A Different Perspective Official Podcast

Have you ever wondered what it would have been like, to have been there on that very first Christmas, when Jesus was born into this world? In one sense, it would have been very ordinary. A little village, Bethlehem. People all around. Business as usual. But in another sense … it would have been totally, mind–blowingly, gobsmackingly amazing!

There's a bunch of guys in the Bible who I envy. Now I know what you're thinking, the tenth...

Christmas isn't always a happy occasion. In fact, for many, it can be quite a horror. Especially if you have to spend time with people you don't like. People who, perhaps, have hurt you in the past. So, question, how much are you looking forward to tomorrow?

You know one of the really bad things about Christmas Ð I'm sorry to talk about bad things the day before Christmas but there are not many places we don't go on this program Ð ...

Travel is a hassle. It's okay if you're going on the occasional holiday. That's fun. But if you're always on and off planes, in and out of taxis and hotels like I am, then yep, it's hard work. So imagine you're on a long trip, you finally get to your hotel … and they tell you that not only are they fully booked, but there's a convention in town, and there's not a single room to be had anywhere.

Over the last thirty years, I've done a lot of travelling. It's hard work. The wear and tear on your body is quite a thing. But it's even harder when you're not fit and well. And that is the very journey that Mary had – almost full term in her pregnancy – heading into that first Christmas.

The other Sunday, the pastor at my church was talking about dying. He made the point that people's greatest fear is to die alone. I'd never thought of it that way, but it makes a lot of sense. So … what does this have to do with Christmas? Well, as it turns out … everything!

I don't know if you've ever thought of this, but on the surface of things, Christmas is a crazy idea! I mean, what exactly was God thinking by sending His Son to become a man – and to be born in some drafty, smelly shed out the back of Bethlehem.

One of the problems that many people have is reconciling the supposed wonder and joy of Christmas, with the humdrum realities of their lives. How … how do you do that? How do you take this Christmas message and make it real in your life? That's what we're going to be chatting about today on the program.

You know that first Christmas … it didn't just happen. It wasn't like God hadn't told His people that He was going to send them a Saviour. It's just that … well, they were so focused on the here and now, they really hadn't stopped to consider the big picture.

Well … here we are again. It's December. It's almost the end of another year … and it's almost Christmas time. Again! Happens year after year. Christmas. Question is … what do you make of it? What do you do with it? It's an age-old problem. Christmas.

We people are very much into surface things – things we can touch and feel. Someone dresses well or performs well or looks good – and we judge them to be successful. But God's interested in something else. Something quite different. God's interested in our hearts.

A prophet is someone who speaks the will of God.  So let me ask you something – are there still prophets in this world today, or not?  Does God still speak prophetically through some of His people today … or not?  Well there's only one way to find out – what does His Word have to say on the subject?

Ever been so thirsty you think you're going to die. And then – then you have a deep drink of fresh, cool, clear, living water. Awesome. In fact Jesus talked a lot about water.

There's nothing worse than a hypocrite. One of the things we're called to be, if we believe in Jesus, is Ambassadors of Christ. But if how we live our lives – what we say, what we do – if our lives don't measure up – then what sort of Ambassadors are you and I going to make? When people look at us – what do they see?  An Ambassador, or a hypocrite?

Imagine having a job where you had to try to convince people of something you yourself didn't really believe. That'd be a tough gig, don't you think? And yet that's how many a Christian feels when it comes to telling others about Jesus.  Because if they themselves haven't experienced the powerful difference that He can make in their lives – on the inside – how can they possibly tell others about Him?

A while back, we received a prayer request from Peter, who's been struggling with his weight – it's affecting his health, his family. It's ruining his life. Is Jesus in that place with Peter – and if He is, can He make a difference?

If Jesus really rose from the dead all that time ago, if it really, truly happened….well, what does it mean to us today? What's the relevance? What's the point?

We live in a time of mass production.  Commodities are just churned out. People have become … just a commodity.  But not in God's eyes…..that's what makes you so very special.

We've all been misunderstood. Hey – Jesus was misunderstood. It's not an easy thing. We have good intentions, perhaps we don't execute those intentions perfectly, but all of a sudden the world falls down on us like a ton of bricks.

Sometimes you can be going through a bit of a rough patch in life – a bit like a famine or a drought – and you wonder to yourself what God is up to? But sometimes, sometimes God is actually sitting there, waiting for YOU to do something.