A Message from Joel

Each of the past five years I have taken the twenty-five days leading up to Christmas and written thoughts about the First Advent (arrival) of Jesus as a part of my personal worship time. Each day I would post the thought to Facebook and Twitter as a way to hopefully deepen people’s faith journeys during the holidays. This year the GFC Creative Team has taken some of my thoughts and created a devotional for our Faith Family to use in the twenty-five days leading up to Christmas. Some of the original thoughts may

be mine, but many individuals within our fellowship have contributed to taking the thoughts and writing a daily devotional. I hope what you find within the pages of this book will encourage your heart as you await the celebration of Christmas!

I want to say thank you to the Creative Team and to each person who wrote one of the devotionals for this booklet! My prayer is that God uses what you hold in your hand to draw people into a deeper love of Jesus as we celebrate His birth.

This devotional guide is our Christmas gift to the Grace Fellowship Faith Family! May you find laughter, tears, and good tidings of great joy as you daily read from these pages.

Merry Christmas!Joel Owen

Devotional 1

Jesus is the Lamb who came to take away the sins of the world. No wonder God chose the shepherds of Migdal Eder -- The Watchtower of the Flock -- to first view His Son.

Luke 2:8-18

Shepherds were often looked down on in Jewish society, so they seem to be an unusual choice for God to send as the welcoming party for His Son. But God doesn’t think like we do. God sees the big picture and is unfolding a story grander than we are able to fully comprehend. This is the reason God chose the shepherds from the fields outside Jerusalem, an area known as Migdal Eder. These were not common shepherds, and they weren’t watching common sheep. The sheep raised at Migdal Eder were to be used in Jerusalem for the Temple sacrifices. These sheep would shed their blood as a form of payment to God to cleanse the people of their sins. The shepherds to whom God sent his angels had the responsibility of inspecting the sheep to make sure they had no blemishes or defects.

On the night Jesus was born, God sent His angel to these shepherds at Migdal Eder and invited them to be the first to visit His Son. Why? John refers to Jesus as “the Lamb of God who comes to take away the sins of the world.” Who better to first “inspect” this Lamb than these shepherds?

Jesus came to be God’s sacrifice for our sins. Jesus is the Lamb that was offered to give us freedom and forgiveness. When you inspect Jesus, it is important to see Him as your Lamb; as your sacrifice. Only Jesus can take your sins away and offer a relationship with God.

Joel Owen

Devotional 2The cries at Jesus’ birth were the warning shots that Satan’s reign on earth

was ending. The cross was the battle that broke his back. Jesus’ 2nd Advent will be the point of the enemy’s eternal surrender.

Advent can be a joyous time, as we look forward to celebrating the Savior’s birth.

But even as we acknowledge and rejoice in all that Jesus’ coming did for us, a part of us longs for the work to be done. We know our world is broken. We know we ourselves aren’t whole. We long for all things to be made right. We yearn for total redemption.

We sing “Joy to the World” nearly every Christmas season. It’s a jubilant carol, exulting in the end of the curse and the reign of Christ.

But it isn’t really a Christmas carol.

Isaac Watts wrote the song as part of his Psalms of David Imitated. His inspiration came from Psalm 98, particularly the second half.

4 Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth, burst into jubilant song with music;5 make music to the LORD with the harp, with the harp and the sound of singing,6 with trumpets and the blast of the ram’s horn—shout for joy before the LORD,

the King.7 Let the sea resound, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.8 Let the rivers clap their hands, let the mountains sing together for joy;9 let them sing before the LORD, for he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the

world in righteousness and the peoples with equity.

When does Jesus judge the world? When, as Watts writes, is the curse completely broken?

Not at Jesus’ first coming. Watts is singing about the Second Advent.

The Advent season traditionally was a time for the church to both rejoice in the Savior’s first coming and to look forward to His glorious return.

So if you feel yourself longing for something intangible, even as you celebrate the baby in the manger and the God in human flesh, that’s okay. Jesus’ First

Advent showed us God’s love and purchased our salvation. It also birthed our living, expectant hope--that one day Jesus will return and finish the

job He started.

Karen Butterworth

Devotional 3God did not wait to come save us until we cleaned up our act and were presentable to Him. He came to us when we were broken and showed us His love by cleaning us up and giving us a way, through Jesus, to be made presentable to Him.

Romans 5:6-8 “Christ arrives right on time to make this happen. He didn’t, and doesn’t, wait for us to get ready. He presented himself for this sacrificial death when we were far too weak and rebellious to do anything to get ourselves ready. And even if we hadn’t been so weak, we wouldn’t have known what to do anyway. We can understand someone dying for a person worth dying for, and we can understand how someone good and noble could inspire us to selfless sacrifice. But God put his love on the line for us by offering his Son in sacrificial death while we were of no use whatever to him.” (The Message)

I love how this translation illustrates a God who enters into our neediness and our insufficiency to make ourselves whole. Insufficiency is a hard word for me. I want to be enough – to ace the test, to be stellar as a wife, mother, daughter, sister, friend, employee, citizen…to be respected for doing all of the things, and doing them well. However, in this stage of my life with a busy schedule and busy little kids, there is a lot of literal mess in my life. It is humbling. I can’t get control of it, regardless of how hard I try. It’s lately been a metaphor for me in so many ways. In my life with Christ every day, when I refuse to make room for Him and seek Him, I am the mess: unkind, impatient, judgmental, and selfish. Apart from Jesus, we make messes – of ourselves, our relationships, our church. We are insufficient.

But, there is hope! Before we could even ask for it, a merciful God entered our mess and began to create something new. A close friend of mine said it in a way that sticks with me, “He makes glorious what I have made a mess.” Jesus, Emmanuel, God WITH Us, gently and diligently goes to work and uses the broken pieces to show His glory and goodness. Second Corinthians 12:9 says, “…(God’s) power is made perfect in weakness.”

HE came as a baby to be with us. HE is the sacrifice that justifies us. HE clothes us in robes of His righteousness. HE makes us new as we surrender to Him and give Him our messes – because of His love, and for His glory.

Mandy Owen

Devotional 4Simeon awaited the coming of the Messiah with hope and patient

endurance. The believer in Christ should await His second advent in the same way. He has come and He will come again, just as He promised.

Luke 2:25-35: “Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy

Spirit was on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying: ‘Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you may now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all nations: a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel.’ The child’s father and mother marveled at what was said about him. Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: ‘This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.’”

At the cost of being vulnerable, I am going to share something with you: I can have a very judgmental attitude. I am guessing I am not alone in this, as we are sinful creatures and Jesus warned us about being judgmental (Matthew 7:1-5). In any case, the Lord has been working on my heart this year to be more forgiving and less holier-than-thou. This is going to tie into the story of Simeon, I promise.A lot of things have happened both in my personal life and in our nation which caused my heart to respond by saying “Lord, I cannot wait until You return to this earth and everyone sees the truth about how they are living their life!” As I was sharing this feeling with my mom, she responded with Truth that I needed to hear: “That is not like Jesus. He is full of compassion and love. God is patiently waiting to return to earth so that more people would come to know Him.” I am so thankful for my mother’s bold, yet gentle truth spoken into my heart. Our God is patient; He is waiting; the Second Coming is closer, but it is not yet here. And that means there is time for others to come to repentance. THIS is what we should be praying for, hoping for, longing for. Just as Simeon awaited the coming of the Messiah with hope and patient endurance, I pray that we would await the Second Coming in the same way. Not with eagerness for others to be shown their wrong-ness,

but in eager anticipation of Jesus bringing His beloved bride to Himself – and praying that many would come to know Him before that time comes.

2 Peter 3:9 says, “The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, as some understand slowness. Instead He is patient with you, not wanting anyone

to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”

Lauren Gibson

Devotional 5We can celebrate with calm hearts because He is the Wonderful Counselor; with full assurance because He is our Mighty God; with unending hope because He is our Everlasting Father; and without any trace of fear because He is the Prince of Peace.

“PEACE ON EARTH HAS FINALLY ARRIVED!” should have been the headline of the day. Instead, Mary and Joseph rocked and sang lullabies to their sleeping, newborn baby. They celebrated in the birth that night, and all these centuries later we still celebrate because of what that night meant to us.

I know that peace is not something that first pops into our minds when it comes to babies, but I think it should be. In the moment that our boys were born there was a peace that is hard to describe. The pains and worries leading to that moment are forgotten, and all that you see is your baby before you.

For Mary and Joseph, that night was not filled with worry and cares about what lay beyond the next sunrise (or the next three decades). Mary and Joseph celebrated in the fulfillment of promises made to them, their Jesus. We can celebrate knowing that the baby would one day become our Wonderful Counselor, our Mighty God, our Everlasting Father, and our Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6)

That night, peace came to earth in the smallest of packages. It was a gift to us wrapped in swaddling clothes.

We have a reason to celebrate this season… a time to celebrate the incredible peace that is within our grasp... a time to feel cherished as the ones chosen to receive a love that is never-ending... a time to rest in the assurance that we can be free from the anxieties and stresses that bombard us daily… a time to stand firm in His promises that He has overcome the world!

This season, take time to celebrate that peace has arrived.

Jared and Sarah Lester

Devotional 6The Silence of the Night

Christmas is celebrated around the world on December 25th and for us North Americans, it’s hard for us to realize in Australia, it’s in the hottest part of

summer. Scholars will debate the actual date, but most believe it took place in early spring, possibly during the time of “lambing”. Isn’t it interesting that one of

the two most important events in Mankind’s history, the Birth and Resurrection of Jesus Christ, almost passed by unnoticed?

In your mind’s eye, call on your senses and imagine that night. Smell the smells, feel the chill in the air, and listen. What do you hear? In the distance, the clip-clop of a donkey, slowly but rhythmically transporting a young mother-to-be. Her husband, who hears her groans of labor, senses the time of birth is near. We hear a man apologetically offer the family accommodations in a barn.

They enter, with the sounds of rustling hay, and the smell of barnyard animals, nervously inspecting the overnight intruders. Within a few hours, the first-time mother follows her natural instincts and a child is born. His first cry for breath was witnessed by an audience of nervous animals, curious as to the smell and whimpers of a new child.

Within a short time, a crew of dedicated shepherds abandoned their posts to follow a silent star in the horizon, and then heard something odd in the night. The faint fussing of a newborn child, but coming from a barn? Their curiosity got the best of them, and the sound of a creaking barn door must have startled this family of three. Once inside, what were their first thoughts as they witness the silent presence of heavenly hosts as sentinels to the Child who was actually a King? Do you suppose they “knew”? Can you imagine making eye contact with this newborn baby, who was not long before, sitting at the Right Hand of God the Father? The shepherds were the first of many generations of people whose lives would be eternally changed and it all started in a stable.

The “One Who is Called” came to this earth in the Silence of the Night. No fanfare, no announcement, no parade, only the sounds of a few animals and a

pack of shepherds that spent their lives in fields by themselves…just them and the Lamb.

R. Mark Reasbeck

Devotional 7“To us a child is born, to us a son is given...” (Isaiah 9) Christ came to us so that we may come to the Father. “No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14)

One of my favorite childhood memories is playing hide and seek. My house had a “secret” space that ran behind the walls from one side of the house to the other. My friends would search and seek but they could never find me.

In Isaiah 9 we learned that the “hidden” God of Israel would one day send a child to His people. This child would be called Immanuel, which means “God with us” and He would show His people the way to God. This child was Jesus Christ.Jesus said in John 14:

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.”

Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”

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

Just like my friends were helpless to find my secret hiding place without me as their guide, Jesus says that people are helpless to find God without Him. However, unlike a child’s game of hide and seek, God actually wants to be found. Revelation 3:20 says that Jesus stands at the door of our hearts and knocks, and he wants us to let him into our lives so that we may enjoy the presence of God now and forever.

This Christmas, are you approaching God with a heart of gratitude because He came as a child and made a way for you to enjoy Him now and forever? Take some time to meditate on this beautiful reality.

Bryan Henderson

Devotional 8In buying gifts for family, friends, and more parties than we care

to attend, our focus is quickly on our money more than the manger. Bethlehem was filled with the money of taxpayers while a manger held the

King of Kings -- and He was largely missed as every penny was counted.

We largely miss Christmas and every penny is spent!

Tis the Season…Have you ever made a list of everything you have to do in December? School plays, church plays, class parties, Christmas parades, tree lighting, caroling, band, chorus and orchestra concerts, The Nut Cracker, photo with Santa, shop while you’re there. Coat drives, angel tree gifts, red kettle contributions. Parties!!! Four work parties, soccer party, scouting party, community group party, neighborhood parties, shop for pretty things to wear to all those parties. Cook!!! Shop for food! Cook for office parties, neighbors, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, your children’s teachers, the homeless shelter. Buy presents for family, friends, long lost cousins and then wrap them all with matching paper and ribbon. Decorate!!! Decorate the tree, the house, the lawn, the window boxes, the church. Buy new decorations, new lights, new blow up snow globe and lights for the front yard. Movies!!! In your spare time sit down and watch Miracle on 34th Street, It’s a Wonderful Life, Home Alone, Rudolph, Charlie Brown, Christmas Vacation…Christmas Cards!!! How could I forget 150 cards mailed to our closest friends and family and the $90 dollars worth of postage.

We’re exhausted and broke.

Now take a deep breath and think about when a newborn baby is brought home. Time stands still. Our focus is on the baby. We don’t rush. We aren’t distracted. We stay home and spend hours holding and looking at the baby, marveling at the miracle God gave us, wanting to tell the world!

Christmas is about a baby. Slow down, enjoy the moment and tell the world!

Jeannie Miller

Devotional 9And in despair, I bowed my head, there is no peace on earth I said, For hate is strong and mocks the song of Peace on earth goodwill to men.”

The words above contained in the centuries old carol “I heard the Bells on Christmas Day,” could not resound more true to the reality and circumstances our world today: Bombings in Paris or Beirut, a refugee crisis in Syria now touching our borders, political disputing, planes exploding in Russia, transsexual gender movements in our schools, and confusion on the understanding of topics we have understood for millennia, such as marriage. Perhaps you have watched the news and felt the same sentiment that the great American poet, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, must have felt as he penned the song. Despair. Lack of peace. Presence of hate. You see, in his day, the strong hate mocking the peace and good news of the Christmas bells was the Civil War—the bloodiest battle our country has ever seen. Brother was killing brother. Longfellow hated the Civil War, as it hurt him to see the devastation it caused to the country he loved. And then, it became more personal when his oldest son was sent home wounded and he touched his very scars along with those of his many friends and family in Cambridge, Massachusetts. As bad as things may seem today—the evils we witness are really not new. For we only have to read Genesis to realize that even within one generation of Adam and the perfect creation, we had brother murdering brother, Cain and Abel. This is the power of the sin condition all humanity is cursed with. This is the power of the “sneaky snake,” as we teach our children.

But at Christmas, God launched an invasion, which will soon culminate in the crushing of this snake’s head. It was commencement of a plan to conquer the dreaded curse, once and for all. This invasion was not what we might expect, with military might or riches, but came instead in the form of a baby. Jesus entered to bring us that peace and goodwill for which we so desperately long. The ringing church bells on Christmas of 1863 must certainly have awakened Longfellow to this reality and hope, for the climaxing verse of his poem, now the well know carol, proclaims:

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep, God is not dead nor does he sleep; The wrong shall fail, the right prevail with peace on earth, goodwill to men:Psalm 121:4 reads: “he will not let your foot be moved, he who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.”

On Christmas night, we sometime picture a sleeping baby Jesus. As a father who has witnessed the birth of our three children, I cannot really believe that night was silent, nor did Jesus, or anyone else for that matter, likely sleep much! Yet I wonder if God’s people who had been waiting in silence for nearly 400 years for a deliverer recognized the baby’s cry as an announcement, breaking the silence to the world: I am awake, I am not asleep! I am entering your world of chaotic madness and sin, and I am here to keep you, here to establish you, and here to save you. Yes, on this night, God was not sleeping, nor does he ever. Not then, not now. Instead, his cry announced his rescue mission, commencing the beginning of the end for Satan’s curse on mankind. Perhaps you feel sometimes like God is asleep, or not paying attention, as you witness the events of our world around you. Perhaps you feel it and see it on a global scale, or perhaps you feel it on a more personal level due to trial or turmoil. But on this first Christmas night, his promise held true, truer than ever. Jesus had arrived to bring us salvation and rescue, in the form of a crying baby, God’s only son. He is not dead, nor does he sleep! And I pray that brings you great joy and peace this Christmas!

Mark Treece

Read Luke 1:26-35

When the angel foretold the birth of Jesus to Mary, her only question was, “How does this happen to a virgin?” I wonder if Gabriel thought, “God made a

man from dirt and woman from a rib! I’m pretty sure He can get around this little issue!”

The creation account of Genesis 1 shows God speaks the world into existence. The Bible paints a picture of God creating ex nihilo, or out of nothing. From nothing God brought everything! The power God has is unfathomable to our human minds. When Gabriel came to Mary and told her God had chosen her to be the Mother of His Messiah she was confused. People, after all, are only born as a result of a sexual relationship- and Mary was a virgin. How was God going to accomplish this? But because of God’s power the challenge only existed in the mind of Mary; it was never an issue to God, who made Adam out of dirt from the ground and creating everything we know in the universe by speaking.

Through the power of the Holy Spirit Mary became pregnant. God’s power can work around any seeming roadblock. When we hit roadblocks in life we often doubt God. Mary wasn’t asking a question expressing doubt; she was asking a question of logistics! I love that Mary didn’t challenge God. She just asked how He would do what He said. The roadblocks you see in your life are not difficult for God to overcome. If He says He will do something but you can’t see a way, just ask God “How?” Then let Him work out the details through His mighty power as you act in obedience to His Word.

See also Isaiah 55:8-9 and Daniel 3

Joel Owen

Devotional 10

I may be a terrible gift wrapper, but remember the world’s first and greatest gift was wrapped in swaddling cloth -- the same material they wrapped lambs in when they were born!

Fresh from Mary’s womb lay baby Jesus, all the fullness of the deity condensed into a cocoon of “swaddling clothes.” Luke 2:12 records the swaddling clothes would be a “sign” unto the shepherds. What seemed ordinary and familiar to others would be especially significant for these shepherds.

The prophet Micah foretold the birthplace of the Messiah 700 years before His advent. “And thou, O tower of the flock, the strong hold of the daughter of Zion, unto thee shall it come, even the first dominion; the kingdom shall come to the daughter of Jerusalem.” He would be a Davidic King from the town of Bethlehem born in the tower of the flock. The shepherds kept careful watch over their flocks there at Bethlehem. Each newborn lamb was wrapped in swaddling clothes and placed in a manger. The clothes served to keep them calm and free from spot or blemish. These lambs were carefully tended and watched over from the moment of birth, as they would soon be sacrificed for the sin of the people. The lamb to be sacrificed must be perfect.

When the shepherds received the news of Jesus birth they made haste to Bethlehem. When they saw the babe lying in a manger and wrapped in “swaddling clothes” they instantly recognized the perfect Lamb. To others, this might have held little or no significance, but the shepherds “knew.” God had “revealed” His Son to these shepherds. The swaddling clothes and the manger served as a sign to open their eyes to the Savior. Luke 2:17 records they could not contain this good news and “they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child.” God presented His Son to the shepherds in such a way that they “saw.” He spoke their language. He made it personal.

Thirty-three years later, the body of Jesus would once again be wrapped in strips of linen, cocooned for three days. After His resurrection, the Holy Spirit came and filled the upper room where His disciples were gathered. They were baptized with His Spirit and went forth speaking the many languages of those gathered in Jerusalem. Once again, the good news was made personal as “every man heard them speak in his own language.” God’s invitation is always personal.

Like the shepherds, may those of us who have heard and seen, make haste and herald the good news of the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes.

Robin Ringley

Devotional 11

Every time an angel of the Lord appeared to someone to announce the coming of Jesus the people were terrified. While God could have come

in power to shake the foundations of the earth, what a gift that he chose to reveal Himself, instead, in the form of a baby, that we may be drawn near to

Him rather than fearful of Him.

1 Kings 19:11-14 (The Message)

“Then he was told, ‘Go, stand on the mountain at attention before God. God will pass by.’ A hurricane wind ripped through the mountains and shattered the rocks before God, but God wasn’t to be found in the wind; after the wind an earthquake, but God wasn’t in the earthquake; and after the earthquake fire, but God wasn’t in the fire; and after the fire a gentle and quiet whisper. When Elijah heard the quiet voice, he muffled his face with his great cloak, went to the mouth of the cave, and stood there. A quiet voice asked, ‘So Elijah, now tell me, what are you doing here?’”

If we are all being honest, we would write the story differently, wouldn’t we? When God becomes man, he comes as a king. A warrior king. And let’s throw in a white horse for good measure. That is how God presents himself to his creation in the story we write, isn’t it?

But that isn’t the persona that God chose. Because that warrior king riding among the peasants through the streets of the city is unapproachable, set apart. And that wasn’t God’s narrative. And while it comes as a surprise, it shouldn’t. God had a history of showing up this way. Elijah experienced a bit of a foreshadowing in this regard.

“God is coming to see you,” he was told. But God did not manifest himself in the howling winds, the earthquake, or the inferno. He showed up as a whisper and asked, “What are you doing here?”

When God chose to come and dwell amongst us, he chose a similar approach.

While men cowered in the presence of angels who were subservient to the King, Jesus did not manifest himself in a way that man would be intimidated. He came as a baby. A poor baby. Out of wedlock. To parents of no consequence.

He came to be imminently approachable. Because he came to be imminently relational. He wanted to draw close through a whisper.

And so he came to us as a baby. To have a conversation with his creation. To ask us the question, “What are you doing here?”

Phil Owen

Devotional 12

No matter what element of the Christmas story you look at one theme is consistent: faithful obedience in the face of things that could not be understood. Matthew 1:18-25 Those must have been most difficult words to hear: “your bride-to-be is with child”. I can’t imagine the disappointment Joseph felt as he tried to understand why this had happened. And though the angel of the Lord would come to comfort and to explain God’s plan in a dream, Joseph surely could not have fully understood what was yet to come. Yet he showed great obedience in taking Mary as his wife instead of sending her away secretly as he had planned. He faithfully obeyed, in spite of the ridicule and shunning he likely endured. Obedience was costly to Mary, too. When Gabriel laid out God’s amazing plan to Mary, she replied “Behold, the bond slave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word.” (Luke 1:38). Her faithful obedience would lead to great shame in the eyes of her family and friends. But aren’t we so glad that she obeyed? The wise men risked their lives by obeying God versus the wicked King Herod (Matt 1:12). Though they may have not understood why, their faithful obedience helped Joseph and his family to escape Herod’s grasp. Jesus was the epitome of humble obedience, and his obedience was most costly to him. He came to earth as a man so that “For as through the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous.” (Rom 5:19). And “Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” His obedience freed us from sin! So what about us? Faithful obedience is required of us, too. And though we may not understand it all, we can celebrate the coming of the one who through His death has given us eternal life. “But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed, and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.” (Rom 6:17-18)

Jeff and Beth Presley

Devotional 13

“Oh Little Town of Bethlehem” is a carol that I always liked to sing as a kid. My parents had the Emmylou Harris version, and it was pretty great.

Somehow, it wasn’t until I was in my twenties that I can remember singing the very last verse, and it instantly became one of my very favorites:

“Oh holy Child of BethlehemDescend to us, we prayCast out our sin and enter inBe born to us todayWe hear the Christmas angelsThe great glad tidings tellOh come to us, abide with usOur Lord, Emmanuel”

Our son Ethan is four years old. He asks lots of questions. LOTS of questions! Here lately, he has been asking questions about where God is. We have talked about God in heaven, God all around us, and God inside His children. It’s quite complex, and I need a lot of prayer to approach Ethan’s sincere questions with wisdom. I must admit that I fumble my words more often than I answer well.

Even in my inadequacy, our conversations make me think a lot more about God’s presence lately, and how intimate and special that one of the primary names for Jesus is Emmanuel, God WITH Us. The book of Matthew records the angel introducing Joseph to his unborn stepson for the first time as Jesus, Emmanuel. It’s as if Gabriel was saying, “God is with you, Joseph, in your uncertainty right now, in your fear about how to raise a son who is literally out-of-this-world, in your faithful obedience to accept God’s plan for you.” I imagine that was comforting to Joseph at many times.

Fast-forward to the end of the book of Matthew. The resurrected, glorified Jesus is giving His final in-the-flesh words to those who had been closest to Him. What are the words He leaves in their ears? Matthew 28:20b says, “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Emmanuel. “I am with you, Disciples, as you have no idea what’s next after this moment, as you struggle to spread My message and make disciples, as you risk and give your lives for My name.” The Jesus we call Emmanuel as a newborn in our world is the same who reminds us of His name as he returns to heaven. It’s so beautiful.

The mystery of God With Us is a big one. It is beyond my grasp and certainly beyond my ability to communicate. Our lack of understanding doesn’t

diminish the truth. He is God. He has chosen to be with us. I can’t explain it very well, Ethan, but I know it makes all the difference.

Mandy Owen

Devotional 14

We may easily adore the baby in the manger but we must decide what we will do with the man on the cross. The manger and the cross must both be taken into account when we celebrate Christmas.

The baby in a manger is something that moves us all. It moved leaders from other countries to follow a star and bring valuable gifts to a child that they knew nothing of, but they knew they were going to worship him upon their arrival. The manger is a pivotal moment in history because it is the day that humanity finally had hope for salvation. As Jesus said in John 8:12, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” The light that the baby brought was a light that provides the hope that leads up to the cross. The day Christ was crucified it appeared humanity’s hope was crushed; the baby in a manger was a mere man. John 19:30 says, “He said, ‘It is finished,’ and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.” It appeared the tale of the child in a manger was over. Three days later, conquering over death, Jesus, the baby that was in a manger all those years ago, arose from the grave bringing not just hope but salvation. This is the greatest gift anyone can receive (Luke 24). All of our sins and all of our transgressions died on the cross with our Savior. His death and resurrection were the greatest gifts that Christ, the baby in the manger, could give.

Caleb Fish

Devotional 15

The invitation of the gospel is relationship, not formula and steps. God sent His Son to show us how to relate to Him. Jesus said, “If you have seen me you have seen the

Father.”

The voice of the Lord is over the waters; The God of glory thunders,

The LORD thunders over the mighty waters. The voice of the LORD is powerful; The voice of the LORD is majestic. The voice of the LORD breaks the cedars… The voice of the LORD strikes with flashes of lightning. The voice of the LORD shakes the desert… The voice of the LORD twists the oaks and strips the forests bare. And in his temple all cry, “Glory!” (Psalm 29:3 – 9)

If God’s voice alone is enough to bring the earth to its knees in worship, how can we even begin to consider approaching Him? To put it in dating terms, He is wayyyy out of our league! The Old Testament lists more than 600 laws that God’s people were to follow, and breaking only one rendered a person unworthy of worship until he had been consecrated and cleansed. He then needed to have a priest offer a sacrifice on his behalf! Praise the Lord that we are no longer bound to the law, for we would fare no better than the Israelites in past millennia. Paul tells us why in Romans 8:8 – 9a, saying, “Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God. You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you.” Who is the Spirit of God? He is our advocate, our helper, sent to us straight from Jesus Himself to help us to love Him better. How do we love Jesus? Well, the irony of it all is that we love Him by obeying His commands. In Jesus’ own words:

If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever – the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. On that day, you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them. (John 4:15 – 21)

See, now we have hope! We are no longer following His commands based on fear and an attempt to measure up, but because we WANT to. To put it in dating terms again, when we love someone, we want to learn all about our significant other and do whatever he/she wants us to. It is the same way with Jesus. He followed the law perfectly during His time on earth and acted as our own priestly sacrifice. He took the punishment for us, so we no

longer rely on our own piety, but on Christ Himself. He has brought us into His family.

(Romans 8:14 – 16) For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear

again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit

that we are God’s children.

Jennifer Fish

Devotional 16

The birth of Jesus was a statement of God’s intimate passion for His prize creation. The Bridegroom had come to win His bride and shower her (us) with love.

The Passion of God for His glory and His people “I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore, I have continued my faithfulness to you.” (Jeremiah 31:3)

We often ascribe many attributes to God, such as His sovereign rule or lavishing grace upon humanity. However, there is one attribute, namely His passion, that is often overlooked. Jeremiah 31:3 displays God’s passion by explaining the eternality of His love and faithfulness towards us. God is a passionate being and His two greatest passions are these: His glory and His people.

God’s passion for His prize creation was exemplified by the birth of Jesus. Echoing the words of John 3:16-17, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him.” God’s passion and purpose for our lives is for us to be reconciled with Him and give Him the glory for it. That is the point of the birth, death, and resurrection of Christ.

The imagery often used is that of a bride and bridegroom. Jesus is our bridegroom and we are His bride. As a bride, we stand in front of our bridegroom pure and blameless. As the groom takes the hand of his bride, he passionately makes an everlasting covenant, ordained by God, that he will be with her forever. The same is true of our bridegroom. We can be sure that Jesus will sustain us and keep us as passionately today as He did when we first encountered the Lord of creation.

Ryan Kiser

Devotional 17

If the cross is the sign we need not be afraid of the dark, then the manger is the sign we need not be afraid of the light.

What takes place on the night of Jesus’ birth is nothing short of a poetic

masterpiece. The night of Jesus’ birth is a scene of beautiful irony and foreshadowing of the new covenant. Jesus left his glory to go to the dirtiest places.

He meets the dirtiest people where they are. One of the very first acts of the Savior is to lay his head, a metaphor for calling his home, among animals in a manger. The situation God placed Mary and Joseph in forces them to lay their child somewhere that declares, “This child will make his home among the dirty and filthy.” As a baby, Jesus was not given the birth he deserved. He deserved to be welcomed in to the world with cameras rolling and kings bowing. Instead he came into the world in a place that you and I probably would have overlooked. He was born in a place that if he were born today, many might say, “I’ll wait to visit when he’s somewhere clean and sanitary.” He came to a place that only those already dirty would dare to visit. The place he was born proclaims his desire to find those lost in the darkest places, that the Light of the world fears no corner of this dark world. The Savior’s love for us is so great, that even the first moments of his presence on Earth displayed his love for his messed up people. God chose for His son to be born in a place that any humble person could approach him. Anyone willing to dirty their feet in an unclean stable could welcome Jesus into the world.

Marshall and Brittany Couch

Devotional 18

Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.” John 8:12

This verse was the theme of the first Advent study I did with Sarah. It still comes to mind when I see Christmas lights.

I’ve heard that Jesus is the Light of the world so often that it loses some of its impact sometimes. The world is dark. Jesus is Light. Water is wet. Some truths we just take for granted after a while.

I don’t have the best night vision. I stick to roads I know well if I’m driving in the dark. Even so I have moments where my eyesight tricks me, and things look strange or distorted in the blackness. It can be a bit unnerving.

Our neighbors put up Christmas lights each year. A lot of Christmas lights. They blaze brightly against the darkness--a beacon to guide me home safely.

The world can be pretty dark. I don’t always know the right path to take. I don’t always even see my own sin clearly. But during the holidays, those day-bright lights remind me that I don’t have to stumble in the darkness--I have the Light that leads to life.

I sometimes forget the simplest, most basic truths of the faith--I think I’ve grown beyond them and moved on to the “meat.” But sometimes we all need to remember the core message of the gospel. The world is dark. We ourselves are dark. But Jesus is Light.

I’m grateful for the reminder each year.

Karen Butterworth

Devotional 19

Isaiah proclaimed that the Messiah would bring light to darkness and bring joy to the nations. Our needs are revealed by Him and our hope is found in

Him.

Have you ever sat alone in a dark room?

Maybe it was during a power outage when the world stops and the silence is so disturbing it seems loud. The blackness is so absolute that it seems to embrace you. Maybe you found a quiet, dark room to spend some time being still and knowing that He is God. I have.

I have also been in that dark moment and lit a single, small candle. At that instant, everything changes. The light is so illuminating, casting flickering shadows in every direction, revealing what was only a moment ago hidden and causing me to guard my eyes at the instant of ignition.

This is the memory that fills my mind when I read that the Messiah would bring light into the darkness. One child would be that candle in a dark room, providing light to the blind and the lost and the hidden. As the glow from an unusual star shone down on a stable in Bethlehem, everything changed. Although the light in Jesus was humble, in truth, that small candle has behind it the light of a million billion fiery suns with the power to burn away every ocean and mountain, yet harnessed to bring the light of eternity; the cleansing fire that burns away all that is false, all shame and sin, and then lights within us that same fire.

Now, because God himself, the star breather, breathed Himself into skin and bone, people from every nation and every tribe can share in the joy that the angels declared when they appeared in a blinding light to amazed shepherds. The elation we experience is known by the very creation as it declares the glory of God.

Back in my still dark room with only a single candle, I know that Jesus, the light of the world, is enough for me. He is my Comforter, my King, my one great Hope. It is in the stillness and quiet and especially during the Christmas season that I am humbled by His humility. I imagine being there to marvel at my God and creator of the universe laying helpless in a bed of hay because He loves me.

Have you ever sat alone in a dark room and realized that you are never alone?

Brian Reaves

Devotional 20

Jesus’ infancy did not diminish His majesty. As a baby on our planet He was no less the King of the universe!

The first chapter of John tells us the Word of God, Christ himself, was in eternity before time, with God, and he established everything that is.

Have you ever wondered if at the moment of birth, Jesus was any less God than He was at His resurrection? Was He, in the manger, truly Emmanuel, God with us? Did the mouth that spoke creation into existence render itself speechless? Did the hands that measured the sky and sea make themselves tiny and powerless?

Yes!

The ruler that the fabric of the universe could not contain chose to enter His creation in the humble form of a fragile baby boy. Who would have imagined that we could hold God in our hands? But that folks, is the way our God works. “For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong.” (1 Corinthians 1:25, 27-28)

That little child was God incarnate. I’m generally not the shouting kind, but this act of love and grace touches my soul in a way that makes me want to shout in praise. The fullness of God was made destitute for a purpose. The mighty Son of God took on flesh to reverse the curse of our sin. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16)

The baby we celebrate at Christmas is the Savior that sacrificed his perfect life to atone for our sins. His death gives us reconciliation with God. His life gives us life. I’ll say it again. The mighty Son of God took on flesh to live, die, and rise again conquering death’s sting. He shattered the darkness of our shame that we might have the light that is Christ and in him, life. There is no other name by which we may be saved. In him we may rest and find our hope.

At his birth Christ divided time. At his death Christ divided the veil that separated us from a holy God. And at his return he will divide the sky and appear in glory for all to see.

Glory to God in the highest! Peace on earth and good will to men!

Jami Reaves

Devotional 21

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.” Our Savior did not come as an impersonal visitor who could not identify with us, and who

we could not identify with. Jesus came to live with us, to understand us, to be like us, and show us the Father.

John 1:1-14

For centuries, God was known by His people, but it was often in impersonal ways. The sacrificial system allowed people to remain in right standing with God on a religious level. God would occasionally reveal Himself in supernatural ways to show His presence among the nation of Israel or deliver them from affliction. In more limited instances God walked and talked with highly favored people He chose as His instruments to carry His message to the world. Throughout the centuries people longed for the presence of God. Then an amazing thing happened…God came to earth in human form in the person of Jesus!

God took on the form of a man. Jesus came to earth and walked with us, talked with us, laughed with us, cried with us, touched us, felt pain like us and suffered like one of us. Jesus was and is our personal connection to God. He came to make God known in a way no one had ever imagined possible. In Colossians 1, Paul makes two statements about Jesus:

1. The Son is the image of the invisible God.2. God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Jesus.

Anything you ever wanted to know about God can be fully found in Jesus. God lived among His people. There are many impersonal things people look to for salvation, but when it comes to the only One who can truly save us, He is not impersonal at all. The Savior came to be known and to personally introduce us to His Father.

Joel Owen

Devotional 22

According to Luke 1, when Gabriel announced to Mary she would give birth to the Messiah, she was greatly troubled, wondered what the greeting was about, and questioned how it could be possible -- but she was completely submissive to the plan of God. We may not always understand God’s ways, but we can trust His plan for our lives.

“And Mary said, ‘Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word…’”Luke 1:38

Trust: a simple word.

Trust: a word filled with hope. The belief that someone is good: relying on their integrity, strength, and ability with confident expectation.

Without trust could this frightened, young woman respond in such a way? Without complete confidence in the One who sent the messenger, could she have uttered with such boldness those nine words? What surrender. What abandon. What submission. What confident expectation that He who authored the message could only be trusted.

My simple prayer this holiday season is this: “Teach me to trust You.”

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good,for those who are called according to his purpose.Romans 8:28 (ESV)

For my thoughts are not your thoughts,neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD.For as the heavens are higher than the earth,so are my ways higher than your waysand my thoughts than your thoughts.

Isaiah 55:8-9 (ESV)

Debi Porche

Devotional 23

Humble shepherds were the first to receive the news of the King of the Universe being born. God’s Savior is for all men -- regardless of social

standing, financial status, or background. You have incredible value to God!

“And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, 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 that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.’ Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.’”Luke 2:8-14 NIV

Over and over God amazes me in the weaving of His story how He chose the lowest of the low to humble the proud and at the same time bring value to the humble. Jesus was the long awaited Jewish Messiah, and he was humbly presented to the world on a cold night in a dirty manger. Not exactly the entrance the Pharisees were expecting. Many rejected Jesus as the Messiah because of his seemingly ordinary, almost lowly existence. They also rejected the notion that Jesus came as savior to all men, not just the Jews.

Shepherds in Jesus’ day were very low in the social order. They were another shining example of God using the kind of person we can all relate to. If we are honest with ourselves, I would venture to say at one time or another we could relate to a shepherd, feeling like our work is never ending and doesn’t matter, we have felt lonely or unwanted, like we don’t measure up. One of God’s sweet gifts to us is the way He spoke to and used the lowly and humble like the shepherds. That way, we can relate and truly believe that He cares for us so much that the birth of Jesus would make salvation for all men a possibility. Jesus was the first, and ultimate, Christmas gift to us all!

Patty Eiselstein

Devotional 24

The Gift

Christmas is not about giving gifts, but about giving a gift.

Christmas can be a lonely time for any people. As the years went by, for me, Christmas was just another day, nothing special. A day to give gifts but not The Gift. Plenty of food to eat but no food for the soul. Lots of toys but not really any joy. Family, friends, and Christmas specials on TV but nothing to fill the heart.

The homeless man standing in line at the mission waiting to get a hot meal. What does he have to be thankful for? He sleeps under a bridge at night – cold in the winter, hot in the summer, wet in the rain. The woman pushing the shopping cart around town, same story. No family, no one to care about and no one to care about them. The child who lost her mother and father in a car crash ten years ago this December has lost all hope. Events in life like the loss of a loved one, divorce or ill feelings between you and your children may cause hurt and sadness in your heart. These are the ones that are lost and alone.

There are many who are alone at Christmas – the homeless, those in nursing homes with or without family, the shut-ins, those with health problems, depression, etc. When you need somebody to fill your void, give it to Jesus.

Christmas is not what it used to be, with advertising, decorations, songs of snow and Santa Claus coming to town. Stores with Xmas sale signs in the windows, taking Christ out of Christmas.

Christmas can be a lonely time for many people, but God would have us know we are never alone, regardless of who we have lost along life’s journey. Jesus is Immanuel—God with us. May His presence replace our pain with peace.

Christmas is not about giving gifts, but giving a gift – The Gift. That gift is Jesus and His Love – our Lord and Savior.

Let us celebrate Christmas for what it is – The birth of our Lord.

Brent Long

Devotional 25

1 Fellowship Point • Kingsport, TN 37660

For a child will be born to

us, a son will be given to

us; And the government

will rest on His shoulders;

And His name will be called

Wonderful Counselor,

Mighty God, Eternal Father,

Prince of Peace.Isaiah 9:6