This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.
But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."
All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: "The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel"—which means, "God with us." - Matthew 1:18-23 (NIV)

Join us this weekend at Champions Centre for one of four Family Christmas Services. Christmastime is our opportunity to celebrate “God with us,” so invite family and friends and we’ll see you this weekend. View service times…

When I think of change…

a. I want more of it… in my pocketbook.
b. I don’t want things to change. Let’s keep everything just like it is now.
c. I have some changes I’d like to make in my life.
d. World peace… Unicorns and leprechauns dancing on a rainbow… painting public sidewalks bright, joyous colors…. Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote becoming best friends…

If you chose "a" or "b," you may have a serious case of humbugitis. The cure, you ask? A good, solid dose of life lessons from our fictional friend, Ebenezer Scrooge...

Life Lesson #3: It’s only when we exercise our right to choose that we can experience the joy of change.

“This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life so that you and your children may live,” (Deuteronomy 30:19).

How would you complete this sentence? “Wouldn’t it be wonderful if…” (and don't make your response something that is dependant on another person).

God gave us an incredible gift: the ability to make choices. What would you see as a wonderful change in your life? Many of the things that we would like to see as a positive changes in our lives are initiated by the choices we have the ability to make.

As long as we keep making the same kind of choices, we’ll always get the same kind of results. This was true for Ebenezer Scrooge, and it's true for us as well. When our choices change, so will our future.

Looking for more insight from the life lessons of Mr. Scrooge? Join us this weekend at Champions Centre...

You bring your Christmas tree home, only to find it crawling with ants and a bird's nest in the branches, so you…

a. Light the whole tree on fire and throw it in your neighbor’s yard.
b. Storm back to the tree farm, demanding a refund.
c. Use it as an opportunity to teach the kids about wildlife and nature.
d. Make a jelly sandwich for the ants, and set the bird free in a glorious meadow, whilst humming a happy Christmas carol.

If you chose "a" or "b," you may have a serious case of humbugitis. The cure, you ask? A good, solid dose of life lessons from our fictional friend, Ebenezer Scrooge...

Life Lesson #2: We cannot always control what happens, but we can control our response to what happens.

"The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are bad, your whole body will be full of darkness,” (Matthew 6:22).

Ebenezer Scrooge really terrible things happen to him early in his life. They were issues beyond his control -circumstances he never asked for or expected. Ebenezer assumed that there was only one way to respond: bitter anger. He saw all of life through the lens of injustice and pain.

Right now, we are facing things in our lives that are beyond our control, but we don't have to view life in the same way as Ebenezer Scrooge. We can respond to life's adversity with prayer, faith and confidence in God’s goodness. We can choose to respond to hardship in a way that is constructive and beneficial. We can know that our God identifies with us in challenging times and that He's here to help (Hebrews 4:14-16).

Looking for more insight from the life lessons of Mr. Scrooge? Join us this weekend at Champions Centre...

When you think of the past, you...

a. Wish you could still be in it.
b. Have regrets.
c. Are thankful for the good times and look forward to the future.
d. Don’t even remember what you had for breakfast this morning.

If you chose "a" or "b," you may have a serious case of humbugitis. The cure, you ask? A good, solid dose of life lessons from our fictional friend, Ebenezer Scrooge.

Life Lesson #1: When we focus on the past, we miss the precious present.

“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing,” (Isaiah 43:18-19).

Ebenezer Scrooge made the mistake of focusing on his past, and sometimes we can be guilty of the very same thing. The next time you're driving, take a second to notice the ratio between the size of the rear-view mirror and the windshield. There's a reason that the rear-view mirror is smaller than the windshield. If you were to drive forward while only watching the mirror, the results would be disastrous.

In your car and in life, it’s not good to give the past more than just a glance. Are you spending so much of your life looking at the past that you’ve become a present-day Scrooge? The Bible warns us about this in Philippians 3:13 and Ecclesiastes 7:10. Make a decision to open your heart and life to what’s ahead of you.

Looking for more insight from the life lessons of Mr. Scrooge? Join us this weekend at Champions Centre...

Right now, our society is facing major economic challenges that are hitting close to home. Although budgets may be tight, our desires to be generous and make a difference have not diminished. We know that God's people want to help people in need, but may be struggling to figure out how to do that while their own funds might be more limited this year than in the past. The Champions Centre team decided to take this challenge head-on.

Every year, Champions Centre gives generously to people in need and partners financially with organizations that are making a difference in our local and global communities. This Christmas, we did things a little differently... Actually, it's quite the opposite of "little." We made Champions Centre history.

During weekend services on November 22 and 23, Pastor Kevin Gerald launched the Smile On Another campaign. He asked that one member of each household stand and receive an envelope and in each one was an amount of cash, or "seed money" as Pastor Kevin called it. He challenged each person to take their "seed money" and find a creative way to multiply it, then bring it back to services on December 20 and 21. All funds received will be directed to Champions Foundation and be used to resource its many local and international initiatives. In one weekend, Champions Centre invested approximately $30,000 cash in good faith to its members and attendees.

We're already hearing great stories about how people are multiplying their "seed money" for Champions Foundation, and we've been impressed with the resourcefulness and ingenuity of ideas. So, the question is... What are you doing with your Smile On Another "seed money?"

Leave a comment to let others know what you're doing and help jumpstart their own creativity for how they can multiply their "seed money."

Oh, and by the way... If you missed services on the 22nd and 23rd, but still want to participate in the Smile On Another campaign, it's not too late! You can start with your own amount of "seed money" and use your imagination and unique skills to multiply it and bring it with you to services on December 20 and 21.

It's time to "Smile On Another!" This season at Champions Centre, we're getting creative in how we express generosity.

Have you ever wondered how your generosity really impacts the world around you? Click here to find out...

Sometimes, the small things have the greatest impact on our lives. Have you ever been in line at Starbucks, gotten to the window and found out that the car ahead of you had already paid your bill? Or maybe you received an unsigned encouraging note that made your day. What's the most amazing "Random Act Of Kindness" that you've ever experienced or accomplished? Post your response to let us know...

From Jodi Gerald-Cameron

live it - south africa

The past few days have been hectic - not gonna lie. We've been busy preparing our Forever Home for the Christmas season. We've been shopping at dozens of stores, wrapping even more dozens of presents, labeled and taped and sorted and delivered and hid ... and wrapped and labeled and and sorted and delivered and hid AGAIN! :)

Our hotel room was beginning to resemble a small store by the second day of our trip here visiting our girls. We couldn't even let the cleaning service come in while we were away because we were concerned they would get a little friendly with all the new things... The things we are purchasing while we are here can be sponsored by people back home over Christmas, that way we can make sure that all the children and teens in our home get a fabulous Christmas!

Today, a few of our team went to our Forever Home and set up the Christmas tree and some decorations. Some of our girls who were not with us yet last Christmas have never had a Christmas tree let alone any presents for Christmas. It was so funny to see a couple of them slip the Christmas Stockings onto their feet thinking that they looked a lot like fancy socks or slippers... we all got a huge laugh out of that while at the same time realized that even in the smallest of things that we can do for these girls we are changing their lives. We're giving them new lenses to see the world through to know that they are loved, cared for, prayed for and cherished on this planet and that life can bring good things and not just fear or negative things into their life.

My challenge to anyone who is reading this is to step up. Do what YOU can - without worrying about comparisons or doubting your ability to do SOMEthing...

Maybe you can give money to a great foundation like Champions Foundation on a monthly basis...or Maybe you can volunteer with us on the second Saturday of every month with the Justice Project taking it to the streets...or Maybe you can volunteer your time at the Tacoma Rescue Mission or a local community mission where they are changing lives by doing SOMEthing...or Maybe you know of someone who needs help with _______ (fill in the blank) and you can do SOMEthing about it - even if that something is just making a phone call to someone you know who can take action to help them...

If I can just be honest, I'm getting pretty sick and tired of people who claim to be passionate about things like "social justice" - especially those in my generation... my peers... they talk the talk, but when push comes to shove and the opportunity to serve presents itself - they are absent.

There are people all over our local community in Tacoma (or your local community if you don't live near me) and all the way across the globe in South Africa who could use a break, a hand up (not a hand out, but a hand up to reach the next level in their life - whatever that means to them at the time)...

What are you DOING about it? I'm doing my best to do my part, and I know that I can do better.

What is your part to play? Are you playing it? If so - AWESOME! If not, why not?