We are excited to share with you this week’s devotional written by our own Judi Morrison. As we focus on Advent through the lens of family, we hope this devotional encourages your faith.
The sign on my office door read, “Santa’s Workshop: Do NOT Enter.”
The grandkids were delighted.
There is nothing like the joy of anticipation! Their smiles broadened and their excitement bubbled over into giggles when I said that, Yes, there were two presents for each one behind that forbidden and barricaded door. There were more than two weeks to go til Christmas morning and that seemed like a long time to wait.
Waiting is hard when what we anticipate holds good surprises and the possibility of longings fulfilled.
Millennia ago, God promised His people, “Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and you shall call his name Immanuel, which means, ‘God with us’” (Matthew 1:23 quoting Isaiah).
Hope arose and the waiting began. They waited, and waited, and waited. Then one day, the angel came and said, “Now is the time!”
He spoke to Zechariah who said, “I’m not sure I believe this.” He spoke to Mary who said, “How can this happen...I will do whatever God asks;” to Joseph who said Yes to the upheaval and danger that would follow. He spoke to the shepherds who said, “We’ve got to see this for ourselves!”
The responses of these people - doubt, confusion, obedience, wonder...I’ve experienced them all. I am thankful that the coming of the Messiah didn’t depend on the frailty of human understanding. I am thankful God’s promises do not depend on us. Rather, it is He who is the faithful one. What He has promised, He will do.
The gifts Mark and I give our grandchildren will fade away pretty quickly, though I hope they give them some temporary happiness. But, at Christmas, God gave us Himself; He is Immanuel, God With Us.
My prayer for you, my prayer for myself, is that this Christmas God will make the wonder
of that fulfilled promise very real in our hearts.
Have a blessed and joyful Christmas!
Resources:
Devotional: Jesus Is The Theme Of Mary’s Song