Presented By Karen Tripp MS

“Karen Tripp recently served as the keynote speaker for our women’s Advent candlelight celebration, “Prepare for Jesus.”  Her Christ-centered, heartfelt message on “Receiving the Gift” was an inspiration to all.  Through personal reflection, biblical insight, and humorous anecdotes, Karen helped prepare our hearts to focus on the true meaning of the Advent season, the birth of our Savior.  Many of the women attending shared that her message enriched their celebration of Christmas.” Sharon Shearman  Director of Family Ministries, Saint Pauls Lutheran Church, Des Peres

Giving the Gift of the Christ Child: It’s that look on their face when they open the gift and you know you got it right.  Every Christmas, God is waiting for you to open up the gift of His Son.  Seize the wonder of Christmas by beholding the glory of Christ much as Elisabeth understood the glory of the unborn Christ. (Luke 1-2)  Just as the gift of a savior has been given to you, let Karen guide you towards a path for you to share that gift through this season.

Receiving the Gift of the Christ Child: Some of the most dreaded words of the Christmas season are: “I feel terrible.  I don’t have anything for you.”  Fear of uttering those words create frenzied shopping excursions in search of the perfect generic gift so you won’t be empty handed.  Yet empty handed is the only way to be when approaching the Christ child on Christmas morning.  Through a fun yet insightful look at Mary’s Magnificat (Luke 1:46-55), Karen will share how to enjoy the season with a sense of expectancy that comes by receiving the true gift of the season, Jesus.

Being the Gift of the Christ Child: The Christmas season brings a tidal wave of the trivial things in life followed by an earth shattering desire to focus on the important: the birth of our savior.   Clinging to the important and warding off the trivial is what transforms us from a breathless holiday blur into a gracious gift to those we love.  Let Karen guide you through the distractions in your life by observing the pressures on Joseph (Matthew 1-2) to look anywhere but towards the true desires of God.

Seeing the Gift of the Christ Child: Have you ever missed it?  Have you ever looked back at your Christmas season and thought, “I don’t remember seeing Jesus.”  Christmas is this glorious opportunity to look beyond the weight of expectations and the fear of coming up short and seeing- truly seeing- the gift of baby Jesus given to you.  God promised Simeon he would see the Christ child and he did.  God has promised you to see the Christ child.  Learn from Karen how through seeking, listening and stillness you may see Him as never before.

NEW! Design Your Own Christmas and Lower your Stress: Don’t let the stress of the season determine what happens to you this Holiday season.  Learn how to look at the roles of your family and the patterns of family traditions to set your own path for a happy more fulfilling Christmas.

All talks are scripture driven and include the clear message of the Gospel.  To further enhance the experience, available upon request for each topic is a take home bible study, table discussion questions and a fun, interactive game to be played in groups of 6-12.

Seeing the Christ Child through the Eyes of the Prophets: Christmas is “supposed” to be a joyous time.  Every year the expectation to make this Christmas a special, memorable experience can be difficult but some years, it feels next to impossible.  Maybe you’ve had a year of illness, job loss, financial struggle or grief.  How do you set all that aside and dive into the Christmas rush?  Learn how in the midst of immense struggles, the prophets received the joyous news of the coming Messiah.  And maybe receive joy in the midst of your struggles as well.

Seeing the Christ Child through the Eyes of the Wise Men: The Wise men did not just stroll down the street to see the King of Kings.  They left their home, spent some cash for the trip, and even planned for presents.   How did they know it was worth the trip, worth the sacrifice?  How do you know searching for the Christ Child is worth the sacrifice? Searching requires focus, sacrifice and action.  This was certainly true for the Wise men.  Discover how this Christmas how it can be true for you too.

Seeing the Christ Child through the Eyes of the Shepherds: Sometimes we receive news so good we want to tell the whole world!  That’s what the Shepherds did on that first Christmas long ago. But what about you?  Are you so thrilled by the good news of the Christ Child that you can’t wait to share it?  Rediscover that simple joy of Christmas in your own life by finding new ways the love of the Messiah can restore you, over and over again.  Now that’s good news worth sharing.

Seeing the Christ Child through the Eyes of the John the Baptist: As Christmas seems to inspire others to great levels of joy, does the season of giving leave you feeling dry and frustrated?  Sometimes the bigger we see our God the harder it is to understand the commercialism and secularism evident at Christmas.   Do you wonder “What’s God up to anyway?”   Even John the Baptist, icon of faith, had his moments of wondering what Jesus was up.  Learn how Christ reached out not only to John in his time of dismay but how Christ can reach out to you too.