trust. To believe that God loves me. That He cares for me. That His ways are better than mine. When I trust Him, I loosen my grip on fear and begin to see His presence everywhere. In work. In relationships. In quiet moments. In seasons of struggle. When I surrender, heaven touches earth.

4So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. 6While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.

8And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

LUKE 2:4-11 

DECEMBER 24, 2025

 “Life is a long lesson in humility.” 

― J.M. Barrie, The Little Minister

ZEPHANIAH

I will remove from you

your arrogant boasters.

Never again will you be haughty

on my holy hill.

12But I will leave within you

the meek and humble.

The remnant of Israel

will trust in the name of the Lord.(3:11-12)

REVELATION 15

“Great and marvelous are your deeds,

Lord God Almighty.

Just and true are your ways,

King of the nations.^a

4Who will not fear you, Lord,

and bring glory to your name?

For you alone are holy.

All nations will come

and worship before you,

for your righteous acts have been revealed.”^b

JOURNAL 

Christmas Eve! Oh this day has been one of my favorites! When I was young it was so magical because of the anticipation of Christmas Day and all that it entailed. As a parent it continued to be magical because of the same anticipation in my children's hope and excitement. But the reality is that as the years pass I realize that the true joy is found because of family, friends and time spent together.  Of all the Christmas movies I watch every year the one that always without fail is A Christmas Carol...specifically the one with Patrick Stewart as Scrooge. It is a reminder that God is greater than our bitterness, our greed, our anger, frustration and problems. 

So what is all of this business about God's desire for us to to be humble and meek. What does that really mean exactly? I think humility and meekness does not mean weakness but rather honest strength. It is an awareness of reality. It is not being more than I am or not needing or desiring to be something I am not. 

When I am humble, I understand that I am simply one of 7 billion living human beings. Whose life span would be 100 years at best and who is one of billions and billions of people that have lived before me and if God willing billions that will come after me. 

Yet it is also being aware that I am unique in that I am the only one who lives my life in my way for this period of time. That is an amazing gift of which I am a recipient. I did not author my existence, I received it. Therefore I am to live humbly and meekly in honor of God the creator and all those beautiful souls that have left their mark on this world and all those that are to come. 

This is humbling and a great honor. No matter what the day may come, no matter the joys or heartaches...the gift is life and that gift is from God. So because of that fact...each day that I am alive is Christmas Day. I honor that gift by living in that awareness and the joy of God's gift and my own existence. 

13Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom.

JAMES 3:13