Our theme for Advent this year is, “The Gifts We Give.” During this time of year, it is commonplace to hear complaints about how commercialized Christmas has become. We talk about how we want to focus on the real meaning of Christmas rather than spending money. But in the end, we always end up spending an inordinate amount of time fighting the crowds or surfing the internet in search of the perfect gift. So maybe instead of fighting the idea of gifts, we need to embrace them. Not so much in the Black Friday sense, but by returning to the original gifts given at Christmas. Each Sunday for the next three weeks, we will examine one of the gifts of the Magi presented to Jesus at his birth and consider how these gifts speak to the gifts we can offer to Christ as well. We begin this Sunday with the gift of gold. This Sunday also begins the journey of our traveling Joseph and Mary who will visiting homes in our congregation leading up to our Christmas Eve service. Join us for our social hour at 9 this Sunday and for our worship service at 10.