This weekend at GCC I’ll begin a new teaching series called “Silent Night.”  Actually we’ll be talking about 146,000 silent nights- basically the 400 years of silence between the Old and New Testaments.  God ends his conversation with Israel with the words of Malachi 4:5-6 and then, 400 years later, picks right up where he left off, when an angel shows up to an old priest and speaks the words of Luke 1:16-17!  Imagine, 400 silent nights; no communication from God, no word, nothing.

Was God ignoring them because they had ignored him?  Was he turning his heart from them because they had turned their hearts from him?  Is that really the nature of God?  For 4,000 years, primarily through prophets, God was constantly speaking to his people, and then, with the final words of Malachi, he has nothing more to say!  Why does God stop talking to you… or does he?  Is God still present even though you feel like he’s a million miles away?  Does he hear your prayers even when, seemingly, there’s no response?

Hopefully, this new teaching series will answer those, and perhaps other similar questions as we explore the close of the Old Testament and the new beginning of the New Testament with the birth and ministry of Jesus Christ.  Part 1 “Do You Hear What I Hear?” begins this weekend, Dec. 10/11, 5:30 pm and 9:00 & 10:30 am.