Posts Tagged ‘ Holidays ’

Advent 2022 – Day 3: Isaiah 9:4

For the yoke of his burden, and the staff for his shoulder, the rod of his oppressor, you have broken as on the day of Midian.

Isaiah 9:4, ESV

At Advent, we look back at why Jesus had to come, that He came, and then that He will come again.

There are many times in this world that we burden and oppress each other.

We either attempt to force our own will on others, add our will (rules) to God’s will, or have the will of others forced on us.

We dare to put ourselves in God’s place or blame Him for the sin of others.

We willingly choose our own path, carrying the burden of our sin, thinking we are good in our own right.

The ways of this world drag us down, and we complain and try to fix things ourselves … or accept that we are nothing and hold onto this view.

And many times we lash out at each other, seeking comfort, even if through burdening others.

And if we blame God, we also say His ways must be more burdensome, not wanting to acknowledge that we have burdened ourselves.

Yet God came to us, willingly taking our burden upon His shoulders, removing the oppression of sin by dying on the cross we deserved!

We may still struggle with the problems of this world, but Jesus has promised that we will have troubles. He has given us His yoke of loving others.

May we seek to lead our world to theOne who ends sin’s oppression.

Advent 2022 – Day 2: Isaiah 9:2

The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone.

Isaiah 9:2, ESV

At Advent, we look back at why Jesus had to come, that He came, and then that He will come again.

We live in a dark world.

Sin entered the world when Adam and Eve broke the one command of God that should have been the easiest: “Don’t eat this fruit.”

Yes, sin means missing the mark, falling short, turning away from God.

Sin is ultimately separation. We are born separated from God because of our super-great grandparents, yet we also choose to remain separated by our own choices.

We live behind a veil that blocks His light, and that veil is too heavy to remove ourselves.

It is as if we blocked out the sun to stop it’s heat, and then we climbed into a steep cave, falling to the bottom, unable to climb back out let alone remove the barrier between us and God.

Yet God came to us, the sun itself removing the barrier and lifting us up. God Himself lifted the veil to be with us.

Yes, we still live in a darkened world full of sin and separation, but God has lifted the veil over us. As we go into this world, the people will see the light streaming through us from above.

May we seek to be that light as we take Him into this dark world.

Thanksgiving 2022

It’s Thanksgiving here!

May we be thankful to God for all He has blessed us with, especiallythe promises we have in Christ.

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

1 Thessalonians 5:16‭-‬18, ESV