Greetings in Jesus’ powerful and wonderful name!

This month, believers all over the world will be celebrating Christmas! But right now, the world is in deep trouble in many respects, and that is why it is important to remember that Jesus came to seek, to save, to redeem, and to restore. If we ever needed a saving, redeeming, restorative message, it is right now. And that, my friend, is really the reason why Jesus appeared as a baby in a manger in Bethlehem 2,000 years ago!

But before I go any further, I want to say THANK YOU to our partners for all you do as a friend and partner with our ministry. I never used the word “partner” lightly, as I believe this word is specially reserved for people who really take “part” in this work of God. Because of those who come alongside and partner with us — and because of the anointing of the Spirit and grace of God — we are able to take the trusted teaching of God’s Word to the ends of the earth! People’s lives are being changed, saved, and strengthened because of what we are doing together, and Denise and I, our family, and our ministry team are so thankful for your vital role in what God has called us to accomplish.

*[If you started reading this from your email, begin reading here.]

In my teaching letter last month, I shared with you the prophetic word God gave me for 2025 and the last part of 2024. Keep that word in your heart and mind as we sail through the rough waters of this end-time age. God has given us everything we need to be victorious in Christ regardless of what is happening in the storm-tossed society around us. Let’s do all we can to rescue the perishing and to care for those who are in need of strengthening! (You can access my November teaching letter by going to renner.org.)

Let me also remind you that right now we are offering my book Christmas — The Rest of the Story at renner.org. You may have already ordered a copy in the past, but if not, this is a book that will really make this Christmas season more meaningful to you!

As we ponder the meaning of Christmas this month, I want to focus on the saving, redeeming, and restoring power of Jesus Christ. Let me begin by telling you a true story. Maybe you’ve heard it before, but it is worth repeating because it paints such a profound picture of the good things Jesus wants to do in your life and mine.

Many decades ago, Denise and I found an old apartment in a building constructed in 1898 that was perfect for our family (back when we lived in Riga, Latvia, before we moved to Moscow). This apartment was located in a once-elegant building in Riga’s most prestigious neighborhood — that is, a building that was elegant before the Bolshevik Revolution. But in the earlier Soviet years, apartments like this one were confiscated and converted into communal flats. In the case of our apartment, this once majestic space had been divided into eight tiny apartments for eight families that shared one kitchen and one toilet!

The people who lived there over a period of nearly 55 years had no respect whatsoever for this architectural treasure. Their total lack of care was most obvious in the bathroom. As men used the bathroom over the years, they had missed the toilet so many thousands of times that the acidic effect of the urine had literally burned a hole through the heavy flooring big enough to see straight through it into the apartment below! It was shameful to see what had happened to this once-luxurious apartment where an elite class of people had formerly lived.

As I walked through that deteriorated apartment, I could see hints of old beauty that somehow still remained. I could see that under years of botched paint jobs, each room was adorned with massive moldings that went all the way around the ceilings. Several of the rooms contained formerly spectacular ceramic fireplaces, but the condition of these fireplaces left me aghast. This once-grandiose residence now only boasted of collapsed ceilings, crumbling plaster, and mold that had spread over large sections of the walls. To top it off, hooligans had painted derogatory words and nasty phrases all over the walls throughout the apartment.

Because the apartment was so trashed, no one else wanted it, but we knew this was our apartment, so we purchased it and went to work restoring it. Dirt, grime, filth, and trash was heaped in huge piles in every room, but we knew that this place was restorable if we would be willing to do what was necessary to bring it back to its former glory. Many times, when I looked at the work required to restore that apartment, it made me reflect on the words of John 10:10, where Jesus told us that Satan always attempts to take what is good and ruin it. But whatever Satan has tried to spoil, Jesus has the power to reverse!

Finally, after almost one year of nonstop work, that dilapidated apartment was amazingly restored to its original glory. The process was long and painful, but the results were breathtaking, and Denise and I were thrilled that we had invested the time and energy to undertake this project. It was almost impossible to believe that this formerly neglected, run-down, decrepit, decayed apartment had become our lovely home — a home we would live in for years before we finally moved to Moscow. But because we were willing to accept the challenge of the task and painstakingly undertake the process of restoring this property, we were rewarded with something very glorious and magnificent that eventually emerged from a ravaged, wasted, and devastated state.

The restoration work on that apartment made me think of Luke 19:10, “For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.” That word “lost” is derived from the Greek word appolumi, and it conveys the idea of something ruined, wasted, trashed, devastated, or destroyed. It’s the same word used for the Destroyer — one of the New Testament names to describe Satan’s demented nature.

The words “to seek” are a translation of the Greek word zeteo, which depicts a search so intense that it could be likened to an investigation for something. It tells us that Jesus has put forth and is putting forth His best efforts to actively seeking to save and restore whatever Satan has tried to steal, kill, or destroy.

The word “save” is translated from the Greek word sodzo, which mainly implies rescue, such as a rescue from a raging sea, rescue from an illness, rescue from immediate danger, and so forth. Inherent in this type of “rescue” is one’s return to safety and soundness. Day after day as we worked on that apartment, I thought, “Just as we took on the task to restore this apartment, rescue it from destruction, and return it to a state of normalcy, Jesus wants to rescue and return us to a state of normalcy, safety, and recovery!” But what Jesus did for us — and continues to do in us — isn’t just a salvage operation. It’s a full-scale rescue that results in a redemptive and fully restorative operation.

Someone might say, “Even if Jesus works mightily in my life, it seems that some things will probably never be like they were before the effects of sin and disobedience made a mess of things.”

But I want you to know that when Jesus’ restorative work is complete, it does not leave you a second-rate, dumbed-down version of something that used to be better! You may be different than you used to be, but your memories of the past are not always realistic. Those memories are usually tainted to look better than they really were. In Christ, you are filled with the potential of the Holy Spirit inside you, and the truth is that you are not a weaker, substandard version of what you were before. You’re stronger, better, and greatly improved because of what Jesus has done to rescue, to redeem, and to restore your heart and life to a state of wholeness in Him!

Although we never saw in all its glory the original apartment that was built in 1898, as I compared what we had restored to what we first found when we were considering it as a place to live, I never felt or thought that the original was better. The new version was simply stunning! It’s amazing that a horrible place with a “urine hole” that went right through the floor could once again be beautiful. But to accomplish that task required faith, imagination, hard work, and a lot of prayer. It didn’t happen overnight. It was a daily effort over a year’s time. But with all our efforts, faith, prayer, and the help of others, the results were breathtaking!

I’m sure that if the original owners in 1898 had seen what we restored from such a decrepit, fallen state, they wouldn’t have thought it was a second-rate version. It may have been different, but what came out of that restoration process was still a home of great beauty and value, as was the home that had been exquisitely created in the beginning.

And right now, Jesus is seeking to perform a rescue operation in every area of your life where Satan has attempted to bring devastation and ruin. That is actually the message of Christmas! He came to seek and save that which was lost! And it doesn’t matter how the destruction occurred — whether it was due to your own neglect, to the actions of others, to circumstances, or to an attack of Satan himself — Jesus is still pursuing you for your rescue, your safety, and your recovery! And if you will participate with Jesus, it will speed up the restoration process.

If we participate with Jesus in what He is trying to restore in our lives, the process will speed up, and He will restore each of us to the wholeness He originally intended for our lives.

And this doesn’t apply just to us! Jesus is also seeking to rescue those around us who desperately need rescuing. Don’t give up on them, because rescue operations are Jesus’ specialty!

Jesus appeared as a baby in a manger in Bethlehem 2,000 years ago, but His purpose in coming to seek and to save that which was lost is still ongoing today — and that means He wants to release His fullest power to save and restore whatever the enemy has tried to take from you or from those you love. His power was, is, and will always be active for those who release their faith in Him to put His restorative power to work!

I am so thankful for all that Jesus has done in my life — and I know that you are thankful for what He has done for you. This month would be a great time to use the Christmas season — and the message of Jesus coming to the earth to save and restore us — to share with family and friends in need of the Lord. This month is a God-given opportunity to reach them, so don’t miss the opportunity!

Before I close, I want to remind you that if you need prayer, we are here for you. Just reach out to us by calling 1-800-742-5593 or send us your prayer need at prayer@renner.org. I promise that as soon as we hear from you, we will fervently pray on your behalf. First John 5:14 says that if we pray according to God’s will, He will hear us, and as a result, you’ll have the requests you made of Him. So we’ll pray with you according to the promises of God’s Word, and we’ll believe with you for Jesus to do exactly what needs to be done! So please let us know how we can pray for you!

One last word: Please pray for us as well. God has put many responsibilities on our plate to reach people with the Gospel and with the trusted teaching of the Bible. We are giving it our all, but it requires every ounce of our faith and a lot of finances to get it all done. God is faithful, and He has given us the most faithful partners who are so vital and important to us. But we ask you to pray with us for increase, as there are so many people waiting to be reached with the message God has given us!

Denise and I pray you have a wonderful Christmas season!

We are your brother and sister, friends, and partners in Jesus,

Rick and Denise Renner
along with Paul, Philip, and Joel Renner and our entire ministry team