Jennifer A

Lenten Series: In Need of The Helper

Lent is a liturgical observance and season of reflection; not a biblical mandate. It is simply a time to remind ourselves and appreciate the abundant grace of Christ’s saving work on the cross. It is a time to press in deeper in submission to Christ’s authority as we prepare our hearts to celebrate, with exceedingly great joy, the resurrection that awaits every believer and follower.

In our Lenten daily devotionals, we will focus on our spiritual needs and desires and how the Helper is our Gift for strength and success if we will bow in greater submission to the authority of our King and the terms of His Kingdom of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Spirit.

Reflection: Christ’s Glorified Presence in Us

Digging for Truth: In the Old Testament, the Lord spoke through Jeremiah and assured us that through Christ, a new covenant would be made for God’s children, and His instructions would live deep within them, and be written on their hearts (31:33). Friends, we are God’s children, and His instructions are written on our hearts. The Holy Spirit lives within you and me and is available all of the time to reflect Christ’s glorified presence within each of us. As our “full-time, 24/7, Advocate, or Holy Helper”, the Holy Spirit is constantly nudging you and me to press into God’s Truth (His Word), because it is written deep within our hearts, so that our words, actions, steps, and daily journeys can be guided by the Holy Spirit towards what God has for each one of us.

Grace for the Heart: Jesus told us that in order for us to receive the Holy Spirit (our Advocate) that He would need to go and be with the Father. Think about how many times throughout each day, week, or month, you dismiss or underestimate the Gift of the Holy Spirit within yourself. In every moment, you and I either glorify or dishonor Christ with how we live. Living an honorable life for Christ can only be made possible by the grace of our God and Lord, Jesus Christ (2 Thes 1:12) and by allowing the Holy Spirit to stir and move within our hearts. It is the only way that Christ is glorified and witnessed through us.

John 16:7 But in fact, it is best for you that I go away, because if I don’t, the Advocate won’t come. If I do go away, then I will send him to you.

Challenge: Friends, we need to stop ignoring the magnitude of this Gift from God, the Gift to allow the Holy Spirit to be our One and only Advocate. By doing this we are honoring our position within God’s Family, with Him as the Father, Jesus as the Son, and the Holy Spirit as our Advocate. When we fixate on our “real” position within God’s Family, and understand that He lives within our hearts, we no longer want to make a practice of sin, but rather call on Him to help us stop sin before it happens so that we are reflecting Jesus in our lives and not Satan (1 John 3:9).

Prayer: Jesus, thank You for sending the Holy Advocate to help us with absolutely everything. Holy Spirit, please forgive us for the times when we have minimized the magnitude of Your presence within us and Your guidance for our lives. We want Christ to be glorified in our presence, and so please help each one of us to be more in alignment with You so that others may receive Christ through us. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Today’s passage aligns with Pastor Mary’s sermon from yesterday about “LISTENING” to God. The writer of Hebrews is speaking to believers, and the message is meant to be an encouragement so that we cling to Christ, especially during difficult times. But you and I cannot miss it, this message is meant to be spread to non-believers. Each one of us are a container of the Holy Spirit and we are called to spread Christ’s message of love. Think about it, if you and I spend more time in God’s Word, allowing Him to “preach and teach” us, as we really “listen” to His voice, then our souls (our minds, wills, and emotions) will begin to align with Him and shift away from this world. We will not feel the need to be pushy in the way that we “preach and teach” others. No, if we are really listening to God voice, and allowing Him to operate in our lives, we should exude Christ and His message of pure love in all that we do and speak. If that’s happening, it’s a very practical ways for non-believers to witness the love of Christ and to want more of Him and His love in their own lives.

Hebrews 2:1-4 (NLT)
A Warning against Drifting Away

1 So we must listen very carefully to the truth we have heard, or we may drift away from it. 2 For the message God delivered through angels has always stood firm, and every violation of the law and every act of disobedience was punished. 3 So what makes us think we can escape if we ignore this great salvation that was first announced by the Lord Jesus himself and then delivered to us by those who heard him speak? 4 And God confirmed the message by giving signs and wonders and various miracles and gifts of the Holy Spirit whenever he chose.

Prayer: Thank You, Jesus, for speaking clearly into my life. Please forgive me for quieting Your voice with my own soul’s earthly desires. Help me, Holy Spirit, to be One with You and the plan that You have for my life so that I may reflect Your love for others. I want hearts to want You, Jesus, and I am grateful that You allow me to be a part of that process for the good of Your Kingdom. I ask all of this in Your Holy Name, Jesus. Amen.

When I decided to welcome Jesus into my heart and began to walk in a faithful relationship with Him, I noticed there was a lot of talk about God’s grace. Initially my mind thought it meant that God was being courteous, maybe even polite, or it had something to do with His good manners, because that is what I knew about the “word” grace, from a dictionary standpoint – to be courteous, polite, or to have good manners. Honestly, it was confusing to me, and I kept wondering what exactly is God’s grace? Then I heard Pastor Mary use grace as an acronym: G.R.A.C.E = God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense. At the time, I thought maybe grace isn’t about God being “courteous, polite, or using good manners”, but rather He has something of great value for me and it is directly connected to Jesus dying on the cross. As I continued to grow in my faith walk (connecting more in relationship with Jesus) I kept learning from Pastor Mary, many other Christians, and most importantly more and more from God, Himself, by spending time with Him in His Word. I started to realize when I welcomed Jesus into my heart, I was saved (my salvation came) by God’s grace through the sacrifice that Jesus made by dying on the cross so that my sins could be forgiven. I am no different from any other person, none of us deserve God’s grace (it is His favor, His forgiveness of our sins, and His acceptance of us), and there was (and remains) absolutely nothing I could have done in my own strength or by my own means to have gained it, or to have earned it, and I certainly was not entitled to it.

I believe the Word of God, the Bible, God’s Testimony, the Good News, the Gospel Message of Christ…whatever you want to say because it is all One in the same, is a message of God’s grace. His grace is the most priceless gift you and I will ever receive, and it was made possible because Jesus gave His life for us, and by welcoming Him into our hearts, asking for His forgiveness of our sinful ways, we are humbling bowing before Almighty God and recognizing that we were and are lost without Him. We desperately need His grace to cover us as He bestows His favor, forgiveness, acceptance, and guidance to us, and that happens because we gave our lives (really “back”) to Him as our Creator, on the day we asked Jesus into our hearts.

In today passage, Paul and Barnabas were in Iconium (which is known today as Konya, located in Turkey), and they were preaching boldly the Good News about God’s grace (v. 3). We see that conflict and division arose, because God’s grace provoked, and continues to provoke, an extreme reaction in both directions. Those seeking God’s grace want more of His Truth operating in a through their lives, while those not seeking it struggle to accept it because the darkness of this world blinds them to His Truth. In the previous chapter, Luke reminds us of what God promised in the Old Testament was now fulfilled through the resurrection of Jesus (v. 33). Therefore, in Jesus there is forgiveness of sins (v. 38), and everyone who believes in Him is made right in God’s sight (covered by His grace) and that is not something the Law of Moses could have done (v. 39). So, this Good News of salvation by grace, not by the Law of Moses, was not received well, and continues to not be received well. Not only by non-Christians, but at times by Christians who believe their good works, entitlement, years of church deeds, etc. earn them some type of heavenly reward or grace-pass to the front of the line. Only God knows each one of our hearts and Jesus will one day judge each one of our heart’s motives alone. In the meantime, we need to pray for God’s grace to move within our lives the same way it moved in today’s passage for Paul and Barnabas. God grace carried them away from the mob, from being attached, and stoned to death. He moved them to other regions where they were to preach the Good News (v.7), just as you and I are called to do the same.

Acts 14:1-7 (NLT)

Paul and Barnabas in Iconium

1 The same thing happened in Iconium. Paul and Barnabas went to the Jewish synagogue and preached with such power that a great number of both Jews and Greeks became believers. 2 Some of the Jews, however, spurned God’s message and poisoned the minds of the Gentiles against Paul and Barnabas. 3 But the apostles stayed there a long time, preaching boldly about the grace of the Lord. And the Lord proved their message was true by giving them power to do miraculous signs and wonders. 4 But the people of the town were divided in their opinion about them. Some sided with the Jews, and some with the apostles.

5 Then a mob of Gentiles and Jews, along with their leaders, decided to attack and stone them. 6 When the apostles learned of it, they fled to the region of Lycaonia—to the towns of Lystra and Derbe and the surrounding area. 7 And there they preached the Good News.

Prayer: Thank You, Jesus, for laying Your life down so that my sins are forgiven. In my own strength I am weak and unworthy of Your favor, but in You, Jesus, I am made whole, forgiven, and worthy to accept Your most gracious gift of grace. Thank You, Father, for Your eternal love. Help me, Holy Spirit, to walk out a life that reflects Your love, to speak words that are guided by You, bathed in Your love, and filled with Your Truth. Please keep guiding my life and using me for the glory of Your Kingdom. In Jesus’s Name. Amen.

There were many times in King David’s life when his fellow associates, friends, and even his own family stood against him. They humiliated him, betrayed him, and some even sought to kill him. It’s not hard for you and me to identify with David’s feelings of loneliness, disappointment, frustration, or even anger. But we need to ask ourselves, how does Jesus want to guide each one of us during these moments?

In today’s Psalm we see initially that David wanted revenge for how he was mistreated. He was asking for God’s help in battle against his enemies. We know that David lived prior to Christ’s birth, and since David was the anointed leader of a nation, he called on God in a revengeful way as he was seeking for God to set things right on his behalf. You and I do not need to call on God for revenge after what Christ accomplished on our behalf. Through Christ’s death and resurrection, you and I are now commanded to pray for our enemies’ salvation (Matt 5:44-48). Just like David, we must trust, by our faith, that God will set things right, but it must be in God’s own time and by God’s own way. You and I are to never repay evil with more evil, rather we are to do things in such a way that everyone can see we are honorable and living like Christ (Rom 12:17).

We must realize that within Psalm 35 David is in constant communion, or prayer, and even praise with God. That is an example for you and me. No matter what is happening in our lives, or not happening in our lives, we are to connect with our living God and commune with Him in prayer and praise His Holy Name. Remember, He knows all things, He is in all things, and so why would we attempt to do anything on our own. He is seeking for us to call out to Him so He can take care of all things on our behalf. We cannot forget that Jesus died for us, He is sitting at the right-hand of the Father, and He alone will be the One Who comes for “The Final Judgment”. As our Shepherd, He will gather His sheep to His right to enter into eternal life, but for those who do not call on His Name, the goats, they will be at His left and will go away into eternal punishment (Matt 25:31-46). So, never forget that Jesus will handle EVERYTHING!

Psalm 35:1-10 (NLT)

A psalm of David.

1 O Lord, oppose those who oppose me.
Fight those who fight against me.
2 Put on your armor, and take up your shield.
Prepare for battle, and come to my aid.
3 Lift up your spear and javelin
against those who pursue me.
Let me hear you say,
“I will give you victory!”
4 Bring shame and disgrace on those trying to kill me;
turn them back and humiliate those who want to harm me.
5 Blow them away like chaff in the wind—
a wind sent by the angel of the Lord.
6 Make their path dark and slippery,
with the angel of the Lord pursuing them.
7 I did them no wrong, but they laid a trap for me.
I did them no wrong, but they dug a pit to catch me.
8 So let sudden ruin come upon them!
Let them be caught in the trap they set for me!
Let them be destroyed in the pit they dug for me.

9 Then I will rejoice in the Lord.
I will be glad because he rescues me.
10 With every bone in my body I will praise him:
“Lord, who can compare with you?
Who else rescues the helpless from the strong?
Who else protects the helpless and poor from those who rob them?”

Prayer: Thank You, Jesus, for being in all things and for orchestrating all things for good, even those things that I cannot see. Forgive me when I am lacking in my trust that You are taking care of things. Help to strengthen my faith, to be able to trust in You more quickly, and to constantly be in communion with You. I do not want to have anger within me, so please take that from me, and handle those places as Your ways are the highest and always good. I ask all of this in Your Name, Jesus. Amen.

Do you remember the details of when you answered Jesus’s call to be His follower? The moment when you gave up your own way, picked up your cross, and decided to follow Jesus (Matt 16:24). Really think about it:

· Where were you?
· What was going on?
· Did you immediately respond?
· Have you walked away from His call?
· Did you miss that He was calling you?
· Has He had to call you multiple times?

Where, when, and how Jesus called each one of us is different, none of us share the exact same story or testimony. But we all do have one part in common and that is we chose to be delivered from our sins through our salvation in Christ Jesus and thus we are all eternally connected to Him and to one another as His Church, Body, or Family.

In today’s passage we are reminded of our brother, Abram’s call. Abram (who God would later rename, Abraham) obeyed God’s call and followed His plan. Abram was 75 years old, he picked up his entire life and relocated per God’s request. He had no idea that the Savior of the world would one day be among his offspring. Abram is proof that God’s ways are not our ways because His ways are so much higher and far beyond what we can even begin to image or put in place for ourselves (Isaiah 55:8-9). Each time Abram moves we read that he built an altar and dedicated it to the Lord. His faith was active, an example to you and me, that our faith must be active, while we are being obedient to God’s call. As a result of Abram’s active and obedient faith God blessed him, his family, and all who are connected to his lineage, and that my friends includes you and me as brothers and sisters of the Most High, Jesus Christ.

Genesis 12:1-9 (NLT)

The Call of Abram

1 The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you. 2 I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. 3 I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you.”

4 So Abram departed as the Lord had instructed, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he left Haran. 5 He took his wife, Sarai, his nephew Lot, and all his wealth—his livestock and all the people he had taken into his household at Haran—and headed for the land of Canaan. When they arrived in Canaan, 6 Abram traveled through the land as far as Shechem. There he set up camp beside the oak of Moreh. At that time, the area was inhabited by Canaanites.

7 Then the Lord appeared to Abram and said, “I will give this land to your descendants.” And Abram built an altar there and dedicated it to the Lord, who had appeared to him. 8 After that, Abram traveled south and set up camp in the hill country, with Bethel to the west and Ai to the east. There he built another altar and dedicated it to the Lord, and he worshipped the Lord. 9 Then Abram continued traveling south by stages toward the Negev.

Prayer: Jesus, thank You for allowing Abraham to be an example of obedient and active faith for me. I want my faith to keep growing so that I can be closer in relationship with You. Help me, Holy Spirit, to be fully dependent and trusting in Your guidance for my daily life. I want to connect more with You and less and less with this world. I want others to see my faith and be drawn to Your love, Jesus. I ask all of this in Your Name, Jesus. Amen.

When King David wrote Psalm 86, he knew that only God could help him, and especially during his times of trouble. We learn in the Old Testament Books, 1 Samuel and 2 Samuel, that during David’s times of trouble, when he experienced great pain, anxiety, fear, grief, betrayal, hunger, violence, sin, loneliness, and tremendous loss, he called upon God. David’s response to trouble was simple, he prayed and cried out to Almighty God, “I will call to You whenever I’m in trouble, and You will answer me.” (v.7) David’s faith allowed him to trust in God to answer his prayers, to cover him with His protection, to shower him with His mercy, to forgive his sin by His unfailing love, and to fill him with His joy, no matter what was going on within the physical world around David.

Friends, you and I face trouble, just like David, and God is looking to answer us, He actually wants to use everything within our lives, especially our trouble, to work together for our eternal good (Romans 8:28). We just need to find ourselves having a heart for the Lord like David (Acts 13:22) because with a sold-out heart for the Lord our faith grows and we begin to trust God more and more, we see His protection for our lives more clearly, we are quicker to recognize His mercy, and we want to turn away from sin and seek His forgiveness because all we want is His unfailing love and His joy to fill us to overflowing.

Prayer can seem difficult at times or challenging for some people. Eight years ago, to the month, Pastor Mary shared an acronym with me to help during my times of prayer with my daughter, Hannah. She said while you are praying, breakdown the word, P.R.A.Y. and go in this order: P – Praise (spend time being grateful to God, thanking and praising Him for all that is good within your life), R – Repent (spend time asking God to forgive your sins, and to lead you away from those places of sinful living within your life), A – Ask (ask God what you want, not necessarily for “things” but places within your life or people you want to see Him bless), and Y – Yield (remember that God’s timing is not your timing and His ways are not your ways, so have humble patience and be willing to wait and shift to His ways and timing of your asks because His ways are higher than our own and are ultimately the best for our lives).

Psalm 86:1-13 (NLT)

A prayer of David.

1 Bend down, O Lord, and hear my prayer;
answer me, for I need your help.
2 Protect me, for I am devoted to you.
Save me, for I serve you and trust you.
You are my God.
3 Be merciful to me, O Lord,
for I am calling on you constantly.
4 Give me happiness, O Lord,
for I give myself to you.
5 O Lord, you are so good, so ready to forgive,
so full of unfailing love for all who ask for your help.
6 Listen closely to my prayer, O Lord;
hear my urgent cry.
7 I will call to you whenever I’m in trouble,
and you will answer me.

8 No pagan god is like you, O Lord.
None can do what you do!
9 All the nations you made
will come and bow before you, Lord;
they will praise your holy name.
10 For you are great and perform wonderful deeds.
You alone are God.

11 Teach me your ways, O Lord,
that I may live according to your truth!
Grant me purity of heart,
so that I may honor you.
12 With all my heart I will praise you, O Lord my God.
I will give glory to your name forever,
13 for your love for me is very great.
You have rescued me from the depths of death

Prayer: Jesus, thank You for being there during all of my troubled times. I need for You to take the wheel of my life and be my Navigation System. Forgive me when I am not in alignment with Your plan for my life. Please allow me to quiet the noise of this world, so that I may receive from You, Holy Spirit. I ask all of this in Your Name, Jesus. Amen.

George Campbell Morgan was an evangelistic Bible teaching preacher in the early 1900’s and when speaking about Psalm 69 he said, “Perhaps in no psalm in the whole psalter is the sense of sorrow profounder or more intense than in this. The soul of the singer pours itself out in unrestrained abandonment to the overwhelming and terrible grief which consumes it.”

Today we will be looking at the first three verses of Psalm 69. Many credit King David as the author, while some say that the Prophet Jeremiah wrote it. Even though these two brothers of faith lived about 400 years apart, God uses their recorded testimonies for you and me so that we can keep learning from them and growing as we journey along on our own faith walks.

David, Jeremiah, and each one of us have experienced moments when we feel like we are completely drowning, where the waves of life are crashing into us, flooding over us, and we just cannot seem to find a foothold. In these moments Jesus tells us to look up (at Him), to not be afraid, and to take courage because He is with us (Matt 14:27).

“The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; He rescues those whose spirits are crushed. The righteous person faces many troubles, but the Lord comes to the rescue each time.” Psalm 34:18-19

Psalm 69:1-3 (NLT)

For the choir director: A psalm of David, to be sung to the tune “Lilies.”

1 Save me, O God,
for the floodwaters are up to my neck.
2 Deeper and deeper I sink into the mire;
I can’t find a foothold.
I am in deep water,
and the floods overwhelm me.
3 I am exhausted from crying for help;
my throat is parched.
My eyes are swollen with weeping,
waiting for my God to help me.

Prayer: Jesus, thank You for being all we need in our times of great trouble and despair. Help us to fully rest in You and to trust that You have, are, and will use all of our painful trials for good. We love you, Jesus, and ask all of this in Your Holy Name, Jesus. Amen.

As we begin 2024 many of us will make a “New Year’s Resolution” seeking to “change” something. But, as most of us know, from resolutions made in the past, the resolution period seems to start off strong and tends to weaken over time, as the average resolution will last about 3.74 months. I promise I am not trying to be a discouragement as you seek to change something, rather I want us to be encouraged by God’s Word about there being “A Time for Everything” as He spoke through our brother, King Solomon.

As we seek to “change” something, we must keep a few things in mind:

First, the unchangeable God of the Universe is the Author of our lives. He planted eternity within our hearts, and although we cannot see the scope of His miraculous work, He has written each one of our stories from beginning to end. So, when we feel discouraged within this new year, we need to turn to Him, because He isn’t changing a thing, He wants to use each thing or circumstance for our good; we are the ones who are changing within our soul realm, and so the choice is ours to make…we either seek our unchangeable God to navigate through each circumstance or we seek the ever-changing chaotic world that is ruled by Satan and will make us feel absolutely crazy.

Next, God has an appointed time and season for everything within our lives. I know it doesn’t seem like somethings are right, or the timing is completely off, or they are just not fair, or you want everything and everyone to pause for a moment…but we must remember that everything and every circumstance is in place by God. He is in control, and He wants us in these moments to be humbled, to raise up our hands, to exalt Him and to fully trust Him.

Finally, no matter what we walk through this year, we need to know that God has set us within these places, and He wants us to seek Him so He can use us. Even the most painful places, God will make beautiful within His time because He has a purpose for ALL of His creation, and that includes you and me, my friend.

May God bless each one of us this new year!

Ecclesiastes 3:1-13 (NLT)

A Time for Everything

1 For everything there is a season,
a time for every activity under heaven.
2 A time to be born and a time to die.
A time to plant and a time to harvest.
3 A time to kill and a time to heal.
A time to tear down and a time to build up.
4 A time to cry and a time to laugh.
A time to grieve and a time to dance.
5 A time to scatter stones and a time to gather stones.
A time to embrace and a time to turn away.
6 A time to search and a time to quit searching.
A time to keep and a time to throw away.
7 A time to tear and a time to mend.
A time to be quiet and a time to speak.
8 A time to love and a time to hate.
A time for war and a time for peace.

9 What do people really get for all their hard work? 10 I have seen the burden God has placed on us all. 11 Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end. 12 So I concluded there is nothing better than to be happy and enjoy ourselves as long as we can. 13 And people should eat and drink and enjoy the fruits of their labor, for these are gifts from God.

Prayer: Jesus, thank You for never changing. Please help me to accept Your plan for my life. I want to trust You more fully and rely less on my own self and understanding of things, since You are the One Who has written my complete story. My life belongs to You. Help me to lay down myself and to carry my cross more frequently this new year. I want to share Your love with those I come in contact with so they too may know and grow in love with You. I ask all of this in Your Name, Jesus. Amen.

Over the last 24 days Pastor Mary used the Jesse Tree to allow our spiritual family some time to grow in our connection with some of our fellow Biblical brothers and sisters. We have been able to see their connections with Jesus, and hopefully we have been able to identify areas of our own relationship with Jesus that need to be strengthened, stretched, refined, and ultimately grown up so our faith walk with Him is more firm and sharable with others.

Our brother, Luke, helps us this Christmas day to recall the birth of Jesus. Keep in mind that the Roman emperor, Augustus, was the “sovereign” ruler of what seemed to be the entire known world, and many viewed him as the “divine” king. But, for Joseph, Mary, and Israel, a census was a reminder that they were a conquered people. The Child that was to be born, Jesus, would be the fulfilment of the Old Testament Scriptures and would put an end to God’s Family being a “conquered people” by anyone, as He is the only Sovereign Ruler the Divine King for all of creation and for all eternity.

Friends, we “top off” our Jesse Tree with “the” star, the Star of Bethlehem. The star at the top of our Biblical tree reminds us to look up, to seek Jesus, the One Who is our true Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love. As we rest in Christ, to bring us His Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love we must remember that being a part of God’s Family does not exempt us from trouble. In fact, Luke reminds us that even Joseph and Mary, the Holy Family, found themselves in trouble leading up to the birth of Jesus. We also know that Jesus found Himself in trouble during His physical existence. The same Jesus Who we celebrate His birth today, is the same Jesus Who was crucified for our sins. “There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” (John 15:13)

Today, we must remember and celebrate the One Who came to save you and me, as The Star of Bethlehem is a reminder that the Gospel is for everyone. God used the most unlikely candidates and the lowliest of circumstances to announce and bring His Son into this broken world. So, never feel unworthy or ashamed because Jesus loves each one of us who call on Him. He wants to use all of us to share and spread His message of love. Share the Love of Christ with as many people today as possible. Merry Christmas, my friends.

Luke 2:1-20 NLT

The Birth of Jesus

1 At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. 2 (This was the first census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3 All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census. 4 And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David’s ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee. 5 He took with him Mary, to whom he was engaged, who was now expecting a child.

6 And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. 7 She gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them.

The Shepherds and Angels

8 That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. 9 Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, 10 but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. 11 The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! 12 And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.”

13 Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—praising God and saying,

14 “Glory to God in highest heaven,
and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.”

15 When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go to Bethlehem! Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

16 They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger. 17 After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. 18 All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished, 19 but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often. 20 The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them.

Prayer: Jesus, I thank You for coming into this world to save me. Far too often I do not feel worthy to accept what You have done for me, and so I thank You for taking my sin and reminding me of just how valuable I am as Your daughter. Holy Spirit, please guide me today and every day to be a blessing to others. I want to spread Your love, Jesus, I want more hearts to grow in love with You and to know Who You are and how You came to save them. I ask all of this in Your Holy Name, Jesus. Amen.

Intro: For our Advent season this year, Pastor Mary has chosen to enjoy the Jesse Tree by sharing a 24-day practice to prepare us for the celebration of Christ’s birth; the event we celebrate and honor at Christmas. From the root of Jesse’s stump, we will discover or rediscover the people in the family Tree of Jesus Messiah who were instrumental in bringing the presence of God near to us in order to revive the Spirit-led family of faith. With each day’s reading, we will add a new symbol—an ornament—to our family tree.

Today is day eighteen of our journey and our symbol is Tongs Gripping a Piece of Coal.

The Old Testament is full of writings from God’s prophets, and our symbol today of the tongs gripping a piece of fiery coal points first to the prophet, Isaiah, and next to Jesus.

When Isaiah was called by God to be a prophet he received a vision, what he saw was miraculous and initially left him feeling unworthy of the call on his life because he and his people had unclean lips (or sinful lives). I don’t know about you, but there are many times when the enemy sneaks into my soul realm (my mind, my will, and my emotions) and makes me feel that I am unworthy of leading the life that God calls me to lead. This is exactly how Isaiah was feeling and why God had to do what He did next. From the heavenly altar, God has an angel take a burning coal and touch Isaiah’s mouth, and with that physical action his sins and guilt were spiritually burned away, and he was able to respond to God’s call on his life.

The same principle of the fiery coal on Isaiah’s lips works on our behalf in regard to Jesus’s sacrifice on Calvary. Our sin was placed upon Him, and He was burned with the fire of God’s judgement, but because He was One with the Father, Holy and Righteous, the fire of God’s judgement did not harm Him, it just burned away the sins of the world. Thus, those willing to accept Christ’s sacrifice are able to welcome Him into their hearts, turn from their sinful ways, and answer His call on their lives.

So, when God asks, whom should I send as a messenger to my people, will you and I respond as Isaiah did and say, “Here I am. Send me.” (6:8) We must remember, it’s Christmas, and the Word became Flesh, that is Jesus, and He made His way among us to spread His unfailing love and faithfulness and people only learn about Him through us sharing this message of eternal Truth (John 1:14); so share the True meaning of Christmas Love, Jesus, with people this season and keep sharing until you take your last breath on this earth.

Isaiah 6:1-7 (NLT)

Isaiah’s Cleansing and Call

1 It was in the year King Uzziah died that I saw the Lord. He was sitting on a lofty throne, and the train of his robe filled the Temple. 2 Attending him were mighty seraphim, each having six wings. With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew. 3 They were calling out to each other,

“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Heaven’s Armies!
The whole earth is filled with his glory!”

4 Their voices shook the Temple to its foundations, and the entire building was filled with smoke.

5 Then I said, “It’s all over! I am doomed, for I am a sinful man. I have filthy lips, and I live among a people with filthy lips. Yet I have seen the King, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.”

6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a burning coal he had taken from the altar with a pair of tongs. 7 He touched my lips with it and said, “See, this coal has touched your lips. Now your guilt is removed, and your sins are forgiven.”

Romans 3:23-25 (NLT)

23 For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. 24 Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. 25 For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past,

Hebrews 9:12 (NLT)

12 With his own blood—not the blood of goats and calves—he entered the Most Holy Place once for all time and secured our redemption forever.

Prayer: Jesus, thank You for fulfilling Isaiah’s message and for the ultimate sacrifice that took away my sins. Help me to share Your message of love with those who don’t know You, or those who have fallen away from You. Keep Satan away from messing with my soul and allow me to see myself as Your beloved daughter and to follow the plan that You have laid out for my life. I ask all of this in Your Holy Name, Jesus. Amen.