Start your year with powerful insight into how God uses pressure to refine your faith! In this first message of our new series "Integrated," Pastor Stephen unpacks James 1:1-18 to reveal why trials aren't meant to break us—they're meant to complete us.

Discover the difference between testing and temptation, learn why God allows difficulties in your life, and find out how endurance develops through patient faith. This message will challenge you to close the gap between what you believe and how you live.

Key Takeaways:

• Pressure reveals your integrity—it doesn't break it
• God tests you to strengthen you; sin tempts you to destroy you
• A faith that can't be tested can't be trusted
• God uses trials to refine you, not punish you
• Patient endurance leads to wisdom, wholeness, and the crown of life
• The question isn't IF you'll face pressure, but WHAT it will reveal about you

Scripture References: James 1:1-18 | Jeremiah 29:11-13 | 1 Corinthians 11:23-26

About This Series: Join us for "Integrated"—a 7-week journey through the book of James that will help close the gap between what we say we believe and how we actually live. It's time for an integrated life!

ABOUT OPEN DOOR CHURCH: Open Door Church is located in Edenton, NC, where Pastor Stephen Mizell serves as lead pastor. We believe in the transformative power of God's Word and the life-changing message of Jesus Christ.

In this week's Advent sermon, Pastor Stephen Mizell challenges us to rethink everything we thought we knew about love. As we light the fourth Advent candle, discover why love isn't just a warm feeling or sentimental decoration—it's a Person you meet and a divine action that changes everything.

Drawing from 1 John 4:7-12, Pastor Stephen unpacks the profound truth that God doesn't just love—He IS love. This means love existed before creation, before redemption, and before the incarnation. We don't manufacture love; we can only reflect it. We don't generate it; we can only distribute it.

IN THIS EPISODE:

• Why the Bible never treats love as a decoration
• The difference between sentimental love and sacrificial love
• How the manger and the cross are inseparably connected
• Why your theology is only as good as your relationships
• The challenge of being God's "full expression" of love to the world
• A special word for those finding this Christmas season difficult

KEY QUOTE: "Christmas is not about God shouting from the mountaintops, 'I love you.' It's about Him whispering it from a manger."

This sermon includes a salvation invitation and a tender moment addressing those experiencing a "Blue Christmas"—anyone grieving loss, waiting for answered prayer, or finding the season less joyful than expected. Pastor Stephen reminds us that the good news of Christmas isn't that God avoided darkness, but that He stepped into it.

SCRIPTURE: 1 John 4:7-12, Romans 10:9

ABOUT THE SPEAKER: Pastor Stephen Mizell serves as the lead pastor of Open Door Church in Edenton, North Carolina. His teaching combines biblical depth with practical application, helping people encounter Jesus in real and transformative ways.

Are you struggling to find joy this Christmas season? In this week's message, Pastor Stephen Mizell cuts through the shallow happiness of the holidays to reveal what real joy actually is—and where it comes from.

Through the lens of Mary's Magnificat prayer in Luke 1, discover how a teenage girl facing scandal, fear, and uncertainty chose to magnify God instead of her overwhelming circumstances. This isn't a feel-good Christmas message. It's a prophetic declaration that will challenge what you're focusing on in your own life.

IN THIS EPISODE:

• Why joy is not a season, reaction, or outcome—it's a revelation of who God is
• The surprising connection between magnifying God and experiencing joy
• How what we ruminate on eventually masters us (including politics, fears, and circumstances)
• Why Mary's ability to articulate her prayer at 12-16 years old was supernatural
• The power of remembering God's faithfulness when circumstances press in
• How traditions and rhythms help us look back and see God's hand in our lives

KEY QUOTE: "Joy is not found in what you hold—it's found in who holds you. Real joy is settled confidence that God is present even when life is painful."

PERFECT FOR: Anyone feeling overwhelmed by circumstances, struggling to find joy beyond temporary happiness, or needing to remember God's faithfulness during difficult seasons.

SCRIPTURE: Luke 1:45-55 (Mary's Magnificat)

Open Door Church
Edenton, NC Pastor
Stephen Mizell