"Our "stuff" competes for God's place in our heart."

It's easy to think that we're blessed when we have more stuff, when actually to Blessing = More God, not more stuff. Mike continued the journey through the book of Malachi with the famous chapter 3 section talking about tithes and offerings. He broke down the history behind the words Malachi used and compared that to the words Paul uses in 2 Corinthians.

Our generosity is a reflection of God's place in our heart. Is he King of our hearts and Lord of our lives? Is he at the center of it all or just the parts that are comfortable?

Mike gives us three potential outcomes and asks for 100% participation.
1) If you're unsure life is better with God at the center of your finances, start praying about that and ask God to clearly answer that.

2) If your finances are a mess, reach out and get connected to the right resources to help you fix your finances and honor God in the future.

3) If you're giving out of obligation or guilt, stop doing that and start giving in a way that truly reflects God's place in your heart. 10% is the starting point Mike & Colleen use, but you should prayerfully trust God with your gift.

If you'd like to set up giving to 11|28 Community Church you can do that at www.1128community.org/give

Return to me. It's not just God's plea, it's his desire. In Malachi's time, God's people had fallen away. They remembered what God had done for their ancestors but God felt distant or not even there for this generation. They were casual, maybe even filled with unbelief, and they didn't realize how they'd fallen away or disconnected from God.

God continues to invite us to "return to me". It's an idea that we believe in when bad things continue to happen in our world, but then we do nothing to change. Join with us this week as we took time to pray specifically and personally for a return to God.

Pastor Mike Francisco unpacks Malachi 2:17 - 3:5 and its application for us today. Malachi says you have wearied God with your words; your insincere prayers and mechanical worship.

In keeping it simple Mike said that we cannot claim to love God while continuing to sound like the world. Something's got to change.

“Start honoring God by honoring others”

Pastor Mike Francisco gave us a really hard truth on Sunday: we can’t claim faithfulness to God while being unfaithful to people. We cannot compartmentalize our Sunday morning worship from our midday Monday interactions. Ultimately, integrity isn’t just about morals, it’s about being whole and undivided. So how we treat our spouses, families, friends, coworkers, and neighbors says a lot about how we honor God. A lack of honor always leads to a lack of integrity. God invites us to stop living compartmentalized lives and instead living full, integrated lives.

“How you treat God determines your experience of Him”

Pastor Mike Francisco opens up a new series by asking the hard question… “how did you do at honoring God last year”? Most of us probably didn’t do as well as we would have hoped. If we’re honest with ourselves, we probably only honored God in ways that were convenient and comfortable.

Similarly, Malachi, the prophet, spoke to God’s people about their lack of honor and respect for God. His words cut deep and challenged the casual relationship they had grown accustomed to with the Lord. It’s a new age, but the message translates… God doesn’t want us to treat him as common. Ultimately, we hinder our experience of God’s love, grace, and blessing in our lives when we treat him like just another guy.

Pastors Mike and Colleen Francisco remind us that Christmas is a story of journey, light, and grace. It's a story of humble beginnings. A story of the King of Kings, the Prince of Peace, Immanuel; born not in a palace, but in a stable. A signal that this King and His kingdom will be different.

Shepherds saw heaven break into the night sky. Wise men followed a star. Promises spoken centuries earlier came true. Jesus came as grace upon grace... new grace replacing the old, light overcoming darkness, God with us. And that light didn’t stop at the manger.

Today, we carry it.
We live it.
We shine it.

“There’s hope today because God with us sent the Spirit to dwell within us”

Immanuel. God… With… Us. God incarnate. He put on skin and bones and made his dwelling among us. God stepped into our mess, chose us, understanding the costs, knowing our past, where we’ve been, what we’ve done and who we’ve hurt. He became God with us…. The lost sheep, the prodigal sons, the thief on the cross, the plain jane and the common robs, the liars, cheats, and addicts. God chose us.

The hope of Christmas long ago doesn’t grow faint, isn’t a memory, a reflection, or a feeling. The hope of Christmas is with us today, and goes with us into each and every moment because God with us sent the Spirit to dwell within us.

Peace isn’t the promise of an easy life, it's the promise of a present God.

Immanuel, God with us. With us in the overwhelm. With us in the joy. With us in the fear. With us when we can’t walk inside. With us when the tree is glowing but our hearts aren’t. And this is why the angels declare “Peace on earth.” Not because the world suddenly became peaceful… but because the Prince of Peace entered the world.

11|28 Board Member, Natalia Roman, shares that peace is possible where God is and he is here. Natalia reflects on here own Christmas journey last year and what it took for her to experience the Peace of God as life swirled around her.