Daily Devotions: Not our way, but Yahweh!

Thursday, December 28, 2023

Isaiah 41 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: NO LIMIT TO HIS LOVE - December 28, 2023

Maybe your life resembles a Bethlehem stable. Crude in some spots, smelly in others. Not much glamour. You do your best to make the best of it. But try as you might, the roof still leaks, and the winter wind still sneaks through the holes you just can’t seem to fix. You’ve shivered through your share of cold nights, and you wonder if God has a place for a person like you.

Find your answers in the Bethlehem stable. The story of Christmas is the story of God’s relentless love for us. The moment Mary touched God’s face is the moment God made his case: there is no place he will not go. No place is too common, no person is too hardened, no distance is too far. There is no person he cannot reach. There is no limit to his love.

Isaiah 41

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The Message

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Do You Feel Like a Lowly Worm?

“Quiet down, far-flung ocean islands. Listen!  Sit down and rest, everyone. Recover your strength. Gather around me. Say what’s on your heart.  Together let’s decide what’s right.

2-3

“Who got things rolling here,  got this champion from the east on the move? Who recruited him for this job,  then rounded up and corralled the nations  so he could run roughshod over kings? He’s off and running,  pulverizing nations into dust,  leaving only stubble and chaff in his wake. He chases them and comes through unscathed,  his feet scarcely touching the path.

“Who did this? Who made it happen?  Who always gets things started? I did. God. I’m first on the scene.  I’m also the last to leave.

5-7

“Far-flung ocean islands see it and panic.  The ends of the earth are shaken.  Fearfully they huddle together. They try to help each other out,  making up stories in the dark. The godmakers in the workshops  go into overtime production, crafting new models of no-gods, Urging one another on—‘Good job!’ ‘Great design!’—  pounding in nails at the base  so that the things won’t tip over.

8-10

“But you, Israel, are my servant.  You’re Jacob, my first choice,  descendants of my good friend Abraham. I pulled you in from all over the world,  called you in from every dark corner of the earth, Telling you, ‘You’re my servant, serving on my side.  I’ve picked you. I haven’t dropped you.’ Don’t panic. I’m with you.  There’s no need to fear for I’m your God. I’ll give you strength. I’ll help you.  I’ll hold you steady, keep a firm grip on you.

11-13

“Count on it: Everyone who had it in for you  will end up out in the cold—  real losers. Those who worked against you  will end up empty-handed—  nothing to show for their lives. When you go out looking for your old adversaries  you won’t find them— Not a trace of your old enemies,  not even a memory. That’s right. Because I, your God,  have a firm grip on you and I’m not letting go. I’m telling you, ‘Don’t panic.  I’m right here to help you.’

14-16

“Do you feel like a lowly worm, Jacob?  Don’t be afraid. Feel like a fragile insect, Israel?  I’ll help you. I, God, want to reassure you.  The God who buys you back, The Holy of Israel. I’m transforming you from worm to harrow,  from insect to iron. As a sharp-toothed harrow you’ll smooth out the mountains,  turn those tough old hills into loamy soil. You’ll open the rough ground to the weather,  to the blasts of sun and wind and rain. But you’ll be confident and exuberant,  expansive in The Holy of Israel!

17-20

“The poor and homeless are desperate for water,  their tongues parched and no water to be found. But I’m there to be found, I’m there for them,  and I, God of Israel, will not leave them thirsty. I’ll open up rivers for them on the barren hills,  spout fountains in the valleys. I’ll turn the baked-clay badlands into a cool pond,  the waterless waste into splashing creeks. I’ll plant the red cedar in that treeless wasteland,  also acacia, myrtle, and olive. I’ll place the cypress in the desert,  with plenty of oaks and pines. Everyone will see this. No one can miss it—  unavoidable, indisputable evidence That I, God, personally did this.  It’s created and signed by The Holy of Israel.

21-24

“Set out your case for your gods,” says God.  “Bring your evidence,” says the King of Jacob. “Take the stand on behalf of your idols, offer arguments,  assemble reasons. Spread out the facts before us  so that we can assess them ourselves. Ask them, ‘If you are gods, explain what the past means—  or, failing that, tell us what will happen in the future. Can’t do that?  How about doing something—anything! Good or bad—whatever.  Can you hurt us or help us? Do we need to be afraid?’ They say nothing, because they are nothing—  sham gods, no-gods, fool-making gods.

25-29

“I, God, started someone out from the north and he’s come.  He was called out of the east by name. He’ll stomp the rulers into the mud  the way a potter works the clay. Let me ask you, Did anyone guess that this might happen?  Did anyone tell us earlier so we might confirm it  with ‘Yes, he’s right!’? No one mentioned it, no one announced it,  no one heard a peep out of you. But I told Zion all about this beforehand.  I gave Jerusalem a preacher of good news. But around here there’s no one—  no one who knows what’s going on.  I ask, but no one can tell me the score. Nothing here. It’s all smoke and hot air—  sham gods, hollow gods, no-gods.”

Our Daily Bread Devotional

Today's Scripture: Exodus 22:22-27

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The Message

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22-24 “Don’t mistreat widows or orphans. If you do and they cry out to me, you can be sure I’ll take them most seriously; I’ll show my anger and come raging among you with the sword, and your wives will end up widows and your children orphans.

25 “If you lend money to my people, to any of the down-and-out among you, don’t come down hard on them and gouge them with interest.

26-27 “If you take your neighbor’s coat as security, give it back before nightfall; it may be your neighbor’s only covering—what else does the person have to sleep in? And if I hear the neighbor crying out from the cold, I’ll step in—I’m compassionate.

Insight

God gave the Ten Commandments to instruct His people how to bring honor to God through their lives. Commandments 1-4 (Exodus 20:1-11) instruct us to love God and commandments 5-10 (vv. 12-17) deal with loving our neighbor (Leviticus 19:18 ). Moses then laid down various stipulations to teach God’s people how to love their neighbors (Exodus 21:1-23:9). In Exodus 22:21-27), Moses teaches us how to love the foreigner, the widow, and the orphan—the epitome of the poorest of the poor in ancient Jewish society. Love for neighbors means justice and compassion for the needy. Moses reminded the Israelites that God “shows no partiality and accepts no bribes. He defends the cause of the fatherl

ess and the widow, and loves the foreigner residing among you, giving them food and clothing” (

Deuteronomy 10:17-18). And Moses warned, “Cursed is anyone who withholds justice from the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow” (27:19).

By KT Smith

Meeting the Needs of Others

If you take your neighbor’s cloak as a pledge, return it by sunset. Exodus 22:26

Phillip’s father suffered from severe mental illness and had left home to live on the streets. After Cyndi and her young son Phillip spent a day searching for him, Phillip was rightly concerned for his dad’s well-being. He asked his mother whether his father and other people without homes were warm. In response, they launched an effort to collect and distribute blankets and cold-weather gear to homeless people in the area. For more than a decade, Cyndi has considered it her life’s work, crediting her son and her deep faith in God for awakening her to the hardship of being without a warm place to sleep.

The Bible has long taught us to respond to the needs of others. In the book of Exodus, Moses records a set of principles to guide our interaction with those who lack plentiful resources. When we’re moved to supply the needs of another, we’re to “not treat it like a business deal” and should make no gain or profit from it (Exodus 22:25). If a person’s cloak was taken as collateral, it was to be returned by sunset “because that cloak is the only covering your neighbor has. What else can they sleep in?” (v. 27).

Let’s ask God to open our eyes and hearts to see how we can ease the pain of those who are suffering. Whether we seek to meet the needs of many—as Cyndi and Phillip have—or those of a single person, we honor Him by treating them

with dignity and care.

By: Kirsten Holmberg

Reflect & Pray

How has God supplied your needs through others? Whose needs might you be able to supply?

Heavenly Father, please open my eyes to the needs of others.

My Utmost for His Highest

December 28, 2023

By Oswald Chambers

…unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. —Matthew 18:3

These words of our Lord refer to our initial conversion, but we should continue to turn to God as children, being continuously converted every day of our lives. If we trust in our own abilities, instead of God’s, we produce consequences for which God will hold us responsible. When God through His sovereignty brings us into new situations, we should immediately make sure that our natural life submits to the spiritual, obeying the orders of the Spirit of God. Just because we have responded properly in the past is no guarantee that we will do so again. The response of the natural to the spiritual should be continuous conversion, but this is where we so often refuse to be obedient. No matter what our situation is, the Spirit of God remains unchanged and His salvation unaltered. But we must “put on the new man…” (Ephesians 4:24 ). God holds us accountable every time we refuse to convert ourselves, and He sees our refusal as willful disobedience. Our natural life must not rule— God must rule in us.

To refuse to be continuously converted puts a stumbling block in the growth of our spiritual life. There are areas of self-will in our lives where our pride pours contempt on the throne of God and says, “I won’t submit.” We deify our independence and self-will and call them by the wrong name. What God sees as stubborn weakness, we call strength. There are whole areas of our lives that have not yet been brought into submission, and this can only be done by this continuous conversion. Slowly but surely we can claim the whole territory for the Spirit of God.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

We never enter into th

e Kingdom of God by having our head questions answered, but only by commitment.

The Highest Good—Thy Great Redemption

Bible in a Year:

Zechariah 5-8; Revelation 19

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft, December 28, 2023

HOW TO SAVE YOUR CHILD - #9644 It was so dramatic that the cable news networks just kept replaying the video. A mother and her baby were trapped in a burning building. Some people saw the mother leaning out of the second story window with her baby in her arms, desperately trying to save him from both the smoke and the fire. The news video showed three people standing directly beneath that window, ready to catch the infant. It was an agonizing choice for that mother. If she held onto her baby, if she let him go; either way she risked his life. Finally, painfully, she released her baby and dropped him toward the people waiting underneath. It was breathtaking to see one man catch that little guy in his hands. It just so happens that he plays softball and he's a, guess what, a catcher. That baby was fine today, because a mother made a hard but life-saving choice.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "How to Save Your Child."

In a later interview, a tearful mother explained the decision she had made about her son. She said, "I had to let go of my baby to save him." That's a choice many parents have had to make over the years, and maybe a choice you're facing right now. The only way to save your child may be to let him go...to let her go. And that's not easy for many of us, because we're far more prone to try to control our son or daughter than to release them. It may be because we love them, but it may not be the most loving thing we can do. It's often in what we do to hang onto a child that we actually damage or destroy that child.

The Bible gives us a beautiful example of releasing the child you love in our word for today from the Word of God. Hannah has shed tears for years because she cannot bear a child. Then God responds to her cries and sends her a son named Samuel; who will one day be God's man to lead His people. We can only imagine how much Hannah must have wanted to hang onto this precious son that she'd waited for so long. But listen to her prayer in 1 Samuel 1:27-28 ; a prayer that might change things in the life of your son or daughter. "'I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of Him. So now I give him to the Lord. For his whole life he will be given over to the Lord.' And she worshiped the Lord there."

A mother who deeply loves her child loves him enough to release him into the hands of God. When we choose instead to try to control our son or daughter, we start using approaches that are more likely to ruin their life than to run it. We know the child we wanted, and we're gonna do whatever we can to shape him or her into that child instead of celebrating the child God gave us and nurturing who that child is; not trying to re-create him into something they're not.

I was speaking at a conference where a lady came to me and afterward reminded me of when I had spoken there ten years before. She told me that I'd given an opportunity for people to come forward and surrender some part of their life they'd refused to give to Jesus. She said, "Ron, that night I surrendered my nine-year-old daughter to the Lord. She wasn't turning out the way I wanted, especially spiritually. I had tried everything to control her. That night, I just released her to the Lord. The next day she came to me and said something she'd never said, 'Mom, can we read the Bible together?'" Then that mom melted down as she said, "And today she's finishing her first year at a Christian college, training for a life in God's work." God can do with our surrender what we He could never do with our control.

When we hold onto our child, we tend to create a rebel or a robot. When we release our child to the God who gave that child to us, we cooperate with the great plan for which our child was created. Almost every religion in the world has some kind of ceremony where a newborn child is given back to the Creator. We did that in a dedication service with each of our three children. But that needs to happen every day of their life; giving them back to the One who gave him or her to us.

If your child is struggling, you

may need to make that difficult but life-giving choice, "I have to let go of my baby to save my baby."

Wednesday, December 27, 2023

Romans 6 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: SIGNS OF GOD - December 27, 2023 “We have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him” (Matthew 2:2 NKJV).

You know, people see signs of God every day. Sunsets that steal the breath. Newborns that bring tears. But do all who see the signs draw near to God? No.

The wise men, however, understood the purpose of the sign. And they followed it to Jerusalem, where they heard about the scripture. The prophecy told them where to find Christ. It is interesting to note that the star reappeared after they learned about the prophecy. The star “came and stood shining right over the place where the Child was” (Matthew 2:9). It is as if the sign and word worked together to bring the wise men to Jesus.

The ultimate aim of all God’s messages, both miraculous and written, is to shed the light of heaven on Jesus.

Romans 6 New International Version

Dead to Sin, Alive in Christ

6 What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? 2 By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? 3 Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.

5 For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his. 6 For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with,[a] that we should no longer be slaves to sin— 7 because anyone who has died has been set free from sin.

8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. 9 For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. 10 The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God.

11 In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. 12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. 13 Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness. 14 For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace.

Slaves to Righteousness

15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace? By no means! 16 Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey—whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? 17 But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you have come to obey from your heart the pattern of teaching that has now claimed your allegiance. 18 You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.

19 I am using an example from everyday life because of your human limitations. Just as you used to offer yourselves as slaves to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer yourselves as slaves to righteousness leading to holiness. 20 When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. 21 What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! 22 But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in[b] Christ Jesus our Lord.

Our Daily Bread Devotional

Today's Scripture:

Proverbs 11:24–31 The world of the generous gets larger and larger;

the world of the stingy gets smaller and smaller.

25 The one who blesses others is abundantly blessed;

those who help others are helped.

26 Curses on those who drive a hard bargain!

Blessings on all who play fair and square!

27 The one who seeks good finds delight;

the student of evil becomes evil.

28 A life devoted to things is a dead life, a stump;

a God-shaped life is a flourishing tree.

29 Exploit or abuse your family, and end up with a fistful of air;

common sense tells you it’s a stupid way to live.

30 A good life is a fruit-bearing tree;

a violent life destroys souls.

31 If good people barely make it,

what’s in store for the bad!

Insight

As general statements of wisdom and guidelines for living, proverbs predict expected outcomes based on our wise or foolish choices. Generosity is the theme of several of these proverbs (11:24-26), and the conclusion is clear: generosity is a wise approach to life. The apostle Paul highlighted the principle of sowing and reaping mentioned in verse 24 when he wrote, “Whoever sows generously will also reap generously” (2 Corinthians 9:6 (https://biblia.com/bible/niv/2%20Cor%209.6)). Conversely, hoarding hurts both ourselves and others. By distributing what we have, we bless all concerned. Bible commentator David Stabnow points out how King Sihon of Heshbon refused to sell grain to the Israelites when they were passing through his land, and he and his people were destroyed (Deuteronomy 2:26-36 (https://biblia.com/bible/niv/Deut%202.26-36)). Joseph, on the other hand, stored grain for the purpose of distributing it. By doing so, he blessed the entire region wit

h life—and preserved the nation of Israel in the process (

Genesis 41:56) By:

Tim Gustafson

God’s Wisdom Saves Lives

The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and the one who is wise saves lives.

Proverbs 11:30

A mail carrier became concerned after seeing one of her customers’ mail pile up. The postal worker knew the elderly woman lived alone and usually picked up her mail every day. Making a wise choice, the worker mentioned her concern to one of the woman’s neighbors. This neighbor alerted yet another neighbor, who had a spare key to the woman’s home. Together they entered their friend’s home and found her lying on the floor. She had fallen four days earlier and couldn’t get up or call for help. The postal worker’s wisdom, concern, and decision to act likely saved her life.

Proverbs says, “the one who is wise saves lives” (11:30). The discernment that comes from doing right and living according to God’s wisdom can bless not only ourselves but those we encounter too. The fruit of living out what honors Him and His ways can produce a good and refreshing life. And our fruit also prompts us to care about others and to look out for their well-being.

As the writer of Proverbs asserts throughout the book, wisdom is found in reliance on God. Wisdom is considered “more precious than rubies, and nothing you desire can compare with her” (8:11). The wisdom God provides is there to guide us throughout our lives. It just might save a life for eternity.

By: Katara Patton Reflect & Pray

How can you use wisdom to help someone today? How much do you value wisdom?

Heavenly Father, please give me wisdom to follow Your path and directions. Help me to look out for others as You guide me.

Learn more about your God-given calling.

My Utmost for His Highest

December 27, 2023 Where the Battle is Won or Lost "If you will return, O Israel," says the Lord… —Jeremiah 4:1 (http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Jeremiah+4%3A1)

Our battles are first won or lost in the secret places of our will in God’s presence, never in full view of the world. The Spirit of God seizes me and I am compelled to get alone with God and fight the battle before Him. Until I do this, I will lose every time. The battle may take one minute or one year, but that will depend on me, not God. However long it takes, I must wrestle with it alone before God, and I must resolve to go through the hell of renunciation or rejection before Him. Nothing has any power over someone who has fought the battle before God and won there.

I should never say, “I will wait until I get into difficult circumstances and then I’ll put God to the test.” Trying to do that will not work. I must first get the issue settled between God and myself in the secret places of my soul, where no one else can interfere. Then I can go ahead, knowing with certainty that the battle is won. Lose it there, and calamity, disaster, and defeat before the world are as sure as the laws of God. The reason the battle is lost is that I fight it first in the external world. Get alone with God, do battle before Him, and settle the matter once and for all.

In dealing with other people, our stance should always be to drive them toward making a decision of their will. That is how surrendering to God begins. Not often, but every once in a while, God brings us to a major turning point— a great crossroads in our life. From that point we either go toward a more and more slow, lazy, and useless Christian life, or we become more and more on fire,

giving our utmost for

His highest— our best for His glory.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

Jesus Christ is always unyielding to my claim to my right to myself. The one essential element in all our Lord’s teaching about discipleship is abandon, no calculation, no trace of self-interest. Disciples Indeed, 395 L

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft, December 27, 2023

NIGHT LIGHTS - #9643

Our former offices were on this long hall, and each night the last one got to walk that long hall and make sure all the doors were locked and the lights were turned out. And with the amount of work the team had to get done each day, it was pretty close to "beddy-bye" time when some of them left. Of course, Daylight Saving Time meant that you could leave well into the evening and it would still be light. Maybe that's why the lights in some of our closets were accidentally left on sometimes. When it's still bright outside, it's easy to miss a light that's on. But in the winter, when it's dark, you can't miss the light!

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Night Lights."

The familiar and very challenging words of Jesus are our word for today from the Word of God. It's Matthew 5:14-16) where He said, "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."

If you're a follower of Jesus Christ, I wonder if you realize how important you are! Think about when you walk into a totally dark room. What's the most important thing in that room? Isn't it the light? Who's the most important person where you work, or you live, or go to school? Isn't it the one who's the light? Jesus said that's you. If the light isn't working - if it's dim - if it goes out, there's only darkness.

You may say, "You don't know how spiritually dark it gets where I am!" And you're right. I don't know all the details. But it probably looks something like this: the talk is dirty or blasphemous or profane, sin is something to laugh at and brag about, people are routinely backstabbed and wounded verbally, honesty and integrity are hard to find - maybe even unappreciated, Christians are stereotyped as being intolerant, old-fashioned, condemning, and irrelevant. Maybe you'd like to add a few more layers of darkness to describe the place where you're trying to be like Jesus.

But remember those office closets with the light left on. Where it's bright, you don't see the light much. But the darker it is, the more the light cannot be missed! The darker the darkness, the more the light shows up! Paul talked about that contrast when he said in Philippians 2:15 (http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/index.php?search=Philippians+2%3A15;&version=31;&interface=print), "Become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which "you shine like stars in the universe" as you hold out the word of life."

A star can barely be seen in a bright sky. But up against the stark darkness of the night, a star is something beautiful. That's supposed to be you in the universe where God's put you. So don't keep trying to hang out in places where there is already plenty of light; places where you feel safe because they're Christian places. You're needed where it's dark, where the lost people are. You can enjoy believers in heaven forever. Your job now is to get more people to go to heaven with you!

We always told our kids as they left for school in the morning, "Go MAD today." And that means "make a difference!" That's what Jesus is saying to you each morning, "Go Make a Difference there." Be a living alternative in a place where truth doesn't matter, always tell the truth. In a place where dirty is cool, don't dignify the dirty. In a place where people cut each other up, you build people up! In a place where it's everybody for himself, you be the one who always puts other people first. In a place where Christianity is laughed at or misunderstood, you let them know what Jesus is like!

Don't be intimidated by the darkness - you are the most imp

ortant person in that dark place because you have the light of Jesus. Without you, darkness is all there is. Humbly, gently, lovingly, be the light there. You are one light that should never be turned out!

Tuesday, December 26, 2023

Isaiah 40 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: EVERY DAY CAN BE A CHRISTMAS - December 26, 2023 When Christ was born, so was our hope. This is why I love Christmas. The event invites us to believe the wildest of promises. He did away with every barrier, fence, sin, bent, debt, and grave. Anything that might keep us from him was demolished. He only awaits our word to walk through the door. Invite him in. Escort him to the seat of honor, and pull out his chair. Clear the table; clear the calendar. Call the kids and neighbors. Christmas is here. Christ is here.

One request from you, and God will do again what he did then: scatter the night with everlasting light. He’ll be born in you. Let “Silent Night” be sung! Every heart can be a manger. Every day can be a Christmas. The Christmas miracle—a yearlong celebration!

Isaiah 40

The Message

Messages of Comfort

Prepare for God’s Arrival

1-2 “Comfort, oh comfort my people,”  says your God. “Speak softly and tenderly to Jerusalem,  but also make it very clear That she has served her sentence,  that her sin is taken care of—forgiven! She’s been punished enough and more than enough,  and now it’s over and done with.”

3-5

Thunder in the desert!  “Prepare for God’s arrival! Make the road straight and smooth,  a highway fit for our God. Fill in the valleys,  level off the hills, Smooth out the ruts,  clear out the rocks. Then God’s bright glory will shine  and everyone will see it.  Yes. Just as God has said.”

6-8

A voice says, “Shout!”  I said, “What shall I shout?”

“These people are nothing but grass,  their love fragile as wildflowers. The grass withers, the wildflowers fade,  if God so much as puffs on them.  Aren’t these people just so much grass? True, the grass withers and the wildflowers fade,  but our God’s Word stands firm and forever.”

9-11

Climb a high mountain, Zion.  You’re the preacher of good news. Raise your voice. Make it good and loud, Jerusalem.  You’re the preacher of good news.  Speak loud and clear. Don’t be timid! Tell the cities of Judah,  “Look! Your God!” Look at him! God, the Master, comes in power,  ready to go into action. He is going to pay back his enemies  and reward those who have loved him. Like a shepherd, he will care for his flock,  gathering the lambs in his arms, Hugging them as he carries them,  leading the nursing ewes to good pasture.

The Creator of All You Can See or Imagine

12-17

Who has scooped up the ocean  in his two hands,  or measured the sky between his thumb and little finger, Who has put all the earth’s dirt in one of his baskets,  weighed each mountain and hill? Who could ever have told God what to do  or taught him his business? What expert would he have gone to for advice,  what school would he attend to learn justice? What god do you suppose might have taught him what he knows,  showed him how things work? Why, the nations are but a drop in a bucket,  a mere smudge on a window. Watch him sweep up the islands  like so much dust off the floor! There aren’t enough trees in Lebanon  nor enough animals in those vast forests  to furnish adequate fuel and offerings for his worship. All the nations add up to simply nothing before him—  less than nothing is more like it. A minus.

18-20

So who even comes close to being like God?  To whom or what can you compare him? Some no-god idol? Ridiculous!  It’s made in a workshop, cast in bronze, Given a thin veneer of gold,  and draped with silver filigree. Or, perhaps someone will select a fine wood—  olive wood, say—that won’t rot, Then hire a woodcarver to make a no-god,  giving special care to its base so it won’t tip over!

21-24

Have you not been paying attention?  Have you not been listening? Haven’t you heard these stories all your life?  Don’t you understand the foundation of all things? God sits high above the round ball of earth.  The people look like mere ants. He stretches out the skies like a canvas—  yes, like a tent canvas to live under. He ignores what all the princes say and do.  The rulers of the earth count for nothing. Princes and rulers don’t amount to much.  Like seeds barely rooted, just sprouted, They shrivel when God blows on them.  Like flecks of chaff, they’re gone with the wind.

25-26

“So—who is like me?  Who holds a candle to me?” says The Holy. Look at the night skies:  Who do you think made all this? Who marches this army of stars out each night,  counts them off, calls each by name —so magnificent! so powerful!—  and never overlooks a single one?

27-31

Why would you ever complain, O Jacob,  or, whine, Israel, saying, “God has lost track of me.  He doesn’t care what happens to me”? Don’t you know anything? Haven’t you been listening? God doesn’t come and go. God lasts.  He’s Creator of all you can see or imagine. He doesn’t get tired out, doesn’t pause to catch his breath.  And he knows everything, inside and out. He energizes those who get tired,  gives fresh strength to dropouts. For even young people tire and drop out,  young folk in their prime stumble and fall. But those who wait upon God get fresh strength.  They spread their wings and soar like eagles, They run and don’t get tired,  they walk and don’t lag behind.

Our Daily Bread Devotional

Today's Scripture: Luke 2:15–20 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.”

16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told. Insight

Luke tells us that “all who heard” what had been told to the shepherds about Jesus’ birth “were amazed” (2:18). In the gospel of Luke, amazement or astonishment is a recurring description of how people respond to God’s actions (see 1:63; 2:33; 4:22; 8:25; 9:43; 11:14). Amazement is the appropriate and natural response to His wonders. But such amazement isn’t identical with belief. For example, in Luke 24:41 (https://biblia.com/bible/niv/Luke%2024.41), after Christ’s appearance to His disciples after His death, we’re told “they still did not believe it because of joy and amazement.” It’s possible that Luke emphasizes that “Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart” (2:19) to capture the value of not only reacting with amazement but also continually and daily wrestling with the realities of what God is doing. Luke’s comment on Mary’s pondering could also indicate Luke relied on her testimony (see 1:2-3) for his

account of the shepherds.

By: Monica La Rose

The Day after Christmas

Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.

Luke 2:19

After all the joy of Christmas Day, the following day felt like a letdown. We’d stayed overnight with friends but hadn’t slept well. Then our car broke down as we were driving home. Then it started to snow. We had abandoned the car and taxied home in the snow and sleet feeling blah.

We’re not the only ones who’ve felt low after Christmas Day. Whether it’s from excessive eating, the way carols suddenly disappear from the radio, or the fact that the gifts we bought last week are now on sale half price, the magic of Christmas Day can quickly dissipate!

The Bible never tells us about the day after Jesus’ birth. But we can imagine that after walking to Bethlehem, scrambling for accommodation, Mary’s pain in giving birth, and having shepherds drop by unannounced (Luke 2:4–18 (https://biblia.com/bible/niv/Luke%202.4%E2%80%9318)), Mary and Joseph were exhausted. Yet as Mary cradled her newborn, I can imagine her reflecting on her angelic visitation (1:30–33), Elizabeth’s blessing (vv. 42–45), and her own realization of her baby’s destiny (vv. 46–55). Mary “pondered” such things in her heart (2:19), which must’ve lightened the tiredness and physical pain of that day.

We’ll all have “blah” days, perhaps even the day after Christmas. Like Mary, let’s face them by pondering the One who came into our world, forever b

rightening it with His presence.

By: Sheridan Voysey

Reflect & Pray

When are you prone to feeling a “low” after a “high”? How can you ponder today all that Jesus has brought into the world?

Dear Jesus, I praise You for entering our dark world, forever brightening my days with Your presence.

My Utmost for His Highest

December 26, 2023 “Walk in the Light”

By Oswald Chambers (https://utmost.org/oswald-chambers-bio)

If we walk in the light as He is in the light…the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. —1 John 1:7 (http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+John+1%3A7)

To mistake freedom from sin only on the conscious level of our lives for complete deliverance from sin by the atonement through the Cross of Christ is a great error. No one fully knows what sin is until he is born again. Sin is what Jesus Christ faced at Calvary. The evidence that I have been delivered from sin is that I know the real nature of sin in me. For a person to really know what sin is requires the full work and deep touch of the atonement of Jesus Christ, that is, the imparting of His absolute perfection.

The Holy Spirit applies or administers the work of the atonement to us in the deep unconscious realm as well as in the conscious realm. And it is not until we truly perceive the unrivaled power of the Spirit in us that we understand the meaning of 1 John 1:7 (http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+John+1:7) , which says, “…the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.” This verse does not refer only to conscious sin, but also to the tremendously profound understanding of sin which only the Holy Spirit in me can accomplish.

I must “walk in the light as He is in the light…”— not in the light of my own conscience, but in God’s light. If I will walk there, with nothing held back or hidden, then this amazing truth is revealed to me: “…the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses [me] from all sin” so that God Almighty can see nothing to rebuke in me. On the conscious level it produces a keen, sorrowful knowledge of what sin really is. The love of God working in me causes me to hate, with the Holy Spirit’s hatred for sin, anything that is n

ot in keeping with God’s holiness. To “walk in the light” means that everything that is of the darkness actually drives me closer to the center of the light.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

Is He going to help Himself to your life, or are you taken up with your conception of what you are going to do? God is responsible for our lives, and the one great keynote is reckless reliance upon Him. Approved Unto God, 10 R

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft, December 26, 2023 THE REASON FOR THE WAIT - #9642

Isn't it amazing how different your second child can be from your first child? Just when you think you've got this parent thing all figured out, God sends you a totally different kid. I remember when you know, our son's family and the kids were born and when they were little. Food was just a necessary evil for our son's oldest, our granddaughter. She can take it or leave it. Since infancy, she hadn't cared much about whether or not she had food. Oh but not her brother! No! The eating machine. Only about a year old, but he was Food King for much of his little life. When he was still supposed to be only having milk, he was following every bite any of us put into our mouth as if to say, "So when do I get some of that stuff?" How did he graduate to crawling? One thing that helped was putting some food across the room. He just needed incentive. He took off on all fours like a firecracker had gone off behind him. One day, his mom was mixing up his next meal, and he was watching and complaining. As she continued to get it ready, he continued to escalate his expressions of impatience and displeasure. By the time his food was ready, we were dealing with a very loud, very insistent protest.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Reason For the Wait."

Our grandson didn't have the words to say it, but he made his desires very clear as his food was being prepared, "I want my food, and I want it NOW!" It's a good thing his mother didn't give in. It wasn't ready yet! Believe me, it wouldn't have been good for him to get what he wanted when he wanted it. It would have been, in plain English, bleaaahhh!

I can't begin to count the times that I've been the same way with God about something I wanted it, I needed it. "What's taking so long, God? I want it, and I want it NOW!" Maybe there's something you've been asking God for, trusting God for. And it's been a while, and it still hasn't come. You want it now, but there's a reason God isn't giving it to you now. It's not ready yet. And it would disappoint you if He gave it to you now.

There's a word that's one of the major keys to God's best, it's a word that is spelled out in our word for today from the Word of God. Psalm 37 (http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/index.php?search=Psalm+37;&version=31;&interface=print), beginning with verse 5, tells us to: "Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him and He will do this...Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him...Wait for the Lord and keep His way." There's the word that often stands between you and God's best - wait. Part of committing your way to the Lord, of trusting in Him, is to wait until God says it's ready; until God says you're ready. So many people are living today in the heartache of their own impatience. They couldn't wait, so they grabbed what they could have now. And it's been much less than what God was getting ready for them.

Look, you've been waiting for God to come through. You want to be married. You're waiting for Him to answer your prayer about having a child, raising a child. You're waiting for that job, that heart change, that breakthrough, that answer, and it hasn't come yet. Don't panic. Don't let impatience cost you the perfect will of God. Premature babies aren't as healthy as ones that are full-term. Premature solutions aren't healthy either. Wait until it's full-term. Remember the principle of Galatians 4:4 (http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/index.php?search=Galatians+4%3A4;&version=31;&interface=print), "In the fullness of time, God will

," that's when He'll bring your answer, when it's ready. So stop whimpering, stop whining, stop trying to grab it before it's ready. If you insist on having it now, you're not going to like it!

Monday, December 25, 2023

Isaiah 39 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: THE WITH US GOD - December 25, 2023

The babe of Bethlehem. Immanuel. Remember the promise of the angel? “‘Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,’ which is translated, ‘God with us’” (Matthew 1:23 NKJV).

Immanuel. The name appears in the same Hebrew form as it did two thousand years ago. “Immanu” means “with us.” “El” refers to Elohim, or God. Not an “above us God” or a “somewhere in the neighborhood God.” He came as the “with us God.” God with us. Not with the rich or with the religious. But God with us. All of us. Russians, Germans, Buddhists, Mormons, truck drivers, librarians. God with us.

Prophets weren’t enough. Apostles wouldn’t do. Angels won’t suffice. God sent more than miracles and messages. He sent himself; he sent his Son.

Isaiah 39

The Message

There Will Be Nothing Left

39 Sometime later, King Merodach-baladan son of Baladan of Babylon sent messengers with greetings and a gift to Hezekiah. He had heard that Hezekiah had been sick and was now well.

2 Hezekiah received the messengers warmly. He took them on a tour of his royal precincts, proudly showing them all his treasures: silver, gold, spices, expensive oils, all his weapons—everything out on display. There was nothing in his house or kingdom that Hezekiah didn’t show them.

3 Later the prophet Isaiah showed up. He asked Hezekiah, “What were these men up to? What did they say? And where did they come from?”

Hezekiah said, “They came from a long way off, from Babylon.”

4 “And what did they see in your palace?”

“Everything,” said Hezekiah. “I showed them the works, opened all the doors and impressed them with it all.”

5-7 Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, “Now listen to this Message from God-of-the-Angel-Armies: I have to warn you, the time is coming when everything in this palace, along with everything your ancestors accumulated before you, will be hauled off to Babylon. God says that there will be nothing left. Nothing. And not only your things but your sons. Some of your sons will be taken into exile, ending up as eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.”

8 Hezekiah replied to Isaiah, “Good. If God says so, it’s good.” Within himself he was thinking, “But surely nothing bad will happen in my lifetime. I’ll enjoy peace and stability as long as I live.”

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

,December 25, 2023

Today's Scripture:

Luke 2:1–7

The Birth of Jesus

2 1-5 About that time Caesar Augustus ordered a census to be taken throughout the Empire. This was the first census when Quirinius was governor of Syria. Everyone had to travel to his own ancestral hometown to be accounted for. So Joseph went from the Galilean town of Nazareth up to Bethlehem in Judah, David’s town, for the census. As a descendant of David, he had to go there. He went with Mary, his fiancée, who was pregnant.

6-7 While they were there, the time came for her to give birth. She gave birth to a son, her firstborn. She wrapped him in a blanket and laid him in a manger, because there was no room in the hostel.

Insight

Jesus’ birth recorded in Luke 2:1-7 was prophesied in Micah 5:2. Along with this prophecy, the Old Testament contains many other prophecies about His birth and life. In Isaiah 7:14 , we read, “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.” Moreover, Christ would “proclaim good news to the poor” (61:1) and bring miraculous healing (35:5-6; 42:7-9). Also in Isaiah, we read about Jesus’ suffering and purpose: “He was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed” (53:5). Zechariah prophesied the events of Palm Sunday, that the “king” (Jesus) would come “lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey” (Zechariah 9:9 And, again in Zechariah, Judas’ betrayal is foretold (11:12-13). Finally, Christ’s kingdom will be everlasting 2 Samuel 7:12-13;Psalm 89:29; Isaiah 9:7. By: Alyson Kieda

The Promise of Christ’s, . . . out of you will come . . . one who will be ruler over Israel.

In November 1962, physicist John W. Mauchly said, “There is no reason to suppose the average boy or girl cannot be master of a personal computer.” Mauchly’s prediction seemed remarkable at the time, but it proved astonishingly accurate. Today, using a computer or handheld device is one of the earliest skills a child learns.

While Mauchly’s prediction has come true, so have much more important predictions—those made in Scripture about the coming of Christ. For example, Micah 5:2 declared, “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.” God sent Jesus, who arrived in tiny Bethlehem—marking him as from the royal line of David (see Luke 2:4–7.

The same Bible that accurately predicted the first coming of Jesus also promises His return (Acts 1:11). Jesus promised His first followers that He would come back for them (John 14:1–4 ).

This Christmas, as we ponder the accurately

predicted facts surrounding the birth of Jesus, may we also consider His promised return, and allow Him to prepare us for that majestic moment when we see Him face to face! By: Bill Crowder

Reflect & Pray

How might you respond in worship to the truth of the prophecies of Christ’s birth? How does His promise to return for us impact your decision-making?

Loving Father, I’m so grateful for the birth of Jesus and His mission of rescue and redemption. Thank You for His certain return for me.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers,December 25, 2023

His Birth and Our New Birth

"Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel," which is translated, "God with us." —Matthew 1:23

December 25

His Birth in History. “…that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God (Luke 1:35. Jesus Christ was born into this world, not from it. He did not emerge out of history; He came into history from the outside. Jesus Christ is not the best human being the human race can boast of— He is a Being for whom the human race can take no credit at all. He is not man becoming God, but God Incarnate— God coming into human flesh from outside it. His life is the highest and the holiest entering through the most humble of doors. Our Lord’s birth was an advent— the appearance of God in human form.

His Birth in Me. “My little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you…” (Galatians 4:19 ). Just as our Lord came into human history from outside it, He must also come into me from outside. Have I allowed my personal human life to become a “Bethlehem” for the Son of God? I cannot enter the realm of the kingdom of God unless I am born again from above by a birth totally unlike physical birth. “You must be born again” (John 3:7 ). This is not a command, but a fact based on the authority of God. The evidence of the new birth is that I yield myself so completely to God that “Christ is for

med” in me. And once “Christ is formed” in me, His nature immediately begins to work through me.

God Evident in the Flesh.

This is what is made so profoundly possible for you and for me through the redemption of man by Jesus Christ.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

I have no right to say I believe in God unless I order my life as under His all-seeing Eye. Disciples Indeed, 385 L

Bible in a Year: Zephaniah 1-3; Revelation 16

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft, December 25, 2023

STOPPING FOR YOU THIS CHRISTMAS - #9641

Like most Americans, I just about O.D. on the news. No matter what it's about! It could be news about elections, or some economic problem, or eruptions in the Middle East. It's all important, but it's not exactly in the "joy to the world" category.

So I absolutely loved the feel-good story out of New York City that went viral across Facebook a couple of years ago. It was about the friendly policeman and the freezing homeless man. And it had "Christmas Story" written all over it.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Stopping for You This Christmas."

In case you missed it, a young police officer on patrol in Times Square, came upon a homeless man, who was sitting there barefoot on the sidewalk. It was one of those "two pair of socks" night for the officer and even then his feet were freezing. He couldn't imagine a man sitting there barefoot all night. So the man in blue went inside a nearby store and bought the homeless man a $100 pair of boots with his own money. When he gave those boots to that barefoot man, well, you can only imagine the joy.

It would have been one of life's invisible acts of kindness except for a tourist who was there with a cell phone camera. She was so moved with what she was watching, she snapped the picture, which was then seen by millions of people. Maybe because it was the Christmas season, that poignant scene triggered a flashback to something my personal Hero did over and over again. It's one of the many things that makes me love Him. That would be Jesus.

The incident I remember took place when Jesus was entering a town, surrounded by crowds that were really anxious to see Him. The Bible says there was a blind beggar who had heard that "Jesus of Nazareth is passing by." Much to the aggravation of the people around Jesus, he started shouting loudly, "Jesus, have mercy on me!"

A lot of annoyed people there told him in no uncertain terms to shut up. So he just shouted louder. And the blind man was a growing nuisance. He was an embarrassment. After all, they had a "celebrity" in town. Then two little words that tell me so much about Jesus, and they are our word for today from the Word of God. Just two words: Luke 18:40; "Jesus stopped." Nobody else stopped, but Jesus did. Not for the mayor. Not for the millionaires. Not for the ministers, but for the miserable. The guy everyone else walked by or walked over. That's who Jesus stops everything for. And the first thing that blind man ever saw was the face of Jesus. Because Jesus did what only He could do; He gave that man his sight.

The Bible's filled with stories of people nobody would stop for except Jesus. Marginalized people like blind Bartimaeus. Obnoxious people like Zacchaeus, the hated tax collector.

For 2,000 years, Jesus has been stopping for the lonely, the losers, and the lost. And letting them know that someone knows their name. Someone hears their cry. Someone sees them. Someone really loves them. And it's God's one and only Son. He sees me; He sees a world lost in sin, away from God, headed for an awful eternity. And He does what no one else could do. What no religion could ever do. He pays for my sins with His blood. In the words of the Bible, "He was wounded and bruised for our sins. He was beaten so that we might have peace; He was lashed and we were healed!" (Isaiah 53:5.

You know, Jesus stopped for me when my soul was destitute, when my soul was doomed. Like the hymn says, "Once I was lost, but now I am found. I was blind, but now I see." You know, He might be passing your way today. Would you grab His hand today to begin your personal relationship with the man who loved you enough to die for you?

If you want to know how; if I could possibly help you, please

check out our website today

ANewStory.com. He's stopping for you, He sees you, He loves you. He's moving in close. On the day we celebrate Him coming into this world, let Him come into your life.

Sunday, December 24, 2023

Romans 5 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: A Hope-Filled Heart

You and I live in a trashy world. Unwanted garbage comes our way on a regular basis. Haven’t you been handed a trash sack of mishaps and heartaches? Sure you have. May I ask, what are you going to do with it? You could hide it. Pretend it isn’t there. But sooner or later it will start to stink. So what will you do?

If you follow the example of Christ, you’ll learn to see tough times differently. God wants you to have a hope-filled heart. . .just like Jesus. Wouldn’t you want that? Jesus saw his Father’s presence in the problem. Sure, Max, but Jesus was God. I can’t see the way he saw. Not yet, maybe. But don’t underestim

ate God’s power. He can change the way you look at life.

From The Lucado Inspirational Reader

Romans 5 The Message

Developing Patience

5 1-2 By entering through faith into what God has always wanted to do for us—set us right with him, make us fit for him—we have it all together with God because of our Master Jesus. And that’s not all: We throw open our doors to God and discover at the same moment that he has already thrown open his door to us. We find ourselves standing where we always hoped we might stand—out in the wide open spaces of God’s grace and glory, standing tall and shouting our praise.

3-5 There’s more to come: We continue to shout our praise even when we’re hemmed in with troubles, because we know how troubles can develop passionate patience in us, and how that patience in turn forges the tempered steel of virtue, keeping us alert for whatever God will do next. In alert expectancy such as this, we’re never left feeling shortchanged. Quite the contrary—we can’t round up enough containers to hold everything God generously pours into our lives through the Holy Spirit!

6-8 Christ arrives right on time to make this happen. He didn’t, and doesn’t, wait for us to get ready. He presented himself for this sacrificial death when we were far too weak and rebellious to do anything to get ourselves ready. And even if we hadn’t been so weak, we wouldn’t have known what to do anyway. We can understand someone dying for a person worth dying for, and we can understand how someone good and noble could inspire us to selfless sacrifice. But God put his love on the line for us by offering his Son in sacrificial death while we were of no use whatever to him.

9-11 Now that we are set right with God by means of this sacrificial death, the consummate blood sacrifice, there is no longer a question of being at odds with God in any way. If, when we were at our worst, we were put on friendly terms with God by the sacrificial death of his Son, now that we’re at our best, just think of how our lives will expand and deepen by means of his resurrection life! Now that we have actually received this amazing friendship with God, we are no longer content to simply say it in plodding prose. We sing and shout our praises to God through Jesus, the Messiah!

The Death-Dealing Sin, the Life-Giving Gift

12-14 You know the story of how Adam landed us in the dilemma we’re in—first sin, then death, and no one exempt from either sin or death. That sin disturbed relations with God in everything and everyone, but the extent of the disturbance was not clear until God spelled it out in detail to Moses. So death, this huge abyss separating us from God, dominated the landscape from Adam to Moses. Even those who didn’t sin precisely as Adam did by disobeying a specific command of God still had to experience this termination of life, this separation from God. But Adam, who got us into this, also points ahead to the One who will get us out of it.

15-17 Yet the rescuing gift is not exactly parallel to the death-dealing sin. If one man’s sin put crowds of people at the dead-end abyss of separation from God, just think what God’s gift poured through one man, Jesus Christ, will do! There’s no comparison between that death-dealing sin and this generous, life-giving gift. The verdict on that one sin was the death sentence; the verdict on the many sins that followed was this wonderful life sentence. If death got the upper hand through one man’s wrongdoing, can you imagine the breathtaking recovery life makes, absolute life, in those who grasp with both hands this wildly extravagant life-gift, this grand setting-everything-right, that the one man Jesus Christ provides?

18-19 Here it is in a nutshell: Just as one person did it wrong and got us in all this trouble with sin and death, another person did it right and got us out of it. But more than just getting us out of trouble, he got us into life! One man said no to God and put many people in the wrong; one man said yes to God and put many in the right.

20-21 All that passing laws against sin did was produce more lawbreakers. But sin didn’t, and doesn’t, have a chance in competition with the aggressive forgiveness we call grace. When it’s sin versus grace, grace wins hands down. All sin can do is threaten us with death, and that’s the end of it. Grace, because God is putting everything together again through the Messiah, invites us into life—a life that goes on and on and on, world without end.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

,December 24, 2023

Today's Scripture:

Matthew 2:1–5

, 7–12

Scholars from the East

2 1-2 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem village, Judah territory—this was during Herod’s kingship—a band of scholars arrived in Jerusalem from the East. They asked around, “Where can we find and pay homage to the newborn King of the Jews? We observed a star in the eastern sky that signaled his birth. We’re on pilgrimage to worship him.”

3-4 When word of their inquiry got to Herod, he was terrified—and not Herod alone, but most of Jerusalem as well. Herod lost no time. He gathered all the high priests and religion scholars in the city together and asked, “Where is the Messiah supposed to be born?”

5-6 They told him, “Bethlehem, Judah territory. The prophet Micah wrote it plainly:

It’s you, Bethlehem, in Judah’s land,  no longer bringing up the rear. From you will come the leader  who will shepherd-rule my people, my Israel.”

7-8 Herod then arranged a secret meeting with the scholars from the East. Pretending to be as devout as they were, he got them to tell him exactly when the birth-announcement star appeared. Then he told them the prophecy about Bethlehem, and said, “Go find this child. Leave no stone unturned. As soon as you find him, send word and I’ll join you at once in your worship.”

9-10 Instructed by the king, they set off. Then the star appeared again, the same star they had seen in the eastern skies. It led them on until it hovered over the place of the child. They could hardly contain themselves: They were in the right place! They had arrived at the right time!

11 They entered the house and saw the child in the arms of Mary, his mother. Overcome, they kneeled and worshiped him. Then they opened their luggage and presented gifts: gold, frankincense, myrrh.

12 In a dream, they were warned not to report back to Herod. So they worked out another route, left the territory without being seen, and returned to their own country.

Insight-

When they saw the star, they were overjoyed.

“If you find that star, you can always find your way home.” Those were my father’s words when he taught me how to locate the North Star as a child. Dad had served in the armed forces during wartime, and there were moments when his life depended on being able to navigate by the night sky. So he made sure I knew the names and locations of several constellations, but it was being able to find Polaris that mattered most of all. Knowing that star’s location meant I could gain a sense of direction wherever I was and find where I was supposed to be.

Scripture tells of another star of vital importance. “Magi from the east,” learned men (from an area encompassed by Iran and Iraq today) had been watching for signs in the sky of the birth of the One who was to be God’s king for His people. They came to Jerusalem asking “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him” (Matthew 2:1–2).

Astronomers don’t know what caused the star of Bethlehem to appear, but the Bible reveals that God created it to point the world to Jesus—“the bright Morning Star” (Revelation 22:16). Christ came to save us from

our sins and guide us back to God. Follow Him, and you’ll find your way home.

By: James Banks

The Christmas Star

When they saw the star, they were overjoyed.

Matthew 2:10

our sins and guide us back to God. Follow Him, and you’ll find your way home. By: James Banks

Reflect & Pray

In what practical way will you follow Jesus today? What can you do this week to share His love with others?

Dear Jesus, thank You for being the Way to my forever-home in heaven. Please help guide me by Your light today!

For further study, read Why Should I Trust God?

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers,December 24, 2023

The Hidden Life

…your life is hidden with Christ in God. —Colossians 3:3

December 24

The Spirit of God testifies to and confirms the simple, but almighty, security of the life that “is hidden with Christ in God.” Paul continually brought this out in his New Testament letters. We talk as if living a sanctified life were the most uncertain and insecure thing we could do. Yet it is the most secure thing possible, because it has Almighty God in and behind it. The most dangerous and unsure thing is to try to live without God. For one who is born again, it is easier to live in a right-standing relationship with God than it is to go wrong, provided we heed God’s warnings and “walk in the light” (1 John 1:7).

When we think of being delivered from sin, being “filled with the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18 ), and “walk[ing] in the light,” we picture the peak of a great mountain. We see it as very high and wonderful, but we say, “Oh, I could never live up there!” However, when we do get there through God’s grace, we find it is not a mountain peak at all, but a plateau with plenty of room to live and to grow. “You enlarged my path under me, so my feet did not slip” (Psalm 18:36).

When you really see Jesus, I defy you to doubt Him. If you see Him when He says, “Let not your heart be troubled…” (John 14:27), I defy you to worry. It is virtually impossible to doubt when He is there. Every time you are in personal contact with Jesus, His words are real to yo

u. “My peace I give to you…” (

John 14:27 (http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John+14:27)

)— a peace which brings an unconstrained confidence and covers you completely, from the top of your head to the soles of your feet. “…your life is hidden with Christ in God,” and the peace of Jesus Christ that cannot be disturbed has been imparted to you.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

For the past three hundred years men have been pointing out how similar Jesus Christ’s teachings are to other good teachings. We have to remember that Christianity, if it is not a supernatural miracle, is a sham. The Highest Good, 548 L

Saturday, December 23, 2023

Isaiah 38, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: A Hope-Filled Heart

From The Lucado Inspirational Reader

Isaiah 38

The Message

Time Spent in Death’s Waiting Room

38 At that time, Hezekiah got sick. He was about to die. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz visited him and said, “God says, ‘Prepare your affairs and your family. This is it: You’re going to die. You’re not going to get well.’”

2-3 Hezekiah turned away from Isaiah and, facing the wall, prayed to God: “God, please, I beg you: Remember how I’ve lived my life. I’ve lived faithfully in your presence, lived out of a heart that was totally yours. You’ve seen how I’ve lived, the good that I have done.” And Hezekiah wept as he prayed—painful tears.

4-6 Then God told Isaiah, “Go and speak with Hezekiah. Give him this Message from me, God, the God of your ancestor David: ‘I’ve heard your prayer. I have seen your tears. Here’s what I’ll do: I’ll add fifteen years to your life. And I’ll save both you and this city from the king of Assyria. I have my hand on this city.

7-8 “‘And this is your confirming sign, confirming that I, God, will do exactly what I have promised. Watch for this: As the sun goes down and the shadow lengthens on the sundial of Ahaz, I’m going to reverse the shadow ten notches on the dial.’” And that’s what happened: The declining sun’s shadow reversed ten notches on the dial.

* * *

9-15 This is what Hezekiah king of Judah wrote after he’d been sick and then recovered from his sickness:

In the very prime of life

I have to leave.

Whatever time I have left

is spent in death’s waiting room.

No more glimpses of God

in the land of the living,

No more meetings with my neighbors,

no more rubbing shoulders with friends.

This body I inhabit is taken down

and packed away like a camper’s tent.

Like a weaver, I’ve rolled up the carpet of my life

as God cuts me free of the loom

And at day’s end sweeps up the scraps and pieces.

I cry for help until morning.

Like a lion, God pummels and pounds me,

relentlessly finishing me off.

I squawk like a doomed hen,

moan like a dove.

My eyes ache from looking up for help:

“Master, I’m in trouble! Get me out of this!”

But what’s the use? God himself gave me the word.

He’s done it to me.

I can’t sleep—

I’m that upset, that troubled.

16-19 O Master, these are the conditions in which people live,

and yes, in these very conditions my spirit is still alive—

fully recovered with a fresh infusion of life!

It seems it was good for me

to go through all those troubles.

Throughout them all you held tight to my lifeline.

You never let me tumble over the edge into nothing.

But my sins you let go of,

threw them over your shoulder—good riddance!

The dead don’t thank you,

and choirs don’t sing praises from the morgue.

Those buried six feet under

don’t witness to your faithful ways.

It’s the living—live men, live women—who thank you,

just as I’m doing right now.

Parents give their children

full reports on your faithful ways.

* * *

20 God saves and will save me.

As fiddles and mandolins strike up the tunes,

We’ll sing, oh we’ll sing, sing,

for the rest of our lives in the Sanctuary of God.

21-22 Isaiah had said, “Prepare a poultice of figs and put it on the boil so he may recover.”

Hezekiah had said, “What is my cue that it’s all right to enter again the Sanctuary of God?”

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

December 23, 2023

Today's Scripture & Insight :

1 Thessalonians 5:11–15

So speak encouraging words to one another. Build up hope so you’ll all be together in this, no one left out, no one left behind. I know you’re already doing this; just keep on doing it.

The Way He Wants You to Live

12–13 And now, friends, we ask you to honor those leaders who work so hard for you, who have been given the responsibility of urging and guiding you along in your obedience. Overwhelm them with appreciation and love!

13–15 Get along among yourselves, each of you doing your part. Our counsel is that you warn the freeloaders to get a move on. Gently encourage the stragglers, and reach out for the exhausted, pulling them to their feet. Be patient with each person, attentive to individual needs. And be careful that when you get on each other’s nerves you don’t snap at each other. Look for the best in each other, and always do your best to bring it out.

Insight

Scholars believe that Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians, likely written around ad 50, may be the oldest writing in the New Testament. In this letter, Paul writes to a new community of believers in Jesus who emerged as a result of Paul and Silas’ visit to Thessalonica during Paul’s second missionary journey. Paul described himself and Silas as like a “nursing mother” or “father” (v. 11) to the Thessalonians. The church was primarily gentile (non-Jewish) believers; we’re told they’d “turned to God” from idol worship (1:9-10), a primarily gentile practice. Paul seems to have written 1 Thessalonians in response to a visit from Timothy, who brought an encouraging report of the believers’ “faith and love” (3:6) but may have also hinted at things “lacking in [their] faith” (v. 10). In this letter, Paul reinforces the heart of the gospel message and

encourages the Thessalonian believers on how to live out their new faith. By: Monica LaRose

Fellowship in Jesus

Encourager one another and build each other up.

1 Thessalonians 5:11

I’m not sure who’s responsible for turning out the lights and locking up the church after our Sunday morning service, but I know one thing about that person: Sunday dinner is going to be delayed. That’s because so many people love to hang around after church and talk about life decisions, heart issues and struggles, and more. It’s a joy to look around twenty minutes after the service and see so many people still enjoying each other’s company.

Fellowship is a key component of the Christlike life. Without the connectivity that comes from spending time with fellow believers, we’d miss out on many benefits of being a believer.

For instance, Paul says we can “encourage one another and build each other up” 1 Thessalonians 5:11. The author of Hebrews agrees, telling us not to neglect getting together, because we need to be “encouraging one another” (10:25). And the writer also says that when we’re together, we “spur one another on toward love and good deeds” (v. 24).

As people dedicated to living for Jesus, we prepare ourselves for faithfulness and service as we “encourage the disheartened” and are “patient with everyone”. Living that way, as He helps us, allows us to enjoy true fellowship and “to do what is good for each other and for everyone else” (v. 15). By: Dave Branon

Reflect & Pray

What benefits do you gain from being with believers? How can you help others experience fellowship in Christ?

Dear God, please help me to be a “fellowshiper”—one who generously encourages others in love and compassion

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

December 23, 2023

Sharing in the Atonement

God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ… —Galatians 6:14

The gospel of Jesus Christ always forces a decision of our will. Have I accepted God’s verdict on sin as judged on the Cross of Christ? Do I have even the slightest interest in the death of Jesus? Do I want to be identified with His death— to be completely dead to all interest in sin, worldliness, and self? Do I long to be so closely identified with Jesus that I am of no value for anything except Him and His purposes? The great privilege of discipleship is that I can commit myself under the banner of His Cross, and that means death to sin. You must get alone with Jesus and either decide to tell Him that you do not want sin to die out in you, or that at any cost you want to be identified with His death. When you act in confident faith in what our Lord did on the cross, a supernatural identification with His death takes place immediately. And you will come to know through a higher knowledge that your old life was “crucified with Him” (Romans 6:6). The proof that your old life is dead, having been “crucified with Christ” (Galatians 2:20), is the amazing ease with which the life of God in you now enables you to obey the voice of Jesus Christ.

Every once in a while our Lord gives us a glimpse of what we would be like if it were not for Him. This is a confirmation of what He said— “…without Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). That is why the underlying foundation of Christianity is personal, passionate devotion to the Lord Jesus. We mistake the joy of our first introduction into God’s kingdom as His purpose for getting us there. Yet God’s purpose in getting us into His kingdom is that we may realize all that identification with Jesus Christ means.

Thursday, December 21, 2023

Isaiah 37 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: HOPE IS BORN - December 21, 2023

Hollywood would recast the Christmas story. Joseph’s collar is way too blue. Mary is green from inexperience. The couple’s star power doesn’t match the bill. Too obscure, too simple. The story warrants some headliners. And what about the shepherds? Do they sing? A good public relations firm would move the birth to a big city. The Son of God deserves a royal entry. Less peasant, more pizzaz.

But we didn’t design the hour. God did. And God was content to enter the world in the presence of sleepy sheep and a wide-eyed carpenter. No spotlights, just candlelight. No crowns, just cows chewing cud.

If God was willing to wrap himself in rags, then all questions about his love for you are off the table. When Christ was born, so was our hope. That’s why I love Christmas!

Isaiah 37

The Only God There Is

1–2 37 When King Hezekiah heard the report, he also tore his clothes and dressed in rough, penitential burlap gunnysacks, and went into the sanctuary of God. He sent Eliakim the palace administrator, Shebna the secretary, and the senior priests, all of them also dressed in penitential burlap, to the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz.

3–4 They said to him, “Hezekiah says, ‘This is a black day. We’re in crisis. We’re like pregnant women without even the strength to have a baby! Do you think your God heard what the Rabshekah said, sent by his master the king of Assyria to mock the living God? And do you think your God will do anything about it? Pray for us, Isaiah. Pray for those of us left here holding the fort!’ ”

5–7 Then King Hezekiah’s servants came to Isaiah. Isaiah said, “Tell your master this, ‘God’s Message: Don’t be upset by what you’ve heard, all those words the servants of the Assyrian king have used to mock me. I personally will take care of him. I’ll arrange it so that he’ll get a rumor of bad news back home and rush home to take care of it. And he’ll die there. Killed—a violent death.’ ”

8 The Rabshekah left and found the king of Assyria fighting against Libnah. (He had gotten word that the king had left Lachish.)

9–13 Just then the Assyrian king received an intelligence report on King Tirhakah of Ethiopia: “He is on his way to make war on you.”

On hearing that, he sent messengers to Hezekiah with instructions to deliver this message: “Don’t let your God, on whom you so naively lean, deceive you, promising that Jerusalem won’t fall to the king of Assyria. Use your head! Look around at what the kings of Assyria have done all over the world—one country after another devastated! And do you think you’re going to get off? Have any of the gods of any of these countries ever stepped in and saved them, even one of these nations my predecessors destroyed—Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the people of Eden who lived in Telassar? Look around. Do you see anything left of the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, the king of the city of Sepharvaim, the king of Hena, the king of Ivvah?”

14 Hezekiah took the letter from the hands of the messengers and read it. Then he went into the sanctuary of God and spread the letter out before God.

15–20 Then Hezekiah prayed to God: “God-of-the-Angel-Armies, enthroned over the cherubim-angels, you are God, the only God there is, God of all kingdoms on earth. You made heaven and earth. Listen, O God, and hear. Look, O God, and see. Mark all these words of Sennacherib that he sent to mock the living God. It’s quite true, O God, that the kings of Assyria have devastated all the nations and their lands. They’ve thrown their gods into the trash and burned them—no great achievement since they were no-gods anyway, gods made in workshops, carved from wood and chiseled from rock. An end to the no-gods! But now step in, O God, our God. Save us from him. Let all the kingdoms of earth know that you and you alone are God.”

21–25 Then Isaiah son of Amoz sent this word to Hezekiah: “God’s Message, the God of Israel: Because you brought King Sennacherib of Assyria to me in prayer, here is my answer, God’s answer:

“ ‘She has no use for you, Sennacherib, nothing but contempt,

this virgin daughter Zion.

She spits at you and turns on her heel,

this daughter Jerusalem.

“ ‘Who do you think you’ve been mocking and reviling

all these years?

Who do you think you’ve been jeering

and treating with such utter contempt

All these years?

The Holy of Israel!

You’ve used your servants to mock the Master.

You’ve bragged, “With my fleet of chariots

I’ve gone to the highest mountain ranges,

penetrated the far reaches of Lebanon,

Chopped down its giant cedars,

its finest cypresses.

I conquered its highest peak,

explored its deepest forest.

I dug wells

and drank my fill.

I emptied the famous rivers of Egypt

with one kick of my foot.

26–27 “ ‘Haven’t you gotten the news

that I’ve been behind this all along?

This is a longstanding plan of mine

and I’m just now making it happen,

using you to devastate strong cities,

turning them into piles of rubble

and leaving their citizens helpless,

bewildered, and confused,

drooping like unwatered plants,

stunted like withered seedlings.

28–29 “ ‘I know all about your pretentious poses,

your officious comings and goings,

and, yes, the tantrums you throw against me.

Because of all your wild raging against me,

your unbridled arrogance that I keep hearing of,

I’ll put my hook in your nose

and my bit in your mouth.

I’ll show you who’s boss. I’ll turn you around

and take you back to where you came from.

30–32 “ ‘And this, Hezekiah, will be your confirming sign: This year’s crops will be slim pickings, and next year it won’t be much better. But in three years, farming will be back to normal, with regular sowing and reaping, planting and harvesting. What’s left of the people of Judah will put down roots and make a new start. The people left in Jerusalem will get moving again. Mount Zion survivors will take hold again. The zeal of God-of-the-Angel-Armies will do all this.’

33–35 “Finally, this is God’s verdict on the king of Assyria:

“ ‘Don’t worry, he won’t enter this city,

won’t let loose a single arrow,

Won’t brandish so much as one shield,

let alone build a siege ramp against it.

He’ll go back the same way he came.

He won’t set a foot in this city.

God’s Decree.

I’ve got my hand on this city

to save it,

Save it for my very own sake,

but also for the sake of my David dynasty.’ ”

36–38 Then the Angel of God arrived and struck the Assyrian camp—185,000 Assyrians died. By the time the sun came up, they were all dead—an army of corpses! Sennacherib, king of Assyria, got out of there fast, back home to Nineveh. As he was worshiping in the sanctuary of his god Nisroch, he was murdered by his sons Adrammelech and Sharezer. They escaped to the land of Ararat. His son Esar-haddon became the next king.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Thursday, December 21, 2023

Today's Scripture

Psalm 42

A psalm of the sons of Korah

1–3 42 A white-tailed deer drinks

from the creek;

I want to drink God,

deep draughts of God.

I’m thirsty for God-alive.

I wonder, “Will I ever make it—

arrive and drink in God’s presence?”

I’m on a diet of tears—

tears for breakfast, tears for supper.

All day long

people knock at my door,

Pestering,

“Where is this God of yours?”

4 These are the things I go over and over,

emptying out the pockets of my life.

I was always at the head of the worshiping crowd,

right out in front,

Leading them all,

eager to arrive and worship,

Shouting praises, singing thanksgiving—

celebrating, all of us, God’s feast!

5 Why are you down in the dumps, dear soul?

Why are you crying the blues?

Fix my eyes on God—

soon I’ll be praising again.

He puts a smile on my face.

He’s my God.

6–8 When my soul is in the dumps, I rehearse

everything I know of you,

From Jordan depths to Hermon heights,

including Mount Mizar.

Chaos calls to chaos,

to the tune of whitewater rapids.

Your breaking surf, your thundering breakers

crash and crush me.

Then God promises to love me all day,

sing songs all through the night!

My life is God’s prayer.

9–10 Sometimes I ask God, my rock-solid God,

“Why did you let me down?

Why am I walking around in tears,

harassed by enemies?”

They’re out for the kill, these

tormentors with their obscenities,

Taunting day after day,

“Where is this God of yours?”

11 Why are you down in the dumps, dear soul?

Why are you crying the blues?

Fix my eyes on God—

soon I’ll be praising again.

He puts a smile on my face.

He’s my God.

Insight

Psalm 42 is one of the twelve songs (Psalms 42-49, 84-85, 87-88) credited to the descendants of Korah, members of a Levitical choir commissioned by David to serve in the temple as singers and gatekeepers (1 Chronicles 6:31-33; 9:19; 2 Chronicles 20:19). Scholars say that Psalms 42 and 43 were originally one song, characterized by the introspective question: “Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me?” and the repeated assurance, “Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God” (42:5, 11; 43:5). By: K. T. Sim

The Light of Hope

Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God. Psalm 42:11

My mother’s shiny red cross should have been hanging next to her bed at the cancer care center. And I should have been preparing for holiday visits between her scheduled treatments. All I wanted for Christmas was another day with my mom. Instead, I was home . . . hanging her cross on a fake tree.

When my son Xavier plugged in the lights, I whispered, “Thank You.” He said, “You’re welcome.” My son didn’t know I was thanking God for using the flickering bulbs to turn my eyes toward the ever-enduring Light of Hope—Jesus.

The writer of Psalm 42 expressed his raw emotions to God (vv. 1–4). He acknowledged his “downcast” and “disturbed” soul before encouraging readers: “Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God” (v. 5). Though he was overcome with waves of sorrow and suffering, the psalmist’s hope shone through the remembrance of God’s past faithfulness (vv. 6–10). He ended by questioning his doubts and affirming the resilience of his refined faith: “Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God” (v. 11).

For many of us, the Christmas season stirs up both joy and sorrow. Thankfully, even these mixed emotions can be reconciled and redeemed through the promises of the true Light of Hope—Jesus.

By: Xochitl Dixon

Reflect & Pray

How has Jesus helped you process grief while celebrating Christmas? How can you support someone who’s grieving this season?

Dear Jesus, thank You for carrying me through times of grief and joy all year round.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Thursday, December 21, 2023

Experience or God’s Revealed Truth?

We have received…the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God. —1 Corinthians 2:12

My experience is not what makes redemption real— redemption is reality. Redemption has no real meaning for me until it is worked out through my conscious life. When I am born again, the Spirit of God takes me beyond myself and my experiences, and identifies me with Jesus Christ. If I am left only with my personal experiences, I am left with something not produced by redemption. But experiences produced by redemption prove themselves by leading me beyond myself, to the point of no longer paying any attention to experiences as the basis of reality. Instead, I see that only the reality itself produced the experiences. My experiences are not worth anything unless they keep me at the Source of truth— Jesus Christ.

If you try to hold back the Holy Spirit within you, with the desire of producing more inner spiritual experiences, you will find that He will break the hold and take you again to the historic Christ. Never support an experience which does not have God as its Source and faith in God as its result. If you do, your experience is anti-Christian, no matter what visions or insights you may have had. Is Jesus Christ Lord of your experiences, or do you place your experiences above Him? Is any experience dearer to you than your Lord? You must allow Him to be Lord over you, and pay no attention to any experience over which He is not Lord. Then there will come a time when God will make you impatient with your own experience, and you can truthfully say, “I do not care what I experience— I am sure of Him!”

Be relentless and hard on yourself if you are in the habit of talking about the experiences you have had. Faith based on experience is not faith; faith based on God’s revealed truth is the only faith there is.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

The main characteristic which is the proof of the indwelling Spirit is an amazing tenderness in personal dealing, and a blazing truthfulness with regard to God’s Word. Disciples Indeed, 386 R

Bible in a Year: Micah 4-5; Revelation 12

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Thursday, December 21, 2023

Really Ready for Christmas - #9639

Christmastime is kind of like time to get things in shape, especially around the house. Most of us become very motivated when December arrives in terms of getting things cleaned up. We dust corners and clean areas that haven't been touched for like eleven months. Trouble spots in the carpet that had gone unnoticed, suddenly we notice them and we work on them. That wall in the kitchen that needed some touch-up paint, it becomes a priority. We begin decorating things! Houses are suddenly in better shape than they've been in all year, especially since last Christmas. Christmas is shape-up time for houses...and people.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Really Ready for Christmas."

Our word for today from the Word of God is found in Isaiah 55:6. And it happens to be about fixing things up. Here's what it says: "Seek the Lord while He may be found. Call on Him while He is near." The 7th verse says, "Let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts, and let him turn to the Lord and He will have mercy on him and to our God, for He will freely pardon."

Now, you notice here it says, "Seek the Lord while He is near." You say, "Wait a minute. This isn't about Christmas. What does this have to do with Christmas?" Well, honestly, I don't think there's any time of the year when people feel closer to the Lord or have Jesus more on their radar than the Christmas season. Remember, "while He is near." I think Christ seems close at this time of the year; almost inescapable. You can probably sense that.

There's a softness - a kind of warm and cuddly feeling on the inside this time of year. We're softer than any other time. We find ourselves drifting into thoughts about Christ more often than usual. I mean, even watching the Charlie Brown Christmas Special or hearing a carol at the mall; in places we wouldn't normally think about Christ. We're open to Him. That's when it's time to fix things up with Jesus. Not just around the house; I mean inside the heart house of your life. "Seek the Lord while He may be found," it says. That's really the Christmas season. "Call on Him while He is near." Well, in a very real way, that is now.

This may have been for you a year of slowly drifting away from the Lord. You didn't run away; you're just not as close and warm...intimate like you used to be. Maybe it's been a year of real confusing doubts, hardships that have made you disillusioned and maybe a little hard-hearted. Or there could be a distraction that has taken His place for a while. But I'll bet you've discovered it's really no good away from Him is it?

Those are the best times of your life when you're close to Him. It's Christmas time! It's time to fix things up. "Seek the Lord while He may be found. Call on Him while He's close" like He is now. And maybe this year, maybe this is when you finally think about opening up to Christ as your personal Savior. Not just a baby in a manger. Not just the One we sing about in our carols and we go to church services and go through our Christmas thing.

You miss Him. You've missed having a personal relationship with Him. That's what you were made for. It's not that you haven't known about Him. You've never been against Him. You're religious. You know a lot of people who are Christians, but maybe you've never made your personal commitment to Christ. You've never said, "Jesus, what you did on that cross; what you came to do was for me. That was for all the wrong things I have done."

Well, Christmas is close, and I wouldn't be surprised if you feel a tug in your heart. And that tug? That's not me. That's Jesus. This could be your first Christmas with Christ in your heart if you'll fix things up with Him.

I'd love to help you begin that relationship with Him and understand from what He wrote in the Bible exactly how this relationship works. Would you go to our website? It's ANewStory.com. I think you'll find your way home there.

Whatever stands between you and Jesus right now, would you let Him clean it up before Christmas? Then it will be more than a song for you. You can really say, "I'll be home for Christmas!"

Confirming One’s Calling and Election

Thursday, December 28, 2023

Wednesday, December 27, 2023

Tuesday, December 26, 2023

Monday, December 25, 2023

Sunday, December 24, 2023

Saturday, December 23, 2023

Thursday, December 21, 2023