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As 2017 comes to an end, we pause and reflect on the year gone by and look to the new year with hope and anticipation.
How was 2017 for you? Was God good to you? Did you face any difficulties…hardships…losses? How about victories or milestones? Whether last year was a banner year for you or a year of difficulties and trials, as you look to the New Year, keep in mind the thoughts expressed in Lamentations 3:21-26: “Yet I still dare to hope when I remember this: The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning. I say to myself, ‘The Lord is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!’ The Lord is good to those who depend on him, to those who search for him. So it is good to wait quietly for salvation from the Lord.” No matter what you experienced in 2017, I want you to remember 6 words…and I want you to use them to build on in 2018. Are you ready? “YET I STILL DARE TO HOPE” Remember: New Year…New Mercies Bro. Joe Questions for Reflection:
This Week’s Suggested Readings Sunday - Lamentations 3:21-26 Monday - Psalm 39:4-7 Tuesday - Proverbs 3:5-6 Wednesday - 1 Peter 1:3-5 Thursday - Romans 8:35-39 Friday - Ephesians 2:4-5 Saturday - Psalm 116:1 Prayer Lord, I want to thank you for the blessings of the year gone by. For the year ahead of me, I place my trust…my hope…my life in your hands. Throughout my life, you have faithfully shown me your loving mercies. Father, I depend on you…I search for you…I wait for you…I dare to hope in you. Amen
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“And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.”
Luke 2:7 We have very little information about Joseph’s and Mary’s interactions with the innkeeper. What we do know is there was no room for them at the inn. Definitions: Innkeeper: a person who owns or manages an inn. Inn: a place where someone pays to lodge or reside. We are all innkeepers…we either own or manage the inn of our life. As innkeepers, we each decide if there is room for Jesus. Our decision is often determined by whether we consider ourselves owners or managers of our inn. The truth is…from God’s perspective, we are really only managers of the life He has given us. Payment has already been made for Jesus to reside in our inn; it’s up to us to determine if we will make room for Him. The invitation is simple: God is making known to you today “a savior who is Christ the Lord.” Are you willing to come and see? Are you willing to go and tell? Will you make room in your heart for Jesus? Bro. Joe Questions for Reflection:
This Week’s Suggested Readings Sunday - Luke 2:1-20 Monday - John 3:1-21 Tuesday - Isaiah 9:6 Wednesday - John 11:17-27 Thursday - Jeremiah 29:11-14 Friday - John 16:25-33 Saturday - Revelation 3:20-22 Prayer Lord, there is room in my heart for you. Thank you for the gift of your Holy Spirit, and your promise to never leave me. I am but a manager of the life you have given me. I put my faith and trust in you alone. Amen Christmas is a wonderful story, but it is so much more than a story. It’s a true story…It’s history…It’s our story…It’s the story of when love came down in the person of Jesus Christ.
Have you ever wondered where love comes from? When you see the love between a man and his wife, where does that come from? Or the love between a parent and a child? Or the love between family or good friends? The Bible gives us the answer: Love comes from God, because God is love. Love has existed from the very beginning. Even before the world was created, there was love. Jesus prayed in John 17:24: “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world.” But God not only loved the Son before creation, he also looked forward in time and loved us. We read in Ephesians 1:4-5: “For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will.” The miracle of Christmas is that the baby in the manger was God in human flesh…when love came down.This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. Love began in heaven. But love came down to earth at Christmas. Bro. Joe Questions for Reflection:
This Week’s Suggested Readings Sunday - 1 John 4:7-10 Monday - John 17:24 Tuesday - Ephesians 1:4-5 Wednesday - John 1:1-2,14 Thursday - Philippians 2:6-8 Friday - Luke 2:1-20 Saturday - Romans 8:31-39 Prayer Father, thank you for loving me as you do. I have done nothing to earn or deserve your love, but you love me just the same. Your grace and mercy are simply overwhelming. I want you to know that I love you too. Amen We get invitations everyday…for credit card offers…for opportunities to support something…attend something…or to try something. My response varies from invitation to invitation. Some I ignore…some I explore…some I accept. Ultimately, all invitations require a yes or no answer.
God offers invitations everyday, and unfortunately, I don’t always respond as I should. It seems as though an invitation from the Lord God would be…or at least should be…immediately accepted and pursued. What about you? How do you most often respond to God’s invitations? You see, God is at work all around you, and when you see God at work that is His invitation for you to join Him. Many are concerned about the cost…the time…the commitment. We must remember that God has a plan if we will simply follow Him. “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you, says the Lord, and I will bring you back from your captivity.” Jeremiah 29:11-14 It actually begins with accepting and pursuing that first invitation when Jesus says, “Follow Me.” Bro. Joe Questions for Reflection:
This Week’s Suggested Readings Sunday - John 1:12-13 Monday - John 10:27 Tuesday - Matthew 10:38 Wednesday - Matthew 11:28-30 Thursday - John 1:12-13 Friday - Hebrews 4:1-3 Saturday - 1 John 5:6-12 Prayer Lord, give me a willing heart to always accept and pursue the invitations that you lay before me. Thank you Lord for inviting me into a personal relationship with you and giving me the privilege of serving you and following you. Amen What comes to mind when you’re asked the question: are you prepared for Christmas? Perhaps you think of decorations…tree, lights…dust catchers, or maybe cleaning the house. The list to make…food to buy…meals to prepare…gifts to purchase and wrap…shopping that needs to be done…traffic and crowds to deal with…cards to address and mail. Christmas can be quite overwhelming.
Let’s try and set all of that aside for a few moments and focus on an encounter with God…an encounter when He reveals Himself to you. Like the Wise Men, are you looking for Him? When God reveals Himself to you, are you prepared to respond? Are you ready to worship…to praise…to give…to tell others about your encounter with the King? May it truly be a God moment in your life. Maybe you’ll be like the shepherds…in the right place at the right time. Make sure that your heart is in the right place… “For, at just the right time Christ will be revealed from heaven by the blessed and only almighty God, the King of all kings and Lord of all lords.” 1 Timothy 6:15. I’m sure you’ve seen the sign before that says, “Wise Men Still Seek Him.” It really is true. “If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me.” Jeremiah 29:13 Bro. Joe Questions for Reflection:
This Week’s Suggested Readings Sunday - Luke 2 Monday - Matthew 2:1-12 Tuesday - Matthew 6:33 Wednesday - 2 Corinthians 6:2 Thursday - 1 Timothy 6:15 Friday - Romans 8:31-39 Saturday - John 3:16-17 Prayer Lord, help me to stay focused on the true meaning of Christmas. Thank you for sending your Son as a baby to rescue me. I truly want to see Him over and above all that the world says is Christmas. May every day be a new revelation of Christ in my life…may I recognize every day as Christmas day…Immanuel…God with us. Amen |
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