Week One - Gifts

Each day of 2024 and of 2025 ahead is a gift, watered by God's hand and designed for His glory. For us, the days look endless and maybe even ominous because we don't know what they hold. We see through the glass dimly and tremble at the future, but our Lord doesn't tremble. He doesn't see dimly; He sees with perfect clarity. How beautiful can our rest be when we entrust the days ahead to Him! We can rejoice and delight in the Lord. Instead of opening the year with dread, we open it with the sweet strains of joy and the brightness of a cymbal. We have arrived at 2025!

Spurgeon says, "We, the called, faithful, and chosen, will drive away our griefs and set up our banners of confidence in the name of God. Let others lament over their troubles; we who have the sweetening tree to cast into Marah's bitter pool will joyfully magnify the Lord. We will rejoice and delight: two words: with one sense, double bliss, blessedness upon blessedness."  

What will your year look like? No one can tell you, but I can assure you that your mindset holds great sway over how your days progress. You can choose to be blessed, grateful, excited, thankful, and happy.  You can create rest and peace. Or you can create drama. 

You have 365 days to make a difference in your life and the lives of those under your influence. What will you do? How will you use your time? The gift of this year is yours. Should God allow you to have the full days, measure them out with joy. Move through them in faith and set your heart to thankfulness. Rejoice and delight! Then, meet me here next year, and we'll share all God has done!

Week Fifty Two - The Big Day

It's Christmas morning, a time filled with the delightful anticipation of a joyous day. For some, the day begins with the rise of mom and dad and the delightful squeals of wide-eyed children rushing down the stairs. Amidst the flood of wrapping paper and thrills of joy, the cherished Christmas traditions come to life. 

But let's pause a moment and remember that Big Day in Bethlehem. Out on the hillside, the shepherds are quietly tending their sheep.

"And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not; for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy; which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace good will toward men. And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. And they came with haste and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. (Luke 2:8-16).

What a Big Day that was! We can sing with the shepherds and the angelic chorus, "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given! (Isaiah 9:6) His was a miraculous conception, the fulfillment of God's promise, and the hope of all mankind. God with us. 

As Spurgeon says, "God with us in our nature, in our sorrow, in our life work, in our punishment, in our grave, and now with us, or rather we with Him, in resurrection, ascension triumph, and coming splendor." 

Jesus's birth was a big, momentous day. Let's not let the splendor of His birth be overshadowed by Christmas traditions. Before you partake in your festive meal, take a moment to offer a prayer of thanks. Discuss the true significance of the season with your loved ones, and as you rest your head at the end of this joyous day, let it be filled with gratitude and praise for God's unspeakable gift.

Week Fifty One - Stranger Danger

In Deuteronomy 10, Moses reminds Israel of their history and challenges them to remain faithful to God, fear Him, walk in His ways, love and serve Him, and obey the commandments. This is something oft-repeated! And it makes for good advice for us as well, but in verse 19, Moses adds a little reminder for Israel—one that we might benefit from today.

"Love ye therefore the stranger" (Deuteronomy 10:19).

When we follow the history of Israel, we see they did not love the stranger. They grew so insular that they would not touch the unclean; any non-Jew was considered unclean. They would not enter their houses, eat their food, or even rub shoulders with them. They took stranger danger to the extreme and became a stumbling block to spreading faith in God.

Now, lest we condemn them too quickly, we would be wise to examine our own Christianity. How often do we allow pride to slip in? We love, obey, and worship God, but push away strangers. We fear things outside our control, things we don't understand. We grow so separated that we exist only in our Christian bubble and have no room for any strangers.

As Bethlehem bustled with excitement, Mary and Joseph faced rejection. There was no room for the strangers arriving in town. We think the innkeeper is heartless, but he doesn't know who is at his doorstep.
How could he? And how can we know who God places before us?

Strangers are arriving on our doorsteps, towns, and churches. Will we turn them away? Will we not "touch" the unclean? Because they are not like us, will we push them away? Are we so separated that mercy only extends to those who agree with us or look like us? 

Deuteronomy 10:18 says God "loveth the stranger, in giving him food and raiment." Are we willing to do the same?

So here's the challenge: To fulfill the Great Commission's demands, we must interact with strangers. You cannot give someone the Gospel or hope to build an opportunity to witness without personal interaction. 
Don't let stranger danger keep you from sharing God's Word or opening your hand of mercy.

Week Fifty - Cookie Cutters

Today, I wanted to share some thoughts about cookies—not the type associated with computers, but those we see in abundance during the Christmas season—those we make and decorate with our kids, those shaped to look like gingerbread men, Christmas trees, or even reindeer.

I've had many fails with Christmas cookies! Some I rolled too thin, and they turned out crunchy; some lost their shame and came out like blobs. And my decorating skills are almost zero when it comes to icing cookies or cupcakes! But that's not what I want to think about with you either.

You and I are not cookies—that's my thought! We are uniquely designed. No two of God's children are the same, but His will for His children is consistent. All of us are to give thanks, walk worthy, be saved, and live sanctified lives. That's His perfect recipe, but none of us are the same because He designs each of us according to His specific purpose. That's what makes us individually unique.

As I thought more about our individuality, I understood that we will give individual accounts to God for what we decided to do with Jesus in salvation, how we obeyed His Word, and how we served the Lord. We have only one life, one opportunity to fulfill God's perfect design for our lives, but there is no need to fret and search with bewilderment. His Word reveals His ideal design. All we have to do is follow the instructions given in the recipe.

If we do that, if we follow God's instructions, we won't miss His plan for our lives. However, if we cheat on the recipe, cut corners, swap things out, or fail to follow the instructions, things won't turn out so well. And yet, God knows all about that, too! Even misshaped cookies taste okay!

Everyone who knows Christ as Saviour is worthy in God's eyes—not because we are cookie-cutter perfect, but because of Christ's sacrifice. We are the apple of His eye, the child in whom He delights, and He directs His eternal love toward us, even those of us who are a bit too crispy or look like a blob!

Week Forty-Nine - Who Are You Listening To?

It is often difficult to distinguish lies from truth on the news and social media. It all depends on who you listen to and the motivation behind their information. 

I got to thinking about the war in Ukraine, Trump, Biden, and Putin, increased energy prices, the new government here in the UK, and a host of other things. I grew concerned, trying to figure this all out. 

Well, you know that was a waste of effort. I'm not in charge or responsible for any of those things. I cannot change them, and my voice would make little difference. Neither would yours. We are just peons, victims of this world's actions. But are we?

I had to align my thinking with scripture. When it comes to war, God said we would experience it. Nothing new there. Trump and Biden? Putin? God is the one who raises up and takes down leaders. Increased prices are scary and unpredictable, but these things always fluctuate. God already knows about that, and He knows the outcome of everything. It is all His to design.

Isaiah 40 popped up in my mind. It holds several promises and thoughts. Verse 4 assures us God will make the crooked places straight and the rough places plain. He will make a path for us, and His Word will stand forever, verse 8.

Then, verses 13 and 14 put before us a serious question. "Who hath directed the Spirit of the Lord, or being his counsellor hath taught him? With whom took he counsel, and who instructed him, and taught him in the path of judgment, and taught him knowledge, and shewed to him the way of understanding?" In other words, who am I to think I could outfigure God or tell Him what to do? I needed to get back into my place.

Then, verses 15 and 17 really caught my attention. "Behold, the nations are as a drop of a bucket and are counted as the small dust of the balance... All nations before him are as nothing." Wow! What difference when you get things back into God's perspective.

Chapter 40 finishes with a couple more great verses. Verses 28 and 31 read, "Hast thou not known? Hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding...But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk, and not faith.

Finally, Proverbs 14:15 gives this admonition, "The simple believeth every word: but the prudent man looketh well to his goings." So, let's not listen more intently to the news and the world than we do to our God's eternal, unchanging voice.