Tag: advent

Christian, Inspiration, Encouragement

The Lord is With You

Highlighting Hope

I love how the Word of God never grows old or how it never fails to teach and reveal something new. I love how God’s word continues to supply His people with unwavering hope and how it faithfully steadies our hearts and minds in an increasingly unsteady world. After several years of teaching my 4th grade students about the life of Joseph, I am truly amazed at the rich truths God continues to reveal every time I dive into this story with my students.

The life of Joseph is one that I would say that many of us are familiar with- He’s the guy with the colorful tunic, the one who is known to be his father’s favorite son, the one who is betrayed by his brothers when they throw him in a pit, and then out of the kindness of his brothers’ hearts, they decided to sell him off as a slave instead of killing and then portray him as dead to their father. When you think of Joseph, you probably think of a life full of trials, deep hurts, and a man longing for freedom.

But as we read about the life Joseph and all of the many trials he faced, the pivotal question for us to ask and answer is “what do we see and learn about God?”

In the middle of so many trials and tribulations, we see a sovereign and faithful God! Four times in Genesis chapter 39, we read the phrase “theLord was with Joseph.” The interesting thing about this phrase is when we first see it recorded. This phrase doesn’t show up in the text until the trial begins. It is first seen in Genesis 39:2, right after Joseph had been sold to Potipher. 

As we progress through that chapter so do Joseph’s hardships- Joseph was falsely accused by Potipher’s wife and as a result of this false accusation- we now see Joseph move from being a slave to now being a slave in prison.Alongside these progressive hardships we continue to see the phrase “the Lord was with him.”

I imagine that God was with Joseph prior to these major trials taking place, but one thing is undeniably clear, that God wanted us to know that when the hardships came- the Lord was Joseph’s ever-present help in his time of need.And in addition to God being with him, we also learn that God was also causing him to prosper. And when was God causing him to prosper? God was causing him to prosper him while he was still a slave and while he was still in a jail cell.

Thankfully, we serve a God who does not change! This account of Joseph’s life is thousands of years old but the truths contained in it still remain true. When the trials of life hit, we can rest confidently in knowing that “the Lord is also with us” We can trust that God is continuing to actively work in our lives, and that He will continue to prosper us even in the murkiest of circumstances because we know that God always works all things, even the hard things, for good and ultimately for His glory.

Christian

A Heavenly Peace

Highlighting Hope

Silent night, holy night
All is calm, and all is bright
Round yon Virgin Mother and Child
Holy infant so tender and mild
Sleep in heavenly peace
Sleep in heavenly peace

We sing this song at Christmas time to worship our King. Our King who left His throne to come and abolish the great wall of separation that exists between God and man because of sin. Jesus came to abolish this great abyss that would have otherwise remained. Jesus came, despite our unworthiness, to bestow His grace, upon grace on and in our lives. We sing in worship of this holy birth!

For those who have been redeemed by Christ, this song has a very profound meaning. There are no amount of penned words that can fully articulate the majesty of Jesus and His holy birth, but bestowed to His children are significant blessings that can readily be identified and these significant blessings are markings of a stark contrast in our lives- before and after His entrance.

Before Christ coming into your life, do you recall a restlessness, a deep longing within your heart, always left unmet? Take a moment to recall the moment when Jesus became your Savior and consider these differences.

Silent night. I’m not sure how silent that night literally was, but this significant birth now silences the voice of our accuser. John 3:17, 18 says, “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him. Whoever believes in Him is not condemned” Revelation 12:10 says, “Now have come the salvation of and the power of and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down.” Do you hear the constant sound of accusations in your heart and mind? Look unto this Savior who has been born for you and allow Him to give you your first, true silent night.

Holy Night. No day is as sacred as that first moment God captured your heart and stamped you as ‘His’. The moment that you first began your life in Christ, was certainly a holy moment, and was certainly your first true holy night. This is a holiness that we could not produce on our own, but rather it is one that had to be done for us and on our behalf. Paul addresses the believers in Corinth, as those sanctified in Christ Jesus (1 Cor. 1:2). The word sanctified is a past tense verb, which means to be set apart or declared as holy. This clearly indicates an action needing to be taken on our behalf. We in ourselves, are not holy, but Jesus is holy and in Him, we can be declared holy, and thus allowing us to experience our first, true holy night.

All is Calm, All is Bright. Your once restless heart, your life once lived in darkness, is now filled with a calm, and a light that you had never known or had ever seen before. This new calm is unlike any other calm you’ve ever experienced, because Christ is a new peace on Earth to all people that ultimately brings us peace with God. As Jesus once rebuked a storm when He and His disciples were out at sea by saying, “Peace, be still!” Scripture then tells us that the winds ceased and there was a great calm. A life once filled with chaos can come to a complete halt by Jesus’ resounding call of, “Peace, be still.” That’s what His birth was. His very birth commands a peace over our lives that results in a great calm for our souls to experience daily. A life once full of darkness is now bursting with Christ’s light and therefore, we experience new life. Where there is Light, there is life. “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. Without light, there is no life” John 1:4, 5 The birth of our Savior ushered in a marvelous light this world so desperately needs.

Heavenly Peace. All of this is a result of a Holy Infant, the Christ child, coming for us. Therefore, we can sleep in a new found peace, a heavenly peace.

Are you experiencing a silent night, a holy night, in Christ? Have you experienced this great calm over your heart and soul? Is there new light shining in your life this day? If not, you can experience these things by looking to the Christ Child, by looking to the Savior of the world, and for the very first time, experience a Heavenly peace here on Earth.

Christian

A Heavenly Peace

Highlighting Hope

Silent night, holy night
All is calm, and all is bright
Round yon Virgin Mother and Child
Holy infant so tender and mild
Sleep in heavenly peace
Sleep in heavenly peace

We sing this song at Christmas time to worship our King, our King who left His throne to come and abolish the great wall of separation between God and man. Jesus came to abolish this great abyss that would have otherwise remained. Jesus came, despite our unworthiness, to bestow His grace, upon grace on and in our lives. We sing in worship of this holy birth!

For those who have been redeemed by Christ, this song has a very profound meaning. There are no amount of penned words that can fully articulate the majesty of Jesus and His holy birth, but bestowed to His children are significant blessings that can readily be identified and these significant blessings are markings of a stark contrast in our lives- before and after His entrance.

Before Christ coming into your life, do you recall a restlessness, a deep longing within your heart, always left unmet? Take a moment to recall the moment when Jesus became your Savior and consider these differences.

Silent night. I’m not sure how silent that night literally was, but this significant birth now silences the voice of our accuser. John 3:17, 18 says, “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him. Whoever believes in Him is not condemned” Revelation 12:10 says, “Now have come the salvation of and the power of and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down.” Do you hear the constant sound of accusations in your heart and mind? Look unto this Savior who has been born for you and allow Him to give you your first, true silent night.

Holy Night. No day is as sacred as that first moment God captured your heart and stamped you as ‘His’. The moment that you first began your life in Christ, was certainly a holy moment, and your first true holy night. This is a holiness that we could not produce on our own, but rather it is one that had to be done for us and on our behalf. Paul addresses the believers in Corinth, as those sanctified in Christ Jesus (1 Cor. 1:2). The word sanctified is a past tense verb, which means to be set apart or declared as holy. This clearly indicates an action needing to be taken on our behalf. We in ourselves, are not holy, but Jesus is holy and in Christ Jesus, we can be declared holy, and thus allowing us to experience our first, true holy night.

All is Calm, All is Bright. Your once restless heart, your life once lived in darkness, is now filled with a calm, and a light that you had never known or had ever seen before. This new calm is unlike any other calm you’ve ever experienced, because Christ is a new peace on Earth to all people that ultimately brings us peace with God. As Jesus once rebuked a storm when He and His disciples were out at sea by saying, “Peace, be still!” Scripture then tells us that the winds ceased and there was a great calm. A life once filled with chaos can come to a complete halt by Jesus’ resounding call of, “Peace, be still.” That’s what His birth was. His very birth commands a peace over our lives that results in a great calm for our souls to experience daily. A life once full of darkness is now bursting with Christ’s light and therefore, we experience new life. Where there is Light, there is life. “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. Without light, there is no life” John 1:4, 5 The birth of our Savior ushered in a marvelous light this world so desperately needs.

Heavenly Peace. All of this is a result of a Holy Infant, the Christ child, coming for us. Therefore, we can sleep in a new found peace, a heavenly peace.

Are you experiencing a silent night, a holy night in Christ? Have you experienced this great calm over your heart and soul? Is there new light shining in your life this day? If not, you can experience these things by looking to the Christ Child, by looking to the Savior of the world, and for the very first time, experience a Heavenly peace here on Earth.

Christian

A Heavenly Peace

Highlighting Hope

Silent night, holy night
All is calm, and all is bright
Round yon Virgin Mother and Child
Holy infant so tender and mild
Sleep in heavenly peace
Sleep in heavenly peace

We sing this song at Christmas time to worship our King, our King who left His throne to come and abolish the great wall of separation between God and man. Jesus came to abolish this great abyss that would have otherwise remained. Jesus came, despite our unworthiness, to bestow His grace, upon grace on and in our lives. We sing in worship of this holy birth!

For those who have been redeemed by Christ, this song has a very profound meaning. There are no amount of penned words that can fully articulate the majesty of Jesus and His holy birth, but bestowed to His children are significant blessings that can readily be identified and these significant blessings are markings of a stark contrast in our lives- before and after His entrance.

Before Christ coming into your life, do you recall a restlessness, a deep longing within your heart, always left unmet? Take a moment to recall the moment when Jesus became your Savior and consider these differences.

Silent night. I’m not sure how silent that night literally was, but this significant birth now silences the voice of our accuser. John 3:17, 18 says, “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him. Whoever believes in Him is not condemned” Revelation 12:10 says, “Now have come the salvation of and the power of and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down.” Do you hear the constant sound of accusations in your heart and mind? Look unto this Savior who has been born for you and allow Him to give you your first, true silent night.

Holy Night. No day is as sacred as that first moment God captured your heart and stamped you as ‘His’. The moment that you first began your life in Christ, was certainly a holy moment, and your first true holy night. This is a holiness that we could not produce on our own, but rather it is one that had to be done for us and on our behalf. Paul addresses the believers in Corinth, as those sanctified in Christ Jesus (1 Cor. 1:2). The word sanctified is a past tense verb, which means to be set apart or declared as holy. This clearly indicates an action needing to be taken on our behalf. We in ourselves, are not holy, but Jesus is holy and in Christ Jesus, we can be declared holy, and thus allowing us to experience our first, true holy night.

All is Calm, All is Bright. Your once restless heart, your life once lived in darkness, is now filled with a calm, and a light that you had never known or had ever seen before. This new calm is unlike any other calm you’ve ever experienced, because Christ is a new peace on Earth to all people that ultimately brings us peace with God. As Jesus once rebuked a storm when He and His disciples were out at sea by saying, “Peace, be still!” Scripture then tells us that the winds ceased and there was a great calm. A life once filled with chaos can come to a complete halt by Jesus’ resounding call of, “Peace, be still.” That’s what His birth was. His very birth commands a peace over our lives that results in a great calm for our souls to experience daily. A life once full of darkness is now bursting with Christ’s light and therefore, we experience new life. Where there is Light, there is life. “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. Without light, there is no life” John 1:4, 5 The birth of our Savior ushered in a marvelous light this world so desperately needs.

Heavenly Peace. All of this is a result of a Holy Infant, the Christ child, coming for us. Therefore, we can sleep in a new found peace, a heavenly peace.

Are you experiencing a silent night, a holy night in Christ? Have you experienced this great calm over your heart and soul? Is there new light shining in your life this day? If not, you can experience these things by looking to the Christ Child, by looking to the Savior of the world, and for the very first time, experience a Heavenly peace here on Earth.