1. We too are God’s baptized, beloved, blood-bought believers. And no one can ever take that away from us.
  2. Hidden beneath the sinner is a glorious saint. Jesus has declared it to be so in your baptism.
  3. The sign of the cross, according to the earliest centuries of Christians, is “the sign of the Lord,” and every baptized Christian was “marked” with it.
  4. Toy Story is indeed a Christmas story.
  5. Despite our best efforts to avoid him, King Jesus remains very much unavoidable.
  6. Rejoice with Mary as she would rejoice with you. Be blessed, like her, with humility from God, so that you may serve joyfully and willingly wherever and in whatever role God has placed you.
  7. By his first Advent in the flesh, through his second Advent with bread and wine and water and Word, we await his third Advent at the end.
  8. When and how did the church start this season of anticipation?
  9. All our sin and shame is answered for in the death and resurrection of our Lord.
  10. While the world is full of horizons and endpoints, for Christians, there is always tomorrow, and there are people in that tomorrow waiting for us as we wait for them.
  11. Help comes for those who cannot help themselves. When we bottom-out and come to the end of ourselves, that is where hope springs.
  12. Preachers and church workers must also hear the gospel preached to them.