During our worship time this morning, my wife, Linda, and I sang a few Christmas carols, one of which was “Joy To the World.” I thought about the lyrics we were singing, particularly “let every heart prepare Him room, and heaven and nature sing,” and I was led to read the gospel accounts of Jesus’ birth. After reading them, I sat and meditated on what I had read. Now I’ve read these passages in Matthew and Luke many times before, but something really stood out to me as I read them today–the reactions or, I should say, the response of the people involved in the story.
First, there were the angels. After the angel messenger appeared to the shepherds to announce the birth of the Savior, Jesus, the sky suddenly filled with a whole army of angels, a heavenly choir, who began lifting their voices in praise (Luke 2:13-14). The hearts of the angels were filled with excitement over the coming of the Savior. That excitement just poured out of their hearts as they sang their praises to God.
Then, after hearing the words spoken to them by the angel messenger and witnessing this heavenly worship service, the hearts of the shepherds were so filled with joy and wonder that they just dropped everything, left their flocks, and hurried (they didn’t take a leisurely stroll, they ran!) to Bethlehem so they could actually see what the angel had told them was happening there (Luke 2:15-16). After seeing Jesus, their hearts were filled to overflowing and they told everyone they knew about it and returned to their flocks praising God (Luke 2:17-18, 20).
Mary had the response that only a mother could have. After witnessing the visit of the shepherds and their response to Jesus, Mary quietly tucked all of these things that happened into the scrapbook of her heart, where she treasured them and thought about them in years to come (Luke 2:19).
And, of course, there were also the wise men, the Magi from the east. These men of great wealth and knowledge had studied the prophecies and read the signs in the heavens. Their hearts were filled with the desire to see the child born to be king of the Jews, so they packed up their things and followed the star which led them on their long journey to see Jesus. When they reached Bethlehem and saw the child, they recognized who He was and their hearts filled with reverence. They bowed down and worshiped Him, then presented Him with gifts worthy of a king (Matthew 2:1-2, 9-11).
The Christmas season is a time to reflect on the wonderful gift that God has given us in sending His Son, this tiny baby born in a manger, who would grow up to sacrifice His own life so that we could have eternal life. My prayer, not just for myself, but for us all, is that the joy of Christmas will fill our hearts and that we will open our hearts to prepare Him room. Let our hearts never be like the inn at Bethlehem and have no room for Him.
Category: Devotionals
Desire
The Lord has been speaking to me today about desire. When God created man, He placed in him the ability to experience feelings and emotions. He enables us to give and receive love, to feel joy, happiness. He even enabled us to feel sadness and anger. God also placed within us the ability to feel desire. I believe that His intent was for us to desire Him, to want to be close to Him and to live in a relationship with Him. But, like so many other things, desire became corrupted by the fall of man.
The definition of desire is “to long or hope for.” Desire can be good or bad, depending on the motivation of the person experiencing the desire and what is being desired. So, what does God’s word say about desire?
For one thing, desire is a heart issue. In Matthew 6:21, Jesus said that our heart’s desires are dictated by what we treasure. If we treasure earthly things, then that is what our hearts will desire, but if we treasure the things of God, our desire will be for them. This doesn’t mean that all earthly things are bad. God does want us to have our heart’s desires, but He wants us to desire Him first. Psalm 37:4 says that those who delight in Him will be given their heart’s desires.
The Lord wants us to produce fruit for His Kingdom. In the parable of the seed in the fourth chapter of the Gospel of Mark, the seed represents God’s word, His message of Good News. This parable tells us that if we allow worries, wealth, or the desire for other things (seeking the things of the world over the things of the kingdom) crowd out the word of God in our lives, then we will bear no fruit (Mark 4:19).
So, what should we desire? We should desire God. We should desire a relationship with Him, desire to spend time with Him, desire to worship Him and praise Him. We should also desire the gifts of the Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:31). We should desire to do what pleases God (Philippians 2:13). And, of course, we should have a desire for the word and the ways of God.
My prayer today is that I will always desire to seek the Lord and His righteousness above all else.
"Why Do You Praise Me?"
God asked me today, “Why do you praise Me?
As I reflected on this question, the first thought that I had was, “Because You are worthy to be praised.” Now, if I were a contestant on Family Feud, I would probably be hearing, “Good answer! Good answer!” But my heart was telling me there is more to it than that. Searching God’s word, I found some answers to the question of why we praise God.
We praise Him because Scripture commands us to. There are numerous verses that say this, such as Psalm 150:1, which begins with the words, “Praise the Lord!” Those words appear over and over again in the book of Psalms. So, God’s word clearly tells us that praising Him is something we are supposed to do.
We praise Him because we have been created to do so. In Isaiah 43:21, God tells us that the people He created (that would be all of us!) were created so that they may proclaim His praise. God created us and breathed life into us. We should use that breath to praise Him.
We praise Him because it is good to do so. We see this in Psalm 92:1, which tells us that it is good to both thank Him and praise Him.
We praise Him because He is enthroned in our praise. He inhabits the praises of His people. Psalm 22 says that God is enthroned in the praise of Israel. As children of the living God, we desire to meet with and spend time with our heavenly Father. Praise allows us to do that because, when we praise Him, He is there.
And, of course, my initial answer is most definitely one of many reasons as to why we praise Him–He is worthy to be praised! There are many references to this in His word, but the one that stood out to me was Psalm 48:1, which says that God is great and worthy of praise.
Lord, thank You for creating me to praise You. Thank You for giving me the breath that allows me to sing and shout Your praise. Help me to praise You always, no matter what circumstances I find myself in. You are holy, Lord, and worthy to be praised. I praise You with all that I have, Lord, and I pray that my praise is acceptable to You, Father. In Jesus’ name. Amen!
God So Loved…
In preparation for Christmas, I have been reading some Advent and Christmas devotionals. This morning, as I was reading one, I heard a voice in my head saying, “God so love the world.” That phrase kept repeating and it got me thinking. That is the reason for Christmas. God loved us so much the He sent His Son to earth in the form of a tiny baby.
As I reflected on this, scenes from the life of Jesus on earth starting playing in my head. It hit me that, throughout that time, our enemy Satan tried very hard to prevent Jesus from accomplishing His mission–to free us from the bondage of our sin and restore our relationship with God. Satan knew that this was Jesus’ mission and could see the writing on the wall. If Jesus fulfilled what God sent Him to do, not only would we be freed from sin, but he would be defeated. So, the enemy of our souls tried his best to prevent it from happening.
First, he tried to create scandal by preventing Joseph from taking Mary as his wife because she was with child. Joseph planned to quietly divorce Mary. But, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream to calm his fears and explain that the child Mary was carrying was the Son of God. In obedience to God, Joseph took Mary as his wife (Luke 1:18-25). Scandal prevented, Satan thwarted,
When Jesus was born, Satan tried using King Herod to end Jesus’ mission. Herod had learned of Jesus’ birth and knew that the prophecies spoke of a new King who would be born. Realizing that Jesus was that King, Herod tried to preserve his own reign by having the child killed. But, once again, an angel of the Lord spoke to Joseph in a dream, warning him about Herod’s plot. Joseph took Jesus and Mary and fled to Egypt (Luke 2:13-18). Catastrophe averted, Satan thwarted again.
Years later, when Jesus began His ministry, Satan decided that he would take it into his own hands to destroy Jesus’ mission. When Jesus had spent forty days and nights fasting in the wilderness, Satan appeared to Him. Knowing that Jesus would be weak and hungry, Satan tried to tempt Him. Temptation had worked with Adam and Eve in the garden, so Satan, the father of lies, must have figured it was worth another shot. But Jesus leaned on God’s word and resisted Satan’s attempts (Matthew 4:1-11). Temptation avoided, Satan thwarted yet again.
Then came the day of the cross. Satan likely rejoiced, watching with glee as Jesus was tried, beaten, scorned, and then nailed to a cross to die. When Jesus gave up His last breath, Satan probably thought he had won. After all, Jesus was dead. But, the enemy’s celebration was cut short three days later when Jesus, the Son of God, our Savior and Deliverer, rose from the grave. We were freed from the bondage of our sin. Mission accomplished, Satan defeated!
Thank You, Lord, for this reminder that the joyous event we celebrate on Christmas, the birth of Your Son, is ultimately about the cross. It’s about Your great love for us that was shown by giving Jesus to die for us while we were sinners and totally undeserving of it. In Jesus’ name. Amen!
Let Freedom Ring!
Let freedom ring! Freedom is a word that we hear in many songs, especially patriotic ones. We cherish our freedom. In our nation, we enjoy many freedoms. But, are we truly free?
True freedom–freedom from the bondage of sin–comes from God and it is given to us through His Son, Jesus Christ. Freedom was the goal in Jesus’ coming to earth as a man. In Luke 4:18, Jesus proclaims that He came to set the captive free, to give freedom to the oppressed. Throughout His ministry, He set many people free from infirmities.
But the greatest freedom He gave was freedom from sin. Through Him, anyone who believes is set free from the bondage of sin (Acts 13:39). He gave His own life as a ransom, paying the price for our sins. For that, we should be truly thankful. It is a freedom that we should cherish above all other freedoms because it allows us to have access to God’s presence, now and for eternity.
We should never take our freedom for granted. For one thing, we must not use our freedom as an excuse to sin (Galatians 5:13). We need to live righteously, standing firm against sin so that we don’t become slaves to it again (Galatians 5:1). We need to remain in Jesus’ word. His word is truth and He has told us that truth will set us free (John 8:31-32).
Jesus is the way, He is the truth, and He is the life. Our freedom is found in Him and, if we abide in Him and in His word, we will remain truly free.
Does God Answer Prayer?
Does God Answer Prayer?
Does God answer prayer? The answer to this question is a resounding “yes!” There are numerous verses in the Bible that confirm this. His answer may be “yes”, it may be “no”, or it may be “not now.” He may answer in a way we didn’t expect because He knows what is best for us. But, no matter what the answer looks like, the fact is that God does answer prayer.
While searching God’s word about prayer, a couple of things stood out to me. First, when we pray, we should seek God’s will, not our own. Jesus told us that God knows the things we need and we will receive them when we seek His Kingdom first (Matthew 6:32-33). In Matthew 6:9-13, when Jesus taught us how to pray, part of that prayer was to seek God’s kingdom and His will (“Your Kingdom come, Your will be done”). Jesus also told us that if we ask, we receive; if we seek, we find; and if we knock, the door will be opened. I believe that when we ask for God’s will, we will receive what we ask for; when we seek His will, we will find it. The result is that the door will be opened for His will to be done.
The next thing that stood out to me is that God’s answer to prayer requires action on our part. First of all, it requires persistence. 1 Thessalonians 5:17 tells us that we need to pray continually. In Luke 18:1-8, Jesus told the story of the persistent widow who went before the judge for justice against an adversary. She kept on going to the judge, never giving up until at last she received what she asked for. The same is true for our prayers. We must cry out to God day and night and never lose heart.
The next thing required of us is faith. Jesus tells us, in Matthew 21:22, that we will receive an answer to prayer if we believe. And, in James 5, we read that a prayer offered in faith obtains the result that it seeks. God’s answer to prayer also requires obedience. We must abide in Christ and His words must abide in us (John 15:7). This doesn’t mean that we just need to memorize His words. It means we must live by them and be obedient to them.
Finally, God’s answer to prayer requires that we are not harboring unforgiveness. In the Lord’s prayer, we ask God to forgive us as we forgive others. Since Jesus gave us this prayer, forgiveness must be important. In Mark 11:24-25, Jesus tells us that, if we believe, we will receive what we ask for in prayer. But, He goes on to say that, if we hold a grudge against someone, we must forgive that person, so that God will forgive us. It is only when we do that we will receive the answer to our prayer.
Thank You, Lord, that You do answer our prayers. Help us always to believe, to forgive, to abide in Your word, and to seek Your will in everything. In Jesus’ name. Amen!
God is Fighting for Us
On any given day, if you search the movie listings, you are likely to see a movie listed that tells the story of one or more superheroes. Bookstores are filled with books and graphic novels featuring beings, both human and non-human, whose mission is to protect the rest of us from evil. They are there to fight for us.
Of course, these are fictional characters played by actors and created in the imaginations of writers and illustrators. But, there is one book in which we can find someone who truly can and will fight for us, someone who is not fictional or played by an actor, but is as real as we are. That book is the Bible, the written word of God.
Throughout His word, God proves time and time again that He is willing to fight for His people. He assures us in Exodus 14:14 that He will fight for us and all we have to do is be still. He tells is in Deuteronomy 3:22 that we do not need to fear our enemy because He Himself will take up the fight for us.
In the book of 1 Samuel, God tells us of an earthly king, David who, as a boy, faced a Philistine giant named Goliath. Although he was outmatched, David was not afraid as he went out to face the giant. Why? Because David understood that he was not fighting Goliath alone. God would be right there with David to help him defeat his enemy.
When we face trials in our lives, when we are battling against the things that the enemy throws at us, we do not need to fear. We can be still, be at peace, because not only will our God fight for us, but He has already defeated our enemy through the sacrifice of His Son, the King of kings, Jesus Christ, who willingly gave His life for us. As we are reminded in Romans 8:31, if our God is for us, there is no one who can stand against us.
"Come Me!"
There are many ways by which we can express our praise to God. We can use our mouths to speak, sing, or even shout our praise. We can use musical instruments to play songs of praise. We can use our feet to dance before the Lord. We can clap our hands as we sing our praise. And, we can lift our hands in praise.
The lifting of hands does not come naturally to everyone. Having been raised in a denomination where people did not lift their hands in church, it was foreign to me when I started to worship in a church where it was quite natural to do so. But, I have found that, not only is the lifting of hands Biblical, but it is also a gesture that expresses so much.
In the Bible, there are many references to the lifting of hands. In the Psalms, David mentions lifting his hands quite often. He lifts his hands to the Holy Place as he calls on the Lord for help (Psalm 28:2). Praising the Lord, he lifts his hands in the Lord’s name (Psalm 63:4). In Psalm 134:2, we are told to praise the Lord and to lift our hands in the sanctuary.
One of the Hebrew words for praise that appears in the Old Testament is yadah. This word means to throw the extended hand, to throw out the hand. Basically, to worship with extended hand. Another way to look at it is that we are casting are praise up to the Lord through the lifting up of our hands.
Beyond expressing praise, lifting our hands to the Lord can also express a number of other things. It can be a sign of joy, it can show surrender or submission to Him, and it can be our way of reaching out to our Father in heaven. What father can resist his child reaching out to him, looking for him to hold him?
When I lift my hands in praise to my heavenly Father, I am sometimes reminded of a memory from when I was a toddler. When I wanted my dad to pick me up and hold me in his arms, I would look up at him, lift up my hands to him, and say, “Come me!” I know that it touched his heart because he would talk about that, even when I was a grown man and a father myself. Imagine how our heavenly Father must feel when we lift up our hands to Him to praise Him and seek His face.
But the King of kings Can!
Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall,
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall;
All the king’s horses and all the king’s men
Couldn’t put Humpty together again.
As I read those words of the old familiar nursery rhyme, a thought appeared in my mind–the king’s horses and the king’s men couldn’t put Humpty together again. In fact, even the king couldn’t have done so–but the King of kings can!
I thought about this a bit and was reminded of the book of Genesis and the story of creation. On the sixth day of creation, God created the only living thing that was created in His image–man. In Genesis 2, we read that God placed man in the Garden of Eden, where man not only enjoyed the presence of God, but was given dominion over the rest of creation. In a sense, God placed man “on a wall.”
Then came the “great fall.” Man sinned against God and was cast out of the garden and God’s presence. Just like with the character of Humpty Dumpty, man’s fall left him broken. He was alive but in pieces and could do nothing in his own power to put himself together again. No king’s men, no king’s horses, no earthly king could have restored man and made him whole. But…
Let’s fast forward through the Bible to the New Testament. Because of His great love and mercy, God decided to intervene. In the town of Bethlehem, a child was born who, as a man, would give up His own life to restore ours. That man, of course, was Jesus, God’s only begotten Son. He gave His life so that, if we believe in Him, we are restored to our relationship with God and will have eternal life (John 3:16). He died on Calvary’s cross, was buried, and then rose three days later to pick up all of our broken pieces. Jesus, the King of kings and Lord of lords, accomplished what no man, no thing, no earthly ruler could have–He put us together again!
Lord, I praise You for Your amazing love and faithfulness. Thank You for sending Your Son, Jesus, to die for our sins so that we may enjoy eternal life in Your presence!
Happy Thanksgiving!
In numerous verses, God’s word tells us that we should be thankful and that we should give Him thanks and praise. We are to give thanks for everything (Ephesians 5:20) and in all circumstances (1 Thessalonians 5:18). When we come before the presence of our God, we should do so with thanksgiving (Psalm 95:2).
Today is Thanksgiving Day in our nation. All across the United States, we gather with our families and celebrate with a wonderful Thanksgiving feast, following the example set by the Pilgrims in 1621. But, what are we celebrating? What are we thankful for? And, better yet, to whom are we thankful?
As we sit down to our Thanksgiving meals today, my prayer is that all Americans will take the time to remember who has provided for us, who has blessed us with all that we have. Thanksgiving is a day set apart to thank God and to give Him praise.
In 1863, in the midst of a great civil war, it was President Abraham Lincoln who first proclaimed that the last Thursday of November should be set apart as a “day of thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the heavens.” In his proclamation, Lincoln talked about the strife our nation was in, but also about the great things about our nation. He followed that by saying, “No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy.” Lincoln went on to say that we should “fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty hand to heal the wounds of our nation and to restore it, as soon as may be consistent with the divine purposes, to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquility, and union.”
Those words sound as pertinent today as they did when Lincoln wrote them!
May we all take the time, not just on this Thanksgiving Day but every day, to seek the face of the One who has provided all that we have and to give Him thanks and praise. His love for us endures forever and for that we should be truly thankful.
Happy Thanksgiving to all, and God bless you!
A Worshiper's Journal 