For All People |Hope For All People | Pastor Jeremy DeWeerdt

♪ 2025 was a year of God-sized vision and kingdom impact through City First Church. One thing is for certain, God was so faithful. ♪ Because of your generosity, countless lives are transformed here at home, across the nation, and around the world. ♪ Through Legacy, we focus on five key areas of impact, our Legacy Lanes. Each lane represents a way we partner with God to bring hope, restore lives, and make an eternal difference in Jesus' name. ♪ Through Local Missions, our vision to see cities full of hope and people full of purpose comes alive in a powerful way. This is where faith becomes action and hope becomes tangible. This year, that looked like providing food for families through Second Saturday Serve and ongoing food distributions, blessing under-resourced students with backpacks and Christmas gifts, and hosting our annual Night to Shine, a prom night for individuals with special needs. ♪ We're also advancing empowerment efforts in the 13th Ward of Rockford, restoring dignity, equipping people for opportunity,

and declaring the good news of Jesus. Here are just a few of the highlights. ♪ Because of you, we're meeting both the practical and spiritual needs of our community in life-changing ways. This summer, one way we did that was through our annual Backpack Drive, equipping students with backpacks full of supplies for the entire school year. And this year, we hit our goal. Together, we provided 2,700 backpacks to students in 18 schools across Cape Coral, Janesville, and Rockford regions. That's 2,700 kids walking into class with the tools that they need and the reminder that God sees them, loves them, and has a plan for their lives. ♪ Every Christmas, we have the joy of partnering with local schools to make the season brighter for students in need. Because of your immense generosity, over 3,000 children across locations received Christmas gifts and experienced the lasting hope of Jesus. We are excited that you guys said you first came out to do the toy drive and pass out toys. They are so excited, and we are so fortunate and so blessed. We had some kids today who won't even open them because they want to take them home

and put them under the tree. We have kids today who told us they don't even have a tree, so this is absolutely amazing. Words can't explain the joy I know I feel and our staff feel. This is the most awesome feeling because it means so much, and we really appreciate it. ♪ Through our local Missions Lane, City First Church is committed to feeding those who are hungry and those who are in great need. Because of your generosity and the consistent partnerships with our local organizations, we've been able to feed 11,565 people. Since 2020, we as a church have distributed more than 3.6 million pounds of food. As City First, we are determined to be part of the rescue, bringing hope, meeting needs, and impacting generations one life at a time. ♪ Through national missions, your generosity brought life-changing hope in desperate moments. When wildfires ravaged California and floods devastated Texas, City First Church supported boots on the ground with compassion and the tangible love of Christ. From fighting against human trafficking

through Zoe International to empowering communities nationwide, your generosity fuels God's love across this nation. And through Convoy of Hope, thousands upon thousands received critical aid, tangible hope, and the promise of Jesus' love, proving your giving doesn't just meet needs, it changes eternity. ♪ Hey, Pastor Jeremy and Jen, and everyone at City First Church. Thank you for your generosity. your faithful support and partnership this year. Because of your sacrificial generosity, together we empowered over 61,000 women and girls with hope for a brighter future. We trained over 39,000 farmers in agricultural best practices to help them feed their own families and communities. We responded to 99 US and international disasters and humanitarian crises, bringing hope to people on their worst day. And together we fed over 639,000 children every school day in 40 different countries around the world. That's a legacy of hope that City First is building every single day. So on behalf of every farmer trained, every woman and girl in power, every disaster survivor, and every child fed, thank you. Through World Missions, we partner with 23 missionaries

bringing the gospel worldwide, from Indonesia to Ecuador, Mexico to Moldova, Thailand and beyond. Your faithfulness plants churches, feeds the hungry, provides medical aid, and clean water to people that need it and shares, most importantly, the good news of Jesus. Over four years ago, our family returned for our second missionary term in the Andes Mountains of Ecuador. We landed back to our beloved home, tucked high above the city, to find a country still rocked by a global pandemic, increasing drug cartel activity, rising suicides, and a landscape of unrest. Through the opening of our home and setting our table, we've had countless opportunities to share the gospel and lay prayerful hands on those who are sick spiritually, emotionally, and physically. We've had open doors of opportunity to proclaim the good news of Jesus, to abuse mothers and children, to young men sentenced to incarceration, to Muslim friends without family, and our beloved disabled and special needs community. Joshua and Kerri Willey here. We just wanna thank you for your partnership in prayer and support as we build churches for the unreached and overlooked in the Andes Mountains of Ecuador. We're grateful to be sent out by individuals and churches

that help us continue our work to establish the church among people and places where the church doesn't exist. Thank you. City First Leadership College is raising up the next generation to know Jesus, to live with purpose, and to impact the world. This year we celebrated our growing partnership with Southeastern University, making City First Leadership College fully accredited. Students are equipped through education and hands-on training with a love for the local church so that they are ready to lead in the future. Through building and expanding our community, through building and expansion, the reach of City First Church is multiplying, creating spaces, opportunities, and ministries where countless lives can encounter Jesus. Through City First Anywhere, our global community continues to grow with over 65 million views this year alone, and we're reaching people in more than 2,300 cities and 128 countries, from living rooms to workplaces to coffee shops, Jesus is showing up and he's changing lives, writing brand new stories. And through our partnership with God Behind Bars, the impact is stretching even further. We've seen over 885,000 streams through the Pando app and more than 1,200 individuals who have made the decision to follow Jesus. Your generosity is reaching farther

than you could ever imagine. You guys ready? Smile. He's been coming ever since he was a baby and he used to ride my shoulders around through here and now he's, there he is, all grown up. Made the decision probably like two or three years ago, but my buddy Avery was kind of working on his journey, so kind of wanted to wait on him, and then he finally decided he was ready, and then I was like, okay, let's do it. So I'm excited to be a part of this journey. Wanted to wait on him, and then he's finally decided he was ready, and then now we got Ethan who's joining along with us. Now we're ready to go get baptized. Hey guys, congratulations everybody. Seriously, what a great day. It's gonna be amazing. How do I feel? I'm excited for them guys. I mean, it's like I told you, it's humbling. It really is, it's humbling, you know. To see where he's come from, to where he's at, and these guys too, and him bringing them, you know, along. So, it's good. 2025 has been a mile marker year. We celebrated 720 people who took their next step of faith through water baptism, declaring that their old life is gone and a new life in Jesus has begun. Lives forever changed in the name of Jesus. Across all our ministries and locations, our mission is simple and unwavering, to introduce

everyone to Jesus and teach them to follow him. This year alone, we are celebrating 3,033 people who have decided to make Jesus the leader and forgiver of their lives, making heaven more crowded. The local church is truly the hope of the world, God's plan A for his rescue. It was created to shine the light of Jesus, to bring hope to a hurting and broken world and to call people home to their heavenly father. So thank you so much, City First. We will never know on this side of eternity what truly has happened as we join together in the name of Jesus. All right, come on, City First. Let's just stand to our feet for a moment. I think we need to give Jesus all the praise and all the glory for what we just saw, because that is not because of people. That is because of a king who came at Christmas, who died on a cross for us, who loves us, who saves us. Lord, we just thank you. Lord, we take a moment and we say, God, you deserve all the glory. That God, this isn't because of a church, it is because of a God that is real, who still saves, who still redeems, who heals, who rescues, who gives us freedom. So Lord, we just take a moment and we say, everything that has happened this year, everything that your church has done, it is because of you, Jesus. And we love you and we give you all the praise in Jesus' name. And everybody said, amen. Come on, one more time. Can we get praise? Oh, you can do better than that. At all locations. Come on, let's give him praise. We thank you. We worship you.

We love you. In Jesus' name. Amen. Amen. Come on, city first. That's exciting. You may go ahead and have a seat. Turn to the person next to you and say, praise God. Praise God. Well, you know, as you know, this weekend and next weekend are our legacy offering weekends. This legacy weekend that we celebrate every year here at City First. And the reason we do this is because we celebrate, first of all, what God has done. Secondly, is that we give in expectation for what he is going to do in the next year. And so you received a legacy booklet that is on your seat at every in-person location. I just want you to take that for a moment. We're not going to go through the whole thing, because quite honestly, there's so much in here. We could take literally an hour to go through this or more. And I want to say this, too. This is barely scratching the surface as to what God has done at his church here at City First. Like, we just are highlighting what he has done. There's so much more than we could fit in a booklet or a report. But, you know, because of your giving and because of your prayers and because you have a heart for the house, some amazing things have happened. We have had over 3,000 documented decisions for Jesus. Come on, give that a huge round of applause, right? On top of that, I have an updated number for baptisms, because when we printed this book, it was 720. But now, ladies and gentlemen, it is 821.

There's been more than 100 people that have been baptized since the printing of this book even at our locations. We have seen something special, 431 children. and youth this year give their lives to Jesus. That's huge because we are to train up children in the way that they should walk, right? And last thing is this. We saw a 38% increase in in-person Easter attendance. That means at our physical locations. 38% year over year from 25 to 24. I mean, that is huge. That is massive. And so I want you to know there is great things happening that God is doing at his church. In this legacy report, this is only a snapshot. It is only a snapshot. And so take this booklet home with you, all right? Take it home with you. It is yours. Over the next week, go over it. And just know that as we give today, this weekend, and for some of us, you wanna give next weekend, that's fine. As we give, we are giving so that people find hope in Jesus. In this booklet, every number is a person. And every person is a soul. And every soul has an eternity. So as you look at these numbers, don't just go, wow, that's a big number. No, that's a person.

That's a soul. That's an eternity. Do you understand that? And we are not building buildings or ministries. We are building stories for all eternity. That is why we do it. We do it because heaven matters. Heaven matters. And you know what? I received about a month ago this letter, this story from probably a six-year-old girl. I'm not sure exactly how old she was, but handed it to one of the volunteers and said, could you give this to Pastor Jeremy? I wanna show it to you. First of all, on one page, there is this wonderful picture of our auditorium. And if you notice there, I mean, you got your person on the keys, you got your guitar players, your little drums over here. I don't know if you can notice, but over here in the corner, there's somebody going, hi, God. But it was the back that really caught my heart. And this is what she wrote me. She said this, church is the best place in town. Everyone should visit it. You will see all kinds of love, giving, offering, singing, God and people.

You can learn about God, offering people from the past. There is a lot to learn about God. If you have not been to the church in Rockford, Illinois, where she attends, you are missing out. Everyone knows it is the best place in town. Everyone knows it is the best place in town. If you're watching from Cape right now, everyone knows it's the best place in town. If you're watching in Janesville, everyone knows it is the best place in town. See, this little girl has a new story in Jesus and has a new future. And it's a new future for generations to come and a new eternity. See, Christmas is all about God giving his world a new story. It's December, it's December. And so we have this brand new Christmas series. You know, the first announcement of Christmas took place when, you know, thousands of years ago, when the birth of Jesus was announced on the backside of a desert, right outside of a little sleepy town called Bethlehem. And it goes like this. History recounts in Luke chapter two. And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the Lord shone around them. And they were terrified as you and I would be.

But the angel said to them, do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy. Listen, for all the people, all the people. Today we begin a brand new series called For All People. For all people, because Christmas is for all people, whether they realize it or not. It is more than trees, it's more than presents, it's more than Santa. Christmas means we can have hope eternal. Why? Because Christmas means that Jesus came to rescue us. And there is a supernatural hope that can only come from Jesus. Why was Jesus so sought after? Not only when you read the Bible, but when you even read secular historians of the day. They will tell you that People walked for miles to hear Him. They sat in large groups all day by the thousands to listen. They climbed up in trees. They pushed through crowds. They walked around lakes. They tore off roofs to be able to see Him. They did everything possible. No other person in the last 2,000 years has altered history like Jesus Christ. No one comes even close. You can love Him, you could hate Him, but you cannot ignore Him.

Some people have dedicated their entire life to stamping out the name of Jesus, to prove that He was a fraud, to try to stop His church, to discredit His name. Yet what's interesting is literally this very weekend, there are billions, with the letter B, billions of people that are talking about Jesus in churches, in homes, in cathedrals, in places all over the world, and yet we don't even remember the names of those that tried to stop Him. Why did so many people try to get close to Jesus? Why have so many people had faith in Jesus over the last 2,000 years? Why are so many people even today trusting Jesus around the world? I believe the main reason is this. I believe the main reason is the hope that Jesus could change their present life. That they're like going, is this Jesus who He said He was? Can He change my life? To the blind man, He had the hope that he could see. To those that are brokenhearted, the hope that they could have real joy. To the person right now that is full of shame, the hope of forgiveness. To the person questioning life, the hope of answers. To the sick person, the hope of a healing. To the lost person, the hope of being found.

You see, Jesus, yes, was wise, but there were a lot of wise people that have lived over the last 2,000 years. And yes, Jesus was super kind, but you know there's been thousands upon thousands of kind people that have lived in the last 2,000 years. And yes, Jesus was full of love, but there have been countless loving people in the last 2,000 years that have lived. All of these characteristics are true about Jesus, but there's a difference. Jesus offered supernatural hope because He was the Son of God. That sets Him apart. Everyone else died, He came back to life again. And because He came back to life, we can have hope. Hope in Him. He didn't just offer solutions to life. Jesus offers a new life. He wasn't just offering a religion. The world has plenty of those. Jesus was offering real hope. And people did whatever they could to find Jesus because when they found Him, they found forgiveness and they found a real new life. And it is the same today in 2025. One thing I've noticed in the last 30 plus years of walking with people on their faith journeys as a pastor, I've noticed that the holidays tend to amplify everything. In other words, if there's loneliness,

it's amplified during the holidays. If there is tension in a family, it is amplified during the season. If there is stress, it's amplified. Financial pressure, amplified. Hurt, amplified. I was just talking to somebody this week who told me that there's significant hurt in their extended family because there is a parent who refuses to talk to a adult child over a disagreement over politics. And this person told me, Christmas dinner is gonna be challenging. You see, relational tension, difficult circumstances and unwanted problems can all interrupt this Christmas season. But the original Christmas was an interruption of hope. It wasn't an interruption of difficulty, it was an interruption of hope. The angel announced to the shepherds who were really afraid, who were living in their struggled life, the angel said this, I bring you good news. Good news, why? Because Jesus has come to save the world. Hope is not found in perfect circumstances. Hope is found in a perfect savior. It is not circumstances coming in the line. You may be facing some difficult, unwanted circumstances right now, but I will tell you there is a Savior

who is perfect, who gives hope. But how does he give hope? I mean, tangibly, how does he give hope? Well, the first reason is this. The first way that he gives hope is he gives hope because we're born again. Now that may seem elementary. And maybe for some of you that have been in church your whole life, you're like, well, I know that. Well, during this Christmas season, I want you to be reminded of it, that you know what, you have been born again. You have received a new life because of Jesus, and that gives you hope. In fact, it says in 1 Peter 1, God has caused us to be born again, what? To a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. In other words, I want to remind all of us here at City First and everybody watching, if you made Jesus the leader and the forgiver of your life, guess what, your sin is no longer counted against you. You deserve, I deserve to pay a price for our sin. We deserve to be punished for the wrongs that we've done, but yet because of Jesus, we have hope because our sin record has been erased. Number two, we hope because we are free from guilt and shame, guilt and shame. I love what it says in Romans chapter five. Hope does not put us to shame

because God's love has been poured into our hearts. Some of you are dealing with shame right now. You're dealing with guilt. You're dealing with regret because of decisions that you've made in your past. But I want to tell you, Christmas means that we don't have to walk around burdened with guilt and shame. In fact, the enemy will always say shame on you, but because of Jesus, God says shame off of you. Because of the cross, you have been completely forgiven and you can walk without shame and guilt. Third thing that he gives hope in is we hope because we have eternal life with God. Now I know it seems super simple. Some of you are like going, man, this is kind of basic stuff but I want you to be reminded this Christmas season that this life and the struggles that you and I are personally in and the challenges that you're personally facing and the mountain that is in your path, this is not the end of the story. In fact, what we face here is only a little bit of the story. In other words, we have eternal life because of Jesus. I love what Paul said to Titus. He said, in hope of eternal life, which God, who never lies, promised. The God who never lies promised that you and I will have eternal life. Do you realize that someday, someday,

the sicknesses that you battle will no longer be there? You'll be completely healed. Do you know that someday, the pain that you struggle with will no longer be there? You will be in a place where there's pain free, no tears, there will be joy. It'll be in the presence of our Savior. The confusion, the problems, the struggle, the stress, the challenges will all be gone. Now I know some of you are like going, I know all this but do you know it? Do you sense it? Christmas means we can have eternal life with our Savior someday. It means this, those that have gone before us, we'll see them again. I know you miss that family member. You miss that friend. And because they knew Jesus and because you know Jesus, you will see them again. The fourth thing that we can do is we can hope because Jesus is with us. That's the whole story of Christmas, by the way. The whole story of Christmas. If you think about it, in its simplest form is that God came to earth in the person of Jesus. Not a million miles away looking at us going, y'all better live right. But rather instead, he came into the midst of our brokenness.

He walked the same earth that you and I walk. He dealed with the same temptation. He dealt with the same temptations as you and I. But instead, he gave us the ability to have hope and to overcome. In fact, Jesus is quoted as saying this in Matthew. He said, I am with you always. Everybody say always, ready, one, two, three, always. He's not with you sometimes. He's not with you just when you feel it. He's not with you just at church. He's not with you just when you're doing good. He's with you always, always, even to the end of the age. In other words, that's a way of saying to the end of the world, all right, that you are not alone. You are not navigating this life alone. And I wanna tell you this Christmas season, these four simple, almost seems elementary, but life-changing, profound realities are what gives us the ability to have hope. Do you know this? And some of you need to hear this, and especially those of you that are here for the first time, God loves you. He really does. You can't earn it, you don't deserve it, you can't work your way into it, all right? Secondly, God is for you. He really is. He loves you, He is for you.

And number three, He is with you. Even when you don't acknowledge Him, He is with you. Let's sit in that for a moment. God loves us, He's for us, He's with us. God came to our rescue by sending His Son, Jesus. He forgave us, He loves us. But how did Jesus practically come to your rescue? I mean, really, because Jesus lived 2,000 years ago is when He walked the face of the earth. And He came back to life again, and He ascended to heaven, so He's still alive, but He's not physically on the earth like He was 2,000 years ago. There were hundreds, even thousands of people who saw Him, even people who didn't acknowledge He was who He said He was that even wrote about Him. So He lived, both secular and Bible historians said it. And thousands of people followed Him. And here's the thing, how did He come to your rescue now though? You didn't live back then, you live now. This is centuries later. How did He find you? How did He rescue you? Well, here's how. God used His church and God used His people. That's how you got rescued. God through His church, God through people. God's people, somebody was willing to show up on the scene with a message of hope when you were hopeless. When you found Jesus, you might've been lost in shame

and someone came and told you about Jesus. Before you found Jesus, maybe you were weary in your addictions, controlled by substances or something else and somebody told you about church. Maybe you were overwhelmed in relational struggle, your marriage was blowing up and someone said, hey, I'm gonna pray for you, God can rescue your marriage. You were striving in your pursuit of something that makes you happy. You were looking, looking, looking and never finding. And someone said, the answer is Jesus. You're full of pride, maybe you had depression, maybe you're searching for fulfillment, maybe you're trying to find purpose, whatever it was, what did God do for you? I'm not talking to the person next to you, I'm talking for you. Well, I'll tell you what He did. Someone showed up, someone showed up and introduced you to Jesus. It may have been a person that you knew, maybe not, I don't know, but you were invited to City First Church. Maybe you watched a sermon online. You sit there and go, well, I saw a Google ad. Somebody created that ad, somebody paid for that ad. That was not a mistake, that was not a coincidence. God orchestrated somebody to reach out to you, to tell you that you can have hope in the person of Jesus and you get to have heaven as your home someday.

You were in prison at the Hardy Correctional Center and somebody invited you to the Saturday service. You came and you got saved. Your family was breaking apart, but you were invited to the Women's Original Conference and you found Jesus and now your family has found Jesus. You were feeling stressed about being laid off and somebody told you City First gives away food and it got you curious about this church and about the God that we worship. You were relying too much on alcohol to get you through the day and somebody invited you to a men's life group and you found freedom. Maybe you were carrying anxiety and depression and somebody invited you to a freedom group and you discovered that you don't have to live with that. You can have a freedom and a joy and a light in your soul that comes from God. See, all of us today are in this place because somebody showed up in our lives in the name of Jesus. That's why we're here. You didn't just show up. Even if you did just show up today, trust me, there was something that got you here, right? That's why we have Legacy Weekends every December. That's exactly why we do it. We participate in the Legacy End of Year Miracle Offering because we are saying we're gonna give

so that other people can find hope the way that we found hope. See, somebody paid a price to share Jesus with you. And now what we say is we're gonna give our first and best gift of the Christmas season to God through City First so that we can spread the good news to even more people because hope has come to us, but hope cannot stay with us. It has to be given away. I don't wanna be selfish with the hope that God has given to me. I wanna do whatever I can to share the hope that I have personally experienced. I want thousands of other people to experience it. And when people are lost, God's people show up with hope and with generosity. It's never convenient. It's never easy. It's not supposed to be. It is a sacrifice because someone sacrificed so that you could be here. And in the same way, now it's our turn. It's all about eternity. It's all about the fact that heaven is real and hell is real and God's purpose in this life is real. And as we close, we're gonna receive our Legacy End of Year Miracle Offering, but I want us to do it with this in mind. We are now giving hope that we have once received. Last year, you gave and when you gave,

this is what's happened. Think about it. Look at all the people. Look at all the changed lives. Look at all the expressions of God's love in a hopelessly broken world. It's because in 2024, in a Legacy Miracle Offering, people said, I wanna give the hope that I've received. Now, the book for 2026 is blank, it's unwritten. It's our moment. It's our moment. It's our moment to say, okay, what are we gonna do? How many more people can we feed? How many more places can we send missionaries? How many more efforts through our Empowerment Center? How many more ways can we reach neighborhoods and people and ministries that can minister to people? You see, this offering basically says, we're gonna be the rescue now. Our offering is our way of saying this. Thank you, Jesus, for giving me hope. Now, I give so others can find hope too. That's what we're really doing here. People need the Lord. See, first, people need the Lord. That's more than a cliche. That's more than a simple statement. People need the Lord. By the tens of thousands in Northern Illinois,

Southern Wisconsin, Southwest Florida, God behind bars on mission fields all over the world, in our online campuses, people need the Lord. The worship team is, at my request, I'm having them sing a song that states this very clearly. People need the Lord. Because when we give, I want it to be a reminder. We're giving so that hope can be shared. And this is all I'm gonna ask you to do. I'm gonna ask you just to be a part. You say, really? Yeah, because here's the reason why. It's not about equal giving. It's not about giving the same amount. It's about all of us giving something. All of us participating with everything that God has given to us and blessed us with. What portion of that can we give so that people will someday land in heaven? See, this song is gonna be sung and there's gonna be ways to give that are on the screens. And you can give electronically through the QR code. Or if you wanna give a physical gift, you can prepare that now. And the offering team is gonna come and pass the offering containers. But City First, let's do this. Let's bring hope to thousands of people in the next year, in 2026. Let's be a part of God's kingdom work.

Come on. ♪ Every day they pass me by ♪ I can see it in their eyes Empty people filled with care Headed who knows where On they go through private pain Living fear to fear Laughter hides their silent cries Only Jesus hears People need the Lord People need the Lord When will we realize People need the Lord We are called to take His light To a world where wrong sins rise What could be too great a cost For sharing love to one who's lost People need the Lord When will we realize People need the Lord People need the Lord When will we realize That we must give our lives When will we realize That we must give our lives People need the Lord People need the Lord What a privilege it is to be able to give back a portion of what you've given to us So that, God, people can find the hope in you Lord, as we give

Lord, this is a solemn and a sacred offering And we ask now that, Lord God, you would multiply your church All over this world Lord, I pray that you would reach people That you would rescue them Those that are struggling Those that are The Bible talks about wandering around in blindness Trying to find hope and not finding it God, use your church And use these gifts To fill your heaven Lord, I pray that 2026 would be a watershed year for your church I pray revival would break out in schools In communities, in neighborhoods Lord, I pray that as we give away food That people would understand That we're doing it in the name of Jesus And the hope of their life is in you Lord, I pray that missionaries Would be given favor and protection all over your world And that, Lord, they would take your good news, your gospel Into unreached areas And people would be saved Lord, thank you for what you are doing We are honored to be a part of it We're humbled to be a part of it We thank you Jesus, we thank you. With every head bowed and every eye closed, I know I'd be remiss if I didn't give an opportunity

after talking about the hope of Jesus to not give an opportunity for people to receive Jesus. So if you are here with every head bowed and every eye closed at any location, online in your living room or right here in Rockford, Illinois, and you say, I've never given my life to Jesus and I want to, I wanna make him the leader and the forgiver of my life because I want the hope that you're talking about. I want forgiveness and I want heaven as my home someday. If that's you, you're not joining a church today, you're joining the family of God. So if you say, I would like to pray a prayer and receive Jesus as my Lord and Savior, just raise your hand real quickly. Yeah, hands are up everywhere. Let's go ahead and put our hands down and let's all say this prayer together. You can repeat it after me and realize that God's listening to your voice. You're not repeating just a prayer after me, you're praying a prayer from your heart and God is listening to you because he loves you and he created you. So let's go ahead and let's repeat this prayer after me. Dear Jesus, I come to you today and I declare you to be my Lord and my leader. Forgive me of all my sin, come into my heart, be my Savior.

Thank you for dying for me. I wanna live for you. God, thank you for loving me with an unconditional love. Thank you for Christmas and it means you are with me. In Jesus' name, everybody said, amen, amen. Come on, can we give God a huge round of applause for everybody that... Wow, what an absolutely incredible message. I hope you were as encouraged as I was just seeing all that God has done in this last year was so amazing and to know that you have been a part of that makes it even better. And so if you've watched this and maybe you prayed that prayer, say, hey, you know, I wanna make Jesus a leader in the figure of my life. We wanna say congratulations. It is the greatest decision that you will ever make and we are so excited for you. And so if you made that decision, you may have a couple of questions going, well, hey, what next? What do I do now? Well, there's a couple of things that I would encourage you. Number one is let someone know. Do you have a family member, a friend, maybe a coworker, somebody that you can share with that's going on the journey of faith as well? And then secondly is to also take the QR code on the screen.

There's a free resource for New Beginning. Simply just a resource that's gonna help you go, where do I start to read the Bible? How do I pray? And those are gonna be helpful as you start this journey of faith. And then Candice has something else that's gonna help you as well. That's right. After you finish reading that New Beginning booklet, we encourage you to check out Growth Track. Growth Track is a program. You can take it in person or you can also follow along with it online. And it's designed to help you discover your God design. And it's really great. You get to find out more about the church, but also you get to find out about your giftings and how God has created you. And so it's really fun. You can go ahead and sign up for that by visiting our app or you can hop online and find out more about what Growth Track is all about. Absolutely. And just a reminder, if you need prayer for anything, you can drop it on the app. You can put it in the chat there or on our website. We have people praying throughout the week. We'd love to join our faith with yours. And then lastly is this, is would you invite somebody?

Share this with somebody. Such an incredible opportunity to hear all that God has done just in 2025, which is amazing. Send this link to somebody. Let it be an encouragement to somebody else as well. That's right. And we just encourage you to follow along with the Advent devotionals that are happening on the app throughout the week. Church doesn't have to be just on Sunday. We invite you back to that app. Have community, pray for other people. Also request prayer. And so it's gonna be a fantastic week. We love you guys. We're praying for you and we'll see you next Sunday.