All I want for Christmas...?

 

 

Were you on Santa’s naughty or nice list this year? As you opened your presents this morning, did you get all that you desired? Let’s take some time to look at three types of gifts that you might have, or may still receive this Christmas…

The Surprise Gift

This present is the kind you had no idea was coming. This may be something you didn’t even know you wanted. It may also be someone surprising you that you didn’t expect to see. Mary received one of those gifts. I love imagining what it might have been like to receive the news as she did as told in Luke 1:26-38. Being a Jewish girl, she knew about the virgin birth and a Savior that was to be born as foretold by the prophets (Isaiah 7:14). As she was told by the angel Gabriel that God chose her to carry the Savior, she must have been stunned.

The Disappointing Gift

These kinds of presents are hard to deal with. You don’t want to offend the gift giver, but at the same time, may have a hard time accepting the gift. Joseph experienced this when he heard that the one he was to marry was with child. As told in Matthew 1:18-19, Joseph was going to deal with the matter quietly. It wasn’t until an angel came to him in a dream (vs. 20-23) that he knew that this child was Jesus, the promised Messiah.

The Greatest Gift

Is it something you only get if you didn’t make the naughty list? Is it something money can buy? What is this “greatest gift”? John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.”

Here are a few things you should know about this gift…

 

-Money can’t buy it. Ephesians 2:8, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith and that not from yourselves, it is the gift of God”

 

-It can’t be earned. Ephesians 2:9, “not by works, so that no one can boast.”

 

-This gift is for all. Luke 2:8-12, “And there were shepherds living out in the fields near by, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for ALL THE PEOPLE. Today in the town of David, a Savior has been born TO YOU; He is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

 

-You can receive this gift this Christmas. Acts 16:31, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved.” Romans 6:23, "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." John 1:12, “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name.”

Let it shine

 

 

We all love a little sunshine, especially after coming off of such a hard winter, if you’re a northerner like myself. We love the things those rays bring: warmer temperatures, the green grass and blooming flowers, vitamin D to brighten our moods, the glow our skin receives, and of course, the beautiful sunrises and sunsets. One of the things I like most about summer versus winter are the longer days. I’m reminded of the verses in Genesis 1:3-4, “And God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and He separated the light from darkness." There are many verses that can teach us what “light” means in the Bible. Let’s examine three of the main themes of light…

Letting Jesus shine light into the dark areas of your life
Just like a light being turned on in the night, it can sometimes sting to have our sins and hurts exposed. It is far easier to keep the lights off and keep those things hidden away in the dark. Sometimes things we’d rather not think about or deal with, need forgiveness and healing.

 

-1 John 1:7, But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, His Son, purifies us from all sin.

-Isaiah 42:16, I will lead the blind by ways they have have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them.

-2 Samuel 22:29, You, Lord, are my lamp; the Lord turns my darkness into light.

-John 3:19, This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.

-Job 33:28, God has delivered me from going down to the pit, and I shall live to enjoy the light of life.

-Isaiah 58:8, Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.

Letting Jesus light your path

Life is full of decisions to be made. Each day we face several choices, some seemingly insignificant, others on a grander scale. Sometimes we get to decide, sometimes others make the choices for us and it’s up to us to decide how we are going to react. With all of the possible selections, we can ask God to help us by asking Him for guidance.

-Psm. 119:105, Your word is a lamp for my feet, and a light on my path.
-Psm. 43:3, Send me your light and your faithful care, let them lead me; let them bring me to your holy mountain, to the place where you dwell.

-Psm. 56:13, For you delivered me from death and my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in the light of life.

-Neh. 9:11-13, You divided the sea before them, so that they passed through it on dry ground, but you hurled their pursuers into the depths, like a stone into mighty waters. By day you led them with a pillar of cloud, and by night with a pillar of fire to give them light on the way they were to take. You came down on Mount Sinai; you spoke to them from heaven. You gave them regulations and laws that are just and right, and decrees and commands that are good.

-John 8:12, When Jesus spoke again to the people, He said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

-2 Peter 1:19, We also have the prophetic message as something completely reliable, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.

-Psm. 36:9, For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light.

Letting the light shine through your life

If you are a Christian with a personal relationship with Christ, you are called to be a light. A song children sing in church says, ”this little light of mine, I’m going to let it shine." God uses ordinary people to reflect His light. He will use our willingness to witness to the world who He is. The world is looking for those who have hope, treat others with kindness, display fruits of the spirit, and who live out values found in God’s Word.

-1 Peter 2:9, But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.
-Matt. 5:14-16, You are the light of the world. Like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.

-John 14:6, Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

-1 Thess. 5:5, You are all children of the light and children of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness.

-Isaiah 49:6b, I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.

-Psm. 27:1, The Lord is my light and my salvation-whom shall I fear? the Lord is the stronghold of my life-of whom shall I be afraid?

-2 Cor. 4:4-6, The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For what we preach is not of ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ.

Jesus, the light of the world came so we can have light. He is the creator of it. Let His light come into your life, heal your pain, and guide your path. Then let it shine through your life so others can see “The Light”-Jesus Christ.

God, you want me to do what? Part 2

[If you haven’t read part one, I encourage you to first go back and read it. It will give you a basis for this second devotional.]

Has life presented you with a situation that would be easier to give up on than finish? Chances are you face these scenarios on a daily basis. They can be large and daunting to simple, but yet tedious. This fall I cheered on my brother and his friends as they ran a marathon. 26.2 miles! It’s true that most people wouldn’t even get off their couch to begin training, but the part they agreed was the hardest part of the race (where some even quit) was just a few miles before the finish. Can you imagine putting in miles and miles of training, just to stop so close? Let’s look at the story of Jericho and try to put ourselves in their shoes…

“Now Jericho was tightly shut up because of the Israelites. No one went out and no one came in. 2 Then the LORD said to Joshua, "See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands, along with its king and its fighting men. 3 March around the city once with all the armed men. Do this for six days. 4 Have seven priests carry trumpets of rams' horns in front of the ark. On the seventh day, march around the city seven times, with the priests blowing the trumpets. 5 When you hear them sound a long blast on the trumpets, have all the people give a loud shout; then the wall of the city will collapse and the people will go up, every man straight in." 6 So Joshua son of Nun called the priests and said to them, "Take up the ark of the covenant of the LORD and have seven priests carry trumpets in front of it." 7 And he ordered the people, "Advance! March around the city, with the armed guard going ahead of the ark of the LORD." 8 When Joshua had spoken to the people, the seven priests carrying the seven trumpets before the LORD went forward, blowing their trumpets, and the ark of the LORD's covenant followed them. 9 The armed guard marched ahead of the priests who blew the trumpets, and the rear guard followed the ark. All this time the trumpets were sounding. 10 But Joshua had commanded the people, "Do not give a war cry, do not raise your voices, do not say a word until the day I tell you to shout. Then shout!" 11 So he had the ark of the LORD carried around the city, circling it once. Then the people returned to camp and spent the night there.12 Joshua got up early the next morning and the priests took up the ark of the LORD.13 The seven priests carrying the seven trumpets went forward, marching before the ark of the LORD and blowing the trumpets. The armed men went ahead of them and the rear guard followed the ark of the LORD, while the trumpets kept sounding. 14 So on the second day they marched around the city once and returned to the camp. They did this for six days. 15 On the seventh day, they got up at daybreak and marched around the city seven times in the same manner, except that on that day they circled the city seven times.16 The seventh time around, when the priests sounded the trumpet blast, Joshua commanded the people, "Shout! For the LORD has given you the city! 17 The city and all that is in it are to be devoted to the LORD. Only Rahab the prostitute and all who are with her in her house shall be spared, because she hid the spies we sent. 18 But keep away from the devoted things, so that you will not bring about your own destruction by taking any of them. Otherwise you will make the camp of Israel liable to destruction and bring trouble on it. 19 All the silver and gold and the articles of bronze and iron are sacred to the LORD and must go into his treasury." 20 When the trumpets sounded, the people shouted, and at the sound of the trumpet, when the people gave a loud shout, the wall collapsed; so every man charged straight in, and they took the city.”

Will you get off the couch?

The first step to running a marathon is the decision to act. As a personal trainer, when I approach a client about setting a new goal, such as running a race, they have to believe that what I’m asking/encouraging them to do is possible. If Joshua did not believe that God could take down the city, he would have never commanded his troops to start marching. Pastor Steven Furtick states, “Impossible situations are not intimidating to God.” If we have faith that God is in control, we will be living a faithfully active life.

Will the “blisters” get the best of you?

God can use the struggles to make you stronger. When a blister heals it produces tougher skin. Often times God will allow things to happen that we do not understand. If God wanted He could have just had Joshua and his army march up to the city and have the walls collapse. What would they have learned from that? After they endured the march they were able to appreciate the awesome power of the hand of God.

Will you finish?

If you’ve ever run a marathon you know the importance of pace setter or mile markers. Wouldn’t it be nice if life was the same way? We sometimes feel like we are enduring an endless struggle. How much longer will this go on? I’m sure the soldiers would have loved to see at least a few bricks fall in their journey. We don’t know what “mile” we are at in our lives. We have to trust that God is faithful to help us endure our race. As I watched my brother run along with his friends, wouldn’t it be tragic if they would have stopped at mile 23? So close. Wouldn’t it have also been sad if the soldiers stopped on day 6 and never got to see God make the walls fall?

Don’t stop. If you are struggling in your own marathon, remember that God has a purpose for your race. It may seem tedious and never ending. It may seem silly or ridiculous. It may seem like you don’t have the strength to go on. It may seem downright impossible. And it may seem like no one else understands. Rest in the ever faithful Father and believe that He will achieve His plan in your life. In verse 27 it goes on to say, “So the LORD was with Joshua, and his fame spread throughout the land.” Keep going and see what God does!