Welcome to the#LiveChristmas Project
Our house always looks amazing for Christmas. My wife, Tiffany, is an expert decorator and she makes our house look so beautiful with festive decorations of the season. I always get sad the day the decorations come down and get packed away in the basement. I think sometimes that is how we treat Christmas. We celebrate it for a month and then we pack it away neatly until next year.
But what if Christmas was more than that? What if Christmas wasn’t just a day we celebrated, but a way we lived day in and day out, 365 days a year? What if we didn’t just celebrate Christmas, what if we lived Christmas?
Today marks the first week in a season the church calls Advent. If you have never heard of Advent the word means "arrival." Advent is a way Christians can wait and prepare to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ on Christmas.
This Advent, as we prepare to celebrate, I desperately want our church to not just celebrate the birth of our King, instead I want us to live out the way of that King. And my hope is that over the next 30 days or so, it becomes a way of life each and every day. That’s why the #LiveChristmas Project was created.
Over the next several weeks you will be challenged. First,you will be challenged with a reading from the Bible and second you will be challenged with a #LiveChristmas act.The Project can be done as individuals, couples or even as a whole family together.
So here it is, will you join me in taking up this project? I challenge you to do thisevery day,completing as many challenges as you can. You can also use the invite cards, we have at church, as you do the challenges to #LiveChristmas and invite others to Christmas Eve At E-Free. And make sure to share your victory stories on our FaceBook page with the hashtag #LiveChristmas, so others can celebrate with you.
Let's Live Christmas so the whole EUP can see Christ in us this Christmas season!
Pastor Steve
#LiveChristmas Week One
This week’s theme is: Encounters with Jesus. In our scriptures this week you will see some great examples of people encountering Jesus, notice how these people respond. Pray each day that you will live in such a way people will see Jesus in you and want to respond.
Monday, Nov 28
SCRIPTURE: Mark 1:40-45 (healing of a leper)
CHALLENGE: Ask a coworker what their favorite coffee or other drink is, and bring it in tomorrow for them.
Tuesday, Nov 29
SCRIPTURE: Mark 5:1-20 (casting out of a Legion)
CHALLENGE:Clean up a yard in your neighborhood (or a place you know needs it).
Wednesday, Nov 30
SCRIPTURE: Mark 7:31-37 (healing of a deaf and mute)
CHALLENGE: Go to a drive-thru and pay for the person behind you.
Thursday, Dec 1
SCRIPTURE: Luke 18:35-43 (healing of a blind man)
CHALLENGE: Every time you receive service of any kind, say "Thank you," and use their name. If you don't know their name, ask it.
Friday, Dec 2
SCRIPTURE: John 4:1-30 (woman at the well)
CHALLENGE: Leave a treat (bottle of water, candy, gift card) for your mail delivery person.
Saturday, Dec 3
SCRIPTURE: John 9:1-41 (healing and trial of a blind man)
CHALLENGE: Identify that person you see every day but don’t talk to. Ask them 3 questions to begin to get to know them.
#LiveChristmas Week Two
This week’s theme is Salt and Light. Jesus calls His disciples to be salt and light in a world so they can bring the hope and truth of God’s Kingdom to a world of decay and darkness. In the Scripture this week you will see how Christmas is God’s light breaking into the world. When you follow Jesus, you have the light of Christ within you. Pay attention this week to how that light shines on others as well. Remember, try to use an E-Free invite card in each challenge you do this week. Pray each day that you can bring the light of Jesus to those around you.
Sunday, Dec 4
SCRIPTURE: Isaiah 1:1-9 (light for the Gentiles)
CHALLENGE: Say “hello” to everyone you encounter today!
Monday, Dec 5
SCRIPTURE: Matthew 5:13-16 (light of the world)
CHALLENGE: Go to a relatively cheap sit-down restaurant and order something modest for lunch. Then leave your server a 100% tip.
Tuesday, Dec 6
SCRIPTURE: Matthew 28:16-20 (Great Commission)
CHALLENGE: Listen to someone’s problem(s) without talking about your own.
Wednesday, Dec 7
SCRIPTURE: Romans 1:15-20 (not ashamed of the Gospel)
CHALLENGE: Send a snail mail letter to your doctor/dentist, thanking them for how they serve you.
Thursday, Dec 8
SCRIPTURE: Acts 1:1-11 (ascension)
CHALLENGE: Go to a place where you usually get decent service. Fill out a customer satisfaction survey (in person, on Google, on Yelp), give high scores, and mention employees by name.
Friday, Dec 9
SCRIPTURE: Isaiah 6:1-8 (here am I)
CHALLENGE: Buy an Arby’s gift card to give to the cart collector next time you’re at the grocery store.
Saturday, Dec 10
SCRIPTURE: 2 Corinthians 5:11-21 (ministry of reconciliation)
CHALLENGE: Reach out to someone with whom you need to pursue reconciliation
#LiveChristmas Week Three
This week’s theme is: God loves the lost. We learn in Scripture that God is so concerned about lost people. And you know what? We should be too! God has great compassion on those who need to find him. As you read each Scripture this week, pray each day that you will gain the compassion God has for those who are lost.
Sunday, Dec 11
SCRIPTURE: Luke 15:1-10 (Parables of the Lost Sheep and Lost Coin)
CHALLENGE: Reach out to someone you care about who is lost and invite them to our Christmas Eve service.
Monday, Dec 12
SCRIPTURE: Luke 15:11-32 (Parable of the Lost Son)
CHALLENGE: Find something you have that you’re not using but is still in new like condition. Give it away to someone who will actually use it.
Tuesday, Dec 13
SCRIPTURE: John 3:1-21 (Jesus teaches Nicodemus)
CHALLENGE:Bake or buy a dozen cookies and drop them off at a local service agency (police, fire, hospital, etc)
Wednesday, Dec 14
SCRIPTURE: John 10.11-18 (The Good Shepherd gives his life for his sheep)
CHALLENGE: Send a letter – like a physical, you-wrote-it letter, to a school, thanking them for pouring into the next generation… even if you don’t have kids who are students.
Thursday, Dec 15
SCRIPTURE: Isaiah 56:1-8 (salvation for others)
CHALLENGE: Invite a family member to attend Christmas Eve at E-Free with you.
Friday, Dec 16
SCRIPTURE: John 6:25-59 (Jesus the bread of life)
CHALLENGE: Next time you are at a busy shopping center, park far away on purpose so someone else can have the closer spot.
Saturday, Dec 17
SCRIPTURE: Romans 5:12-21 (death through Adam; life through Christ)
CHALLENGE: Send an encouragement note to someone that works for a non-profit
#LiveChristmas Week Four
This week’s theme is: Sharing our faith. This week’s Scriptures will show how passionate early Christians were about telling others about Jesus. Pray that you will gain a passion for telling others about the great hope we have in Jesus Christ.
Sunday, Dec 18
SCRIPTURE: Acts 2:14-41 (Peter’s Pentecost sermon)
CHALLENGE: Smile at everyone you see today.
Monday, Dec 19
SCRIPTURE: Acts 5:17-41 (Apostles persecuted)
CHALLENGE: Leave a treat (bottle of water, candy, gift card) for your trash collectors.
Tuesday, Dec 20
SCRIPTURE: Acts 8:26-40 (Philip and the Ethiopian)
CHALLENGE: Snail mail a handwritten note to the workplace of your spouse, family member, or friend.
Wednesday, Dec 21
SCRIPTURE: Acts 10:1-48 (Cornelius and Peter)
CHALLENGE: Send an invitation today to have that friend over for dinner that you keep putting off.
Thursday, Dec 22
SCRIPTURE: Acts 13:38-52 (Pisidian Antioch)
CHALLENGE: Invite someone to Christmas Eve at E-Free today.
Friday, Dec 23
SCRIPTURE: Acts 16:16-40 (Paul and Silas in prison)
CHALLENGE: Share a Scripture online today that is meaningful to you with the hashtag#LiveChristmas
Saturday, Dec 24
SCRIPTURE: Acts 17:16-34 (Paul in Athens)
CHALLENGE: Pray by name for the people you have invited to Christmas Eve at E-Free, that they will be impacted when they attend.