The Heart of Advent

 "As followers of Christ, we are a people living between two advents: the coming of Jesus as a baby in Bethlehem and His future triumphant return as the King of kings. Since the fourth century, believers across the globe have observed Advent to remember Jesus’s birth and anticipate His return." Advent 2020 – Jesus Christ is Born, She Reads Truth, p.16

The other day I received a text from one of my precious friends telling me that she had left something for me on my porch. I was so touched when I discovered that she had bought me this Bible Study for the next 4 weeks wanting us to celebrate Advent together. What better way to lead up to celebrating Jesus as a little baby than remembering what He did for us as Savior. As believer’s we have the Word to read about the First Advent, that season of Jesus’s life when He came to fulfill the Old Testament prophesies and promises. He was the answer to the prayers of several generations who were anticipating the promised Messiah.

As believer’s we have the Christ-given authority to anticipate the Second Advent, the promised return of Jesus. One day in the future He will return, ushering in the fullness of His kingdom. ‘On that future day, every tear will be wiped away; there will be no more pain, grief, or death. All things will be made new, all that is wrong will be made right, and the eternal dwelling place of God will be with His people.’ p. 16

And that is our HOPE which is the first candle we light today in celebration leading up to peering into the manger to get a first glimpse at baby Jesus in December. Take some time this week and celebrate the things you are hopeful for in 2021. For me,

Because of HOPE:

I have a guaranteed room in Heaven walking with Jesus.

I will see my departed loved ones again one day and never be without them ever again.

I will experience God’s fulfilled promise of a deep desire hidden in my heart.

I will walk in joy apart from any challenging circumstances in 2021.

Welcome to the first week of Advent where HOPE will take center stage in the story of our lives.

All Things Multiplied

 “Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature…” 2 Peter 1:2-4

As my preacher likes to state, the Bible is not a book but rather a library containing 66 books written in different formats…poetry…history...songs…biographies to name a few. This morning as I read the above passage written by Peter, I found my mind reading over most of these words instead of being the recipient of them. However, these words are too beautiful to not break down what it means for you and me as God's children.

As I read the word ‘partaker’ I was struck with yesterday’s Thanksgiving meal. The word partake means to participate in…join in…be a part of…to share along with. I sat at the table with my precious family and enjoyed culinary item after item until I was stuffed! In the same way, I love this image of feasting on and participating in God’s divine nature until we are full. Sometimes when a passage of Scripture seems to be above my head, I will write it making it first person and in a style I can better understand. With the fresh Thanksgiving meal on my mind from yesterday, and the fresh application of today’s Word I decided to write my own expression into a prayer from our passage.

Dear Father, You have given to me through Your divine power all the things that pertain to my life and my pursuit of godliness. I don’t join in through my own virtue and glory but only through knowing You and the ways You have called me. The precious promises that You have uniquely given me are tucked in my heart. They are indeed wonderful and undeserving by my own deeds or words. They exceed anything You have ever promised me and through Your divine power You allow me to partake…to receive…to participate as You assign and will for my life. Through your multiplied grace and peace, I am blessed beyond imagination. Amen.

Being a partaker of the divine means peeking into heaven while we are still on earth. Being a partaker of the divine means filling up on the promises and privileges from God. Being a partaker means joining in on the spiritual things instead of the worldly things. I’m so grateful that Peter reminds us of our position in Christ. One of our greatest Thanksgiving blessings!

The God Who Sees

 “Now the Angel of the LORD found her…in the wilderness…And He said, ‘Hagar...where have you come from, and where are you going?’” Genesis 16:7

This morning we are introduced to a young woman named Hagar, who was the personal servant to Sarai, the wife of Abram. We witness through Scripture her sobbing in the wilderness after fleeing from home with her life turned upside down. Previously, one day as she went about her normal duties the decision of one selfish impatient woman disrupted her life on every level…her work…her health…her home. Sarai, her master was barren and had grown impatient with God answering her prayers of pregnancy. She demanded that her husband Abram marry Hagar and impregnate her so that Sarai could be a mother. Once she was pregnant, she despised Sarai for the decision that had changed her life. These circumstances are where she has come from and the story picks up where the heart of the Lord looked down and saw her misery. The Angel of the LORD appeared beside her and began a tender dialogue with her. He asked, ‘where have you come from, and where are you going?’ With swollen eyes and a tear-streaked face she answered His question. This is a story that has played out a million times since the beginning of time.

This morning I wonder the same about your story with God… ‘where have you come from, and where are you going?’ To the spouse who came from a happy marriage to the life of being single again…where are you going? To the person who came from a healthy body to the life of medical concerns…where are you going? To the couple who raised their baby in church to the reality that their teenager is living in darkness…where are you going? To the employee who came from a good job to discover that the job has been eliminated…where are you going? The list of ‘comings and goings’ are dizzying at best and terrifying at worse. The answer as believers is that we are going straight into the arms of Jesus with everything we face!

In an instant our lives can change but God never does for ‘He is…and was…and is the One to come!’ (Rev 1:8). He is the One who saw Hagar at her loneliest moment and He is the One who sees you. He reminds us from where we have come and to where He has taken us in past troubles. He already knows the answer to what He asks of us, but He asks so we can remind ourselves of His unshakeable faithfulness. He reminds us that He is greater than any circumstance that lies before us. He comforts our fears and brings peace out of situations that scare us to death. He is our anchor is every storm, and He walks beside us in all our comings and goings.

Just like you, I may not know where I’m going in my future but I know where I’ve been and Who has been with me every step of the way…the God of Hagar, the God of my parents and grandparents, and the God of every moment.

Next time you consider where it is you are heading, have confidence and thank God that He has already arrived there before you.

Swinging at Air

“Why are you afraid?” Matthew 8:26

When I was a little girl, I was always intimidated by a Pinata and usually shrunk back allowing others to take a swing at birthday parties. But on a few occasions a well-intended mother of a friend would insist that I take a turn. It always seemed a bit scary to me as a child to be blindfolded, and dependent upon another person to guide my steps to the unknown. If the blindfold wasn’t enough, I was to take a big stick and begin wildly swinging at air in the small hope I would land a devastating blow causing an explosion of candy. On the far chance that I was successful, by the time I removed the blindfold the other children were on the floor clamoring for the candy.

Sometimes I feel like that little girl blindfolded and swinging at air when there is a threat up ahead…If I make contact with the unknown what in the world will the fall-out be? What about you? Are you swinging at something fearful that has not even come to pass? We are all blindfolded when it comes to our future so what will our response be? Will we swing the stick of fear at whatever is dangling before us? Will the explosion be chaos instead of ‘candy?’ Focusing on fear will always diminish our hope for victory over the unknown. ‘Fear is the consummate robber…Faith is not as easy to come by as fear, but it is colossally easier to live with.’ The Quest, Beth Moore, p. 34.

God did not give us a spirit to fear things; fear comes from the flesh. God gave His Spirit because of His love for us to convince us we are held. His Spirit provides us with power, courage to walk through our fears, and vision to guide us. He gives us self-discipline to take our thoughts captive and replace them with full belief that we are okay and everything will be okay. Whatever threatens us we must swing at it with our eyes wide open, using the Word of God as our staff. His yield is beautiful and bountiful if we really believe that God is good and He is in total control.

Our Eastern View

“And Nathanael said to him, ‘Can anything good come out of Nazareth?’” John 1:46

I’ve never thought of this question until today and how rich it is in application for you and for me. Nathanael’s question was in response to Philip, his friend who was encouraging him to meet Jesus. Philip believed Jesus was the coming Messiah based on the prophesies of past prophets. Clearly, Nathanael’s opinion of Nazarenes was negative and judgmental leaving a bad taste in his mouth. This question is hauntingly similar to thoughts that I have had during some of my most challenging seasons. I have had the same distaste in my mouth when considering outcomes from life’s problems beckoning the same question…, ‘Can anything good come from ________?’

Sometimes the very thing that we dislike will be the very thing that God uses to deliver us. The phone rings, the text is delivered, the medical test comes back and our mind and heart sound the battle cry, ‘Can anything good come from this? This situation stinks!’ Suddenly, our doubt replaces our hope…our fear screams over the whisper of our faith…our expectations are replaced with exceptions. We must remember that the same ‘good’ that came out of Nazareth for the disciples is the same ‘good’ Who comes out of Heaven for us…Christ Jesus! He has been coming out for us since our first breath and our first heartbeat. He is the answer to every single question in all our quandaries.

When we begin asking the question of ‘What on earth could possibly be good about our situation’ we only need to look at our past seasons. The same Jesus who came out of Nazareth is the same Jesus who came to us in our hurting. He is the same Jesus who walked us through our failures to the other side. He is the same Jesus who stays with us when we walk away. There is spiritual good to be found in every season which is an overflow of our experiences when we walk them out with God.

He will turn everything we face into the ability to face everything!

Here I Am!

“Then the LORD God called to Adam and said to him, ‘Where are you?’” Genesis 3:9

“Scholars estimate…that the Bible is home to somewhere around thirty-three hundred inquiries depending upon the translation…Hundreds of questions are exchanged laterally between humans…but the ones that will most profoundly shape our landscape will be vertical: questions man asks of God and those God asks of man…To walk with God is to be on a quest. And a quest is no quest without questions.” The Quest, Beth Moore, p. 14.

Considering the fact that my devotionals are usually written out of the overflow of my Bible Studies it dawns on me this morning that the next 6 weeks might be awkward to write. Our questions to God at best are those which we are too embarrassed to ask or those we push into our subconscious not really wanting to know the answer. But my questions at worst will be in full view which leaves me feeling vulnerable and a bit embarrassed. But, like Jesus instructs us in Matthew 10:27, ‘Whatever I tell you in the dark, speak it the light; and what you hear in the ear, preach on the housetops.’ Over the next 6 weeks I will share whatever questions the Lord leads me to for transparency and shared encouragement.

Today’s instructions were to answer the same question God asked Adam and Eve in the garden, ‘Where are you? As I re-read my answer to this question, I have written statements regarding different circumstances I presently face. My written statement in part is as follows: ‘Excited and joyful because of good news. Humble that I am being used by God in certain areas, but also feeling insecure at the same time. Impatient still having to live with Covid, but grateful my family has not been devastated by it. Disappointed in government with no good answers. Weary in waiting on a promise God gave me years ago, but fully expecting it to be realized. Praising God for giving me self-discipline in an area I’ve needing for years. Frustrated that I am battling jealousy in a few areas of my life.’ WHEW! What a mess but without honesty freedom will tarry and intimacy with God will fade.

I encourage you this morning to consider the call from Ge 3:9. God doesn’t ask these questions out of condemnation but out of a longing to engage more deeply with us.

‘Where are you?’

At the Base of the Hill

 “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” Matthew 7:7

A few weeks ago, I went hiking in the woods with a dear friend but I had to have two important things for the hike. She loaned me a bright orange vest that would alert hunters of my presence. She loaned me a long sturdy staff to make the incline easier by allowing it to bear some of my weight. The stick also was to tap on the path to alert snakes that intruders might be approaching. We had a great time and my friend made it funny, entertaining and enlightening. From the base of the hill to the top, she would stop and point out things along the path. She would answer any questions I had regarding that area. We wouldn’t continue the hike until she had told me everything that she wanted me to know.

This morning welcome to The Quest, my new Bible Study by Beth Moore. It is about engaging in dialogue with God instead of just experiencing life as a spectator…a bystander…an onlooker. God calls us to do more than just sight-seeing during our journey on earth. His desire is for us to arrive at a stop and linger with Him…hike the hills of that area…ask questions in search of His answers. There are precious artifacts to unearth on whatever path to which He has brought us. He has provided us with what we need for the journey just like my friend provided me. He has considered the path ahead of the hike that He desires to walk with us. He has things He wants to share with us for our greater understanding. He is no hurry and longs for us to ask our questions regarding our surroundings. Asking is a form of intimacy and worship.

Throughout the Bible God has been asking His children questions of His own to bring them into fellowship. We must ready ourselves for the hike by using God’s word as our staff which we will lean on for truth. We must use His spirit to reflect the warnings of danger on our journey. And above all, we must linger with the Lover of our soul and ask the questions so He can answer…seek His heart so we can find what we need…knock on the door of trust so we can discovery. It’s going to be a great adventure!