TwelveTwelve: The Leader Blog of North Wake Church

Read: Luke 2:41-52 We call ourselves "followers of Jesus" because we want to obey his teaching and live the way he lived. Paul, who taught in the markets while he made tents, told us we should be "imitators of me, as I imitate Christ." But should we imitate the child Jesus? In this week's account from the gospel writer Luke, we see the one story from Jesus's childhood that we should definitely imitate. Now [Jesus's] parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover. And when he was twelve years old, they went up according to

Photo by Omar Lopez on Unsplash Waiting, waiting, waiting. Day after day Simeon waited. God the Holy Spirit had revealed to him that he would see the Messiah, the Christ, before he died. So he waited. And waited. And waited. And then one day the Holy Spirit moved him to go into the temple courts. A poor, young couple came in to make the law's offering for their firstborn son. The courts were probably thronged with people, rather like Grand Central Station on a busy weekday. But somehow Simeon knew to go to this young couple, who presumably looked

Read: Luke 2:1-20 It’s arguably the most famous story in the world.  A man and his young wife travel to a crowded city to register for a census.  She is hugely pregnant and unfortunately, the city is so crowded, they can’t find a bed—a real problem since it seems that tonight, of all nights, she is in labor.  They manage to find a stable just in time for a sweet baby boy to be born.  Meanwhile, out in the fields, some shepherds are tending their flocks when a whole bunch of angels appear. The angels tell the shepherds to hurry into the city

Read: Luke 1:57-80 If you do a google search for “Are we replaceable?” you will find article after article battling out two points of view. One line of thought states that there is no way you are replaceable, and one says you are completely replaceable. The debate seems to be focused on whether it is a good thing or a bad thing to be replaceable. Some claim that being replaceable is empowering, and others say that it is a detriment to our view of ourselves and others. These types of arguments can leave us as individuals wondering if we have a place in this world–maybe

Read: Luke 1:26-56 The Holy Spirit has been called the "shy member of the trinity" because he focuses his attention not on himself but on Jesus, the Messiah. The Holy Spirit was the answer when Mary asked how she would conceive a baby without a man! God's messenger told her God's Spirit would act in her body to bring about Jesus's conception without a man's involvement. But the Holy Spirit had already been active: Mary's cousin, Elizabeth, and her husband, Zechariah, were expecting a baby filled with the Spirit from the womb. And sure enough, when Mary visited Elizabeth,

Photo by Tessa Rampersad on Unsplash Read:  Luke 1:1-25 "Certainty" is a great word.  Yet certainty is certainly hard to find. In recent days I have come across reports of two general elections, in Sweden and Brazil, through different news feeds, newspapers or TV channels.  It is astonishing what very different stories these sources tell, depending on the particular angle with which each wants to spin their account.  Maybe you share my frustration.  You want to know what actually happened, with fair reporting and balanced assessment, but somehow everyone has their own spin on things, and you flounder in a world of fake

Photo by Alexas_Fotos on Unsplash I am walking my dog. Her nose slides along the ground, sucking like a vacuum, ingesting every delicious smell. She stops at a hole, burying her snout deep into the ground.  It’s the same hole we stopped at yesterday. She stops at a tall, feathery bunch of grass and scans several individual blades thoroughly. It’s the same grassy spot we stopped at yesterday. She takes this walk at least twice a day. But every time, the smells are overwhelming for her, engulfing, delightful, and still worth stopping for. Often, I tug at her leash in impatience.

Photo by Elena Mozhvilo on Unsplash On a rainy November morning Allen and Jean Hitchcock arrived at my office to work through their financial problems in an attempt to save their marriage.   Allen and Jean were Christians, but they had never been exposed to the Bible's perspective on money and possessions.  They appreciated their beautiful two-story brick house in suburban Orlando, their two late-model automobiles, and their other possessions.  Both felt that they had worked hard for what they had and that they had earned the right to enjoy the "good life."  However, after financial pressures threatened their standard of living, their lack of

Photo by Juliana Kozoski on Unsplash God's desire from the beginning has been relationship with all people all over the earth.  He told Abram he would bless the people of the world through his family. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed. (From Genesis 12:3)  God promised a servant who would bring rescue to the whole world. He says, “It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and