Tag: Christmas

Our Hope is Found in God’s Unfailing Love

This Christmas, may you be filled with peace as we celebrate God’s everlasting love for us.

This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.

8 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.

1 John 1:5-10 (NIV)

God is light. God is love. And somehow, God chooses us every single day.

Though we cannot fully comprehend this reality, it remains true all the same. God’s character isn’t determined by our understanding of Him–for we are limited by human constraints. God will always be holy and worthy of our praise.

It is through recognizing our blind spots, our lack of understanding, and our utter brokenness that we discover our yearning for a Savior.

We cannot save ourselves, no matter how strong we become or how closely we follow the rules. But that is no slight against us, for out of His love, God created us to need Him.

God offers the perfect Savior–Jesus–with one simple request: submission to His love.

Submission to His love means laying down our own desires and asking what He wants from us, because His ways are better. It means pursuing a relationship with God, who is always there and will never abandon us. It even means acknowledging our imperfections while celebrating that we have the perfect Father in Heaven.

I won’t pretend that submission is easy. In fact, it requires great sacrifice and a transformed mind. But when we call out to God as we struggle to surrender our wills, He will give us the strength to keep going.

Christmas is about celebrating the everlasting love of our eternal Father. We gasp in wonder at the tremendous sacrifice God made by sending His only son, Jesus, to undergo the human experience and eventually die for our sins.

We are given new life through Jesus, who overcame death and will return for us someday. Though we will grieve the brokenness, injustice, and heartache of this world, our hope is anchored in the the only One who can redeem.

May you experience God’s abounding love for you and be made whole through Him. He will never forsake you, His beloved child, and He is calling you close to Him today.

Merry Christmas!

See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.

1 John 3:1-3 (NIV)

The Gift of an Understanding God

No matter what this Christmas brings, we can find joy in knowing that Jesus intentionally chose the path that draws Him closest to us.

After a difficult day in middle school, I came home and flopped on the couch. My mom wandered over and asked what was wrong. I crossed my arms and turned my back to her.

Nobody understands! I shouted.

Nobody? she mused.

NOBODY!

We often assume our problems are very unique. I thought I was the only one who ever felt left out and unseen in band class, when that certainly wasn’t the case.

Then in high school, I found myself in a similar situation when none of my friends had the same lunch schedule as me. I spent eight months out of that school year sitting alone, feeling like the loneliest person in the world.

And then one day, through divine intervention, I discovered that one of my peers had also spent the school year eating by herself. We’re still friends to this day, bonded by enjoying the last month of lunches together. And we often remorse over how we wish we would’ve reached out to each other sooner.

Because despite previous belief, somebody truly understood!

When we’re experiencing difficulties, we may believe God couldn’t possibly understand what we are going through. But consider this: Jesus intentionally came to earth as a human baby. He allowed Himself to be vulnerable. He didn’t skip the awkward puberty years. He immersed Himself in community, which came with both companionship and rejection.

While Jesus didn’t get ghosted over text or flunk a chemistry class, He experienced the core hardships and heartbreaks we also struggle with.

Bullying? Check.

False accusassions? Affirmative.

Poverty? Yes.

Physical pain? Certainly.

Grief and loss? So deeply.

Rejection? Without a doubt.

Betrayal? Definitely.

Whatever you are experiencing now, Jesus has gone through. But get this: He went through it out of His own free will. He chose to undergo the human experience in order to relate to us because He loves us that much.

Christmastime can be a season of feeling misunderstood, especially if you are wrapping up a difficult year. In fact, all the traditions and decorations–the general fluff and hype of the holiday–feel exhausting in light of personal pain.

Perhaps you don’t feel happy this Christmas, and that’s okay. You have permission to sing a little quieter, to skip the festive parties, and to express your true feelings.

But I pray that you may experience hope and peace in place of the cheaper promises of the season. The true promise, God’s promise, isn’t of temporary comfort or instant gratification.

We can have hope because He promises to be in relationship with us through all seasons, no matter how we feel or what we can offer. We can have peace because Jesus has already conquered sin, so we have nothing to be afraid of.

And you know what? We can even have joy because joy doesn’t depend on our present circumstances. Our joy comes from knowing that Jesus loves us perfectly and that love can never be broken.

Merry Christmas! ❤

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
    and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

Luke 2:8-15 (NIV)

But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. 6 Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” 7 So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir.

Galatians 4:4-7 (NIV)

 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:

6 Who, being in very nature God,
    did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
7 rather, he made himself nothing
    by taking the very nature of a servant,
    being made in human likeness.
8 And being found in appearance as a man,
    he humbled himself
    by becoming obedient to death—
        even death on a cross!

Philippians 5:5-8

Jesus: The Gift of Unconditional Love

How is our deepest need met through the promise of our Savior?

Deep down, every single one of us longs for unconditional love.

That’s why the sting of rejection or unsatisfying interactions cause us to grieve. When we experience conditional love–when people only show us love when we perform well or please them–we may feel tempted to walk away from relationships altogether.

And while we can strive to love others unconditionally, we will never be able to love perfectly on this side of Heaven. So how can our deepest need be met? How can these two opposing forces be reconciled?

Through Jesus.

But before you roll your eyes at the standard Sunday school answer, bear with me through a few ponderings. As someone who grew up in the church, it’s been ingrained in my brain that only Jesus loves us perfectly because He is God and God is Love.

But what does that really mean? How can this incredible promise come to life for us this season?

Consider these verses with me:

 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.

John 3:16-18 (NIV)

What does unconditional love mean?

For God, it meant giving up His very own Son in order to save us and be with us.

Reflect on that for a moment: Through Jesus, God gave up His very self–His very life–in order to demonstrate His love for us.

And the gift doesn’t end there.

Consider this passage with me, titled in my Bible as “Jesus Prays for All Believers”:

“My prayer is not for [my disciples] alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21 that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— 23 I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.

24 “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world.

25 “Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. 26 I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them.”

John 17:20-25 (NIV)

Through this passage, we learn that God loves us so much, He wants to be with us all the time. That’s why we are given the gift of the Holy Spirit, so that even after Jesus returned to Heaven, the Spirit resides in us to remind us of God’s love and promises. When we invite the Spirit into our lives, we are guided on the right path, comforted in affliction, and refined in godly character.

This verse in particular really stands out to me:

Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.

God loves us as much as He loves Jesus–as much as He loves His very own self.

There is truly no greater sacrifice than to die to yourself so that another may live.

No matter what mistakes you’ve made, what regrets plague your mind, what dreams you wish to pursue–God is offering you the gift of unconditional love.

You don’t have to change before receiving this love. You simply need to open your heart and accept it–and the transformative work that will follow.

Because once you receive Jesus’ love, you won’t want to stay the same. You will want to grow in the fruits of His Spirit, especially in how you love others.

When you fully recognize the unmeasurable gift of Jesus’ love, your heart’s new longing will be to worship Him.

And how do we worship Jesus?

36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”

37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’

Matthew 22:36-39

As we strive to worship Jesus with our whole selves, we must also have grace for the journey.

It’s okay if you mess up. It’s okay that you can’t love others perfectly. But take every opportunity you can to love others–not out of obligation or guilt, but because you are satisfied in Jesus’ perfect love for you.

If you’re struggling to find something to celebrate this Advent season, take a moment to experience the joy that comes in knowing that you, in whatever state you find yourself in today, are fully known and fully loved by the wonderful God who created you.

Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.

1 John 4:8

Blessed are You: The Gift of Holy Encouragement

This Advent season, how can we encourage others in a godly way?

I’ll never forget my first high school retreat when my youth pastor brought us into a circle to pray and encourage one another. The earnest words that came out of each teenager’s lips were certainly things we couldn’t have come up with on our own. The pieces of encouragement that resonated most deeply were the ones rooted in God’s word.

Close your eyes and think back to a time when someone’s words really lifted your spirits.

Christmas is a time of encouragement, which we show through appreciative cards and thoughtful gifts. We can even encourage others by taking the time to be with them and offering a hopeful presence.

There are many moments throughout the Bible when people experience or share encouragement, and one of my favorites is found in the Christmas story when Elizabeth and Mary greet each other in Luke 1: 39-45 (NIV).

39 At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, 40 where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. 

41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. 

42 In a loud voice she exclaimed: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! 43 But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? 44 As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. 45 Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!”

Notice that before Elizabeth speaks to Mary, she is filled with the Holy Spirit. Her words were not just her own; they were given to her by God himself.

But how can we encourage others as Elizabeth did?

For starters, before meeting with people, pray to the Holy Spirit for guidance on what to say. When we are open to speaking as God leads, the way we communicate with others will transform beautifully.

Now let’s focus on what the Holy Spirit says through Elizabeth.

Elizabeth begins by blessing Mary (and Jesus!), and then sharing how blessed she is to be with Mary. She expresses her gratitude and joy for their relationship. She finishes by affirming Mary in her calling and faithfulness to the Lord.

It’s easier to compliment others rather than encourage them. Compliments are often focused on superficial things, like a person’s appearance or what they are good at doing.

Encouragement comes from a deeper place because its ultimate goal is blessing others by affirming their God-given identity.

Is there anyone in your life who God is placing on your heart to encourage?

Consider both the people you see regularly, and perhaps others who have been forgotten in the past. It is such a blessing to shine God’s light through blessing others with loving words.

I pray you experience the gift of encouragement in your life this Advent season and beyond. ❤

Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.

Proverbs 16:24 (NIV)


And the words of the Lord are flawless, like silver purified in a crucible, like gold refined seven times.

Psalm 12:6 (NIV)

Silent Night: the Gift of Quiet

What if silence is meant to draw us closer to God?

Silent Night is one of my favorite Christmas hymns, perhaps because it’s usually accompanied by the warm glow of candlelight at the end of the Christmas Eve service.

But I don’t often attribute silence to Christmas. Christmas is a jolly, bubbly time filled with festive gatherings, shopping rampages, boisterous carols, and bouncing off the walls from one too many buckeye balls!

The word “silence” often comes with the connotation of loneliness, disappointment, and grief. Sometimes, it’s even used as punishment. (Were you the type of kid who was told,”Go sit in the corner until you are ready to say sorry!”?) 😉

But what if silence is a gift? A gift of love, even? A gift of love from our heavenly Father?

Consider this portion of the Christmas story with me, taken from the gospel of Luke:

Once when Zechariah’s division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God, 9 he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense.

11 Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. 12 When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. 13 But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John. 14 He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, 15 for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even before he is born. 16 He will bring back many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. 17 And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

18 Zechariah asked the angel, “How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years.”

19 The angel said to him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news. 20 And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will come true at their appointed time.”

– Luke 1: 1-9, 11-20 (NIV)

Imagine being told that your dream of becoming a parent was finally going to be fulfilled in a very miraculous way–only, you can’t audibly tell anyone, not even your spouse!

At first, God seems pretty harsh for silencing Zechariah after he asks a reasonable question. Especially when you consider Mary’s interaction with Gabriel in the following chapter:

God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, 27 to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”

29 Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. 30 But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. 31 You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”

34 “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

35 The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. 36 Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. 37 For no word from God will ever fail.”

38 “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her.

– Luke 1: 26b-38 (NIV)

Both Mary and Zechariah respond similarly to Gabriel’s messages to them. They express shock and fear, though they listen to his message before asking a logical follow-up question.

So why was Mary encouraged by Gabriel while Zechariah was reprimanded?

The Bible doesn’t explicitly tell us why, but there are a number of reasonable guesses. God knew Mary would have to overcome more obstacles by becoming Jesus’ mother than Zechariah would by becoming John the Baptist’s father, particularly due to how she would be ridiculed as a pregnant unmarried woman. Perhaps this was an act of God’s grace.

But I suspect something even deeper.

God knows each of our hearts. Maybe He knew that Mary trusted Him even as she questioned how His will would be done, while Zechariah needed more of an opportunity to grow in his faith.

But does this mean God loved Mary more than Zechariah? Absolutely not.

Being the perfect Father, God loves each of His children equally. Out of His love, He uses unique approaches based on our God-given individuality to help us grow to become the people He created us to be.

While spending nine months in silence would’ve been challenging, it offered Zechariah the chance to focus on his relationship with God. After all, God was the only one who could hear him during that time.

There are many benefits to stepping back from the chaos of this season and taking a moment to be quiet with God. It allows you to:

  • Hear God’s voice more clearly
  • Enjoy the gift of God’s presence
  • Refocus on what the season is truly all about
  • Rest so that you are refreshed and ready for reentering society again

Sometimes we choose to embrace the quiet, but other times we are sent to the silent places. God is moving even when it seems like everything is still and stagnant around us. And He is with us even when we feel utterly alone.

The best part about being alone with God is experiencing His comfort. There have been many times in my life when I’ve felt incredibly lonely, and while I am thankful that those seasons didn’t last forever, I can’t recall another time when Jesus felt nearer.

We can trust that God knows what’s best for us because even in our hardest, darkest, loneliest seasons, He still offers us the gift of hope.

I pray that if you are in a season of quiet, you can accept what Jesus is teaching you while also trusting that this season won’t last forever. If you are feeling burned out or distracted by external things, consider intentionally taking the time to be quiet and reflect on the beautiful gift of Jesus’ love. ❤

 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And He who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.

– Romans 8:26-27 (NIV)

Why Does Christmas Feel Magical?

Appreciating Christmas requires belief in the supernatural power of God.

Christmas is my favorite time of the year. The colorful lights, the uplifting music, the excuse to give loved ones presents and handwritten cards. There’s just something that feels magical about the holiday.

As Christians, it may feel sacrilegious to call anything in the natural world “magical” because of the connotations surrounding the term “magic”. If you do a quick Google search, magic is defined as “the power of apparently influencing the course of events by using mysterious or supernatural forces.”

Without getting into the darker definitions of magic, by this definition alone, I do believe Christmas has magical elements to it. Though they are far deeper, and more incredible, than the secular ideas of the magic of the season.

While I don’t believe there are flying reindeer or jolly elves delivering presents, there is definitely a supernaturalness to the true meaning of Christmas. Only as Christians, we can replace the word “magic” with the word “miracle”.

The difference between magic and miracles is that miracles require intention and care, whereas there’s a sense of spontaneity and luck associated with magic. More importantly, God is the one who orchestrates miracles and the only one with the power to make them happen. Only He is worthy of our praise.

God had been planning to send His son to save us since the beginning of the world, even foreshadowing this promise throughout history. Throughout Jesus’ ministry, He fulfilled each of the descriptions of the promised Savior from the Old Testament. This certainly required much forethought!

However, I don’t think it’s wrong to appreciate the magical feeling of Christmas. In fact, I’m not sure if we can really understand the true meaning of Christmas until we believe in the supernaturalness of it.

Let’s read through Matthew’s depiction of the Christmas story together:

18 This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. 19 Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

20 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23 “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).

24 When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. 25 But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.

~ Matthew 1:18-25

Now go back and take note of all the unnatural happenings within this story. Here are a few I noticed:

  • a virgin being with child
  • an angel of the Lord visiting Joseph through a dream
  • God taking human form
  • God wanting to be with us
  • two regular humans changing the entire trajectory of their lives in obedience to God the moment they received their callings

Christmas feels magical because it requires a belief in the supernatural, especially for Christians!

If you think believing an elderly man and his elves spend the year creating presents in the North Pole in order to deliver them all in one night is unrealistic, consider what we believe! The almighty God came down from Heaven in human flesh through an unnatural birth because He desired to be with us, His lowly creation.

Not only that, but from the moment God created this plan, He knew that He was sending His Son with a death wish. Jesus’ ultimate purpose was to die for our sins (and thankfully come back to life!) in order to break the barrier between God and man forever.

There is no greater Christmas miracle than Jesus.

What a gift it is to serve a God who loves us so wonderfully! His love is truly beyond human comprehension.

And that is what we must celebrate this season–and all year round. When we accept Jesus’ love for us, we will notice more clearly when we are being called to share that love with others. Christmas is an excellent excuse to be generous and caring to those in our lives, and share with them the good news of Jesus’ great love.

This Advent season, I encourage you to take a moment to rest and reflect on the miracle of Jesus’ birth. Allow yourself to pause long enough to be filled with awe for all God’s done to be with us–to be with you. ❤

This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.

– 1 John 4:9

A Christmas Prayer

Merry Christmas!

Dear Jesus,

I pray that the person reading this feels an abundance of your love today. No matter the hardships, loneliness, and stress that can accompany this time of year, your love for us never fades. May your peace and comfort embrace this person like a warm and cozy blanket on a cold winter day.

Lord, relieve the burdens and expectations that come with Christmas. Allow today to be what it is — whether carefree and light or chaotic and busy or quiet and still. You meet us where we are, even when we are hiding from difficult relatives or scrambling to salvage a ruined dessert. Thank you, God, for giving us grace no matter how today feels.

I am so thankful that you love us even when we neglect to love you back. Thank you for wanting to understand us so much, you were willing to come as a vulnerable baby and use unlikely people to remind us that you will use us too.

Give us the strength, courage, and humility to submit to your loving plans for us. Soften our hearts so that we will be willing to change when you lead us in a new direction. Remind us that you are trustworthy and our lives are in your hands.

Finally, I pray that everyone in this community knows that you would’ve still come to redeem them even if they were the only person in the world. We are special to you. Thank you, Jesus, that even though we can’t do anything to earn this love or pay it back, you guide us to become more like you when we accept your love. Help us see who needs to feel your love today.

We praise you for the blessings and mercy you have shown us throughout this season. Thank you, Jesus, for your great love!

Amen.

Merry Christmas! I hope and pray you have a wonderful day with time to reflect on God’s never-ending love for you.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

John 3:16

Fourth Sunday of Advent: God’s Faithfulness

Merry Christmas Eve! As we draw close to Christmas, let’s remember God’s faithfulness, even in the waiting seasons.

Read: Luke 2:22-40

Devotional:

Each Christmas, a different set of characters stands out to me, often based on my emotions and experiences from that year. Perhaps you can relate. There are years of abundance and joy, when you feel like the shepherds, ready to share the good news with others. And then there are years of waiting, discouragement, and loneliness. In today’s passage, Simeon and Anna experience the fulfillment of long anticipated promises, though they also provide solace and company in times of sorrow or impatience.

From the start, we learn that Simeon and Anna are both people who have an intimate relationship with God. Simeon has opened his heart and mind to being moved by the Holy Spirit while Anna, being a prophetess, is also used by the Spirit to speak God’s truth. What makes their faith remarkable is the way they’ve grown while experiencing immense trials and disappointments.

I am deeply comforted by these characters, particularly in how they must’ve stood out from the people around them. Simeon must have sounded crazy by being so firm in his belief that he would not die before meeting Jesus, the Messiah. He likely was laughed at by others, especially in religious circles, and made to feel like he didn’t belong. Meanwhile Anna experienced heartbreak right at the point when her life should’ve been at its peak. This led her to spend the rest of her life widowed, likely with many moments of wondering and loneliness.

Though they may have wanted a more “normal” life at points, they embraced the path God had for them, through which they were filled by the Holy Spirit and blessed with remarkable gifts that opened their eyes to who Jesus was before many of the more popular and scholarly religious leaders. Their faithfulness to God is admirable, a reminder for us to trust God and focus on Him rather than others who bring us down or treat us poorly.

What I love most, though, is witnessing God’s faithfulness through this passage. The entire world had waited a long time for the promise of Jesus to be fulfilled, the only possibility for us to have complete connection and access to God and to be with Him forever. Jesus’ birth, death, and resurrection is the most profound testament to God’s faithfulness and love for His people. And when we think about it as such a vast, worldly event, it can feel so far away despite being so incredible.

But when we zoom in on God’s faithfulness to Simeon and Anna, people He specifically chose and remained close to as they experienced hardship and disappointment, it’s so evident that God is as much a personal God as He is soveriegn over everything.

God cares about the burdens on your heart. He didn’t only send Jesus for everyone else — He sent Jesus for you. He believed that His love for you was sacred enough to sacrifice His own Son to pay the price you owed simply by being human so that He could love you forever and ever.

No matter how you feel this Christmas, whether you are isolated or surrounded by loved ones, take the time to remember and thank God for His love. Realize that you are worth dying for! Being in relationship with you matters immensely to God. He doesn’t need you and He doesn’t need me, but He so desperately wants us because He created us and delights in us. Nothing you do will ever change how much God loves you.

We can’t earn this love or sacrifice, but we can honor this gift by spending time with God and making the most of this incredible opportunity to be with Him. After all, that’s what the ultimate meaning of Christmas is, right? God is with us. And that news is worth getting excited about!

Questions:

  • When’s the last time you really thought about how much God wants to be in relationship with you?
  • Do you want to be in relationship with Him?
  • How can you build more time in your life to be with Him this year?
  • How do you hope to grow in your faith through your relationship with Jesus?
  • Thank God for His grace and faithfulness, remembering all He has done in your life, and trusting all that’s to come.

Sing:

O Come All Ye Faithful

In The Bleak Midwinter

Silent Night

Third Sunday of Advent: Audacious Joy

Join us for the third Sunday of Advent as we rejoice with the shepherds at the wonderful gift of Jesus!

Read: Luke 2:1-21

Devotional:

How far are you willing to go to find joy?

This question might seem odd to you. After all, doesn’t everyone want joy? Wouldn’t they be willing to do anything to feel it? I believe we crave it in our hearts, but we aren’t always willing to do what it takes to experience true, audacious joy. Joy that requires risks and boldness and breaking free from so many things that try to snatch our joy.

Joy can be shown in a variety of ways. For the shepherds, it meant shouting through the streets and sharing this good news with everyone they could reach. For Mary, it was more reflective and contemplative, pondering this goodness until it overflowed within her. But their joy is united in its source: Jesus.

The reason why joy can be difficult to hold onto, especially when we are unaware of the intentionality we must take in our relationship with joy, is that it requires us to fix our eyes on Jesus. Everything that steals our joy is a result of focusing on other things.

For example, fear often causes us to not fully appreciate our blessings because we are already anticipating our next problem. It prevents us from living in the moment and being at peace. Comparison is another thief of joy. It stirs within us self-doubt, jealousy, and bitterness towards others, building walls in our precious relationships. Self-sufficiency which stems from our pride causes us to burden ourselves with more than we can bear. It causes us to distance ourselves from others who want to love us, including Jesus.

The list of joy-stealers could go on and on. Perhaps you can think of a few examples of your own. The point is this: Joy is like a plant. It requires nurturing and tenderness and care. When we care for it, we are able to share its beauty with those around us. But when we neglect spending time with Jesus, resting in Him and giving Him our burdens, we wither and fade.

Prioritizing joy is an act of boldness and bravery. It takes trust in acting on what God tells us, as the shepherds demonstrated by searching out Jesus after receiving their message from the angels. It also takes humility and trust when we take the time to reflect, as Mary did, on all that God has done for us. When we remember how much He loves us, we can have joy right now, no matter our circumstances or all that lies ahead.

Questions:

  • Recall a time when you experienced remarkable joy. What caused that joy?
  • What has been siphoning your joy this season?
  • What is one proactive step you can take to prioritize joy and set your eyes on Jesus?
  • Who is someone in your life who could benefit from experiencing Jesus’ joy in you?
  • How can you show it to them this Christmas?

Sing:

O Little Town of Bethlehem

Away in a Manger

Light of the World (My personal favorite Christmas song!)

Second Sunday of Advent: Obedience in the Face of Uncertainty

Join us for the second Sunday of Advent as we witness Mary and Joseph’s response to the unexpected situation they find themselves in.

Read: Luke 1:26-38 and Matthew 1:18-25

Devotional:

Have you ever been given an instruction that didn’t make any sense? I’ve found myself in this situation a number of times, particularly when relying on GPS to guide me to a new location. GPS often gets confused in rural areas or in busy urban spots. After circling the same building ten times or driving into multiple dead end roads in the countryside, I always end up tired and frustrated. This isn’t the path I wanted to take, nor the destination I had in mind!

While GPS is manmade, and therefore flawed — as is the driver who may or may not have typed the wrong location at times — the One who guides our life path is perfect. However, when God leads us places where we don’t want to be, we often feel tired, frustrated, and confused. We may even try to run in the other direction!

Mary and Joseph already seem like really amazing people before they receive their callings. Joseph’s original plan before hearing from the angel is honorable and loving. However, they still are human. Based on the angel’s first words to Mary, she likely was afraid of him (who wouldn’t be?). And Joseph’s initial inclination in the face of troubling circumstances was to make his own plan and rely on his own understanding of the law. When we are in the face of the unknown, it’s okay for us experience the natural feeling of alarm, and then try to take control of our situation by planning and strategizing.

However, we must also learn from Mary and Joseph’s response after God gives them new instructions. God doesn’t tell them all the details of how His plan will work out and He doesn’t promise that their lives will be easy and free from public ridicule by obeying Him. However, He promises that He will use them for His glory and they can trust in Him. They rely on these promises by immediately obeying God and even rejoicing over the chance to fulfill His new covenant for their people — really, for all of us! I don’t know about you, but I am really thankful they obeyed.

What emotions do you experience when you are in an unknown, potentially unsettling or even dangerous, situation? Is your natural response to turn to God and ask for His wisdom and peace? Do you cling to your own understanding or try to escape difficult situations?

Obedience is hard because it requires us to admit that we are not in control and we do not know everything. God is the only one who can lead us to the path of righteousness and without Him, we would be lost forever. Obedience also can mean letting go of our dreams, at least for now. Mary and Joseph likely looked forward to a joyful wedding and time as a couple. While their marriage began chaotically, they not only experienced greater love than they ever could’ve imagined, but they also allowed all of us to experience life-shattering love that redeems us.

Your dreams are beautiful and valid. By being a creation of God, you are designed to think of such incredible aspirations. But if you as the creation can imagine a beautiful life, just think of what your Creator has in store for you! His dreams are higher than our dreams, and when we truly trust in Him, we will be able to appreciate those dreams too.

Questions:

  • What is at least one dream you have seen come to fruition in your life? It can be as “big” or “small” as you want!
  • What is one dream you have for the future?
  • What is one step you can take to offer that dream to God and rely on Him with the results?
  • Are you in a time of uncertainty or difficulty? If so, what is one act of self-care you can take to rest and reflect on how God might be leading you in this time?
  • If not, think of someone you know going through a hard time, perhaps even being ridiculed by others, as Mary and Joseph were likely treated. How can you show them love this Christmas?

Sing:

What Child Is This?

Hark! The Harold Angel Sings!