The Beatitudes invite us to rethink what it truly means to be blessed—not by strength, success, or comfort, but by humility, dependence, mercy, and hunger for God’s ways. Jesus paints a countercultural picture of the good life, where God meets us in our weakness, grief, and longing, and forms us into peacemakers in the world. The Kingdom of Heaven isn’t just a future promise; it’s breaking in here and now!

As Christmas fades and a new year approaches, we pause to reflect on where God has been faithful, even in the hard and disappointing moments. Instead of rushing into resolutions fueled by pressure or guilt, God invites us to remember who we are in Christ and to trust Him with both our hopes and fears. The same God who carried us through this year is already at work in the next one!

Christmas invites us not only to the manger, but also to the cross and the empty tomb. Isaiah 53 reminds us that the promised Savior came as a suffering servant—rejected, acquainted with grief, and yet willingly bearing our sin in our place. When we see Jesus as our substitute who truly understands our pain, the Gospel moves from a seasonal story to a life-shaping reality. This season, may we lay down our assumptions, bring our honest struggles, and come and adore the King who gave everything for us!