Christmas Day!!!

Luke 1:68-69 (NLT)

Praise the Lord, the God of Israel,
      because he has visited and redeemed his people.
 He has sent us a mighty Savior
      from the royal line of his servant David,

This is why I celebrate this glorious day!

Christmas Eve

Luke 2:1-20 (CEV)

About that time Emperor Augustus gave orders for the names of all the people to be listed in record books.  These first records were made when Quirinius was governor of Syria.  Everyone had to go to their own hometown to be listed. So Joseph had to leave Nazareth in Galilee and go to Bethlehem in Judea. Long ago Bethlehem had been King David's hometown, and Joseph went there because he was from David's family.

    Mary was engaged to Joseph and traveled with him to Bethlehem. She was soon going to have a baby, and while they were there, she gave birth to her first-born son. She dressed him in baby clothes and laid him on a bed of hay, because there was no room for them in the inn. 

That night in the fields near Bethlehem some shepherds were guarding their sheep.  All at once an angel came down to them from the Lord, and the brightness of the Lord's glory flashed around them. The shepherds were frightened.  But the angel said, "Don't be afraid! I have good news for you, which will make everyone happy.  This very day in King David's hometown a Savior was born for you. He is Christ the Lord.  You will know who he is, because you will find him dressed in baby clothes and lying on a bed of hay."

    Suddenly many other angels came down from heaven and joined in praising God. They said:

    "Praise God in heaven!

   Peace on earth to everyone who pleases God."

    After the angels had left and gone back to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, "Let's go to Bethlehem and see what the Lord has told us about." They hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and they saw the baby lying on a bed of hay.

    When the shepherds saw Jesus, they told his parents what the angel had said about him. Everyone listened and was surprised. But Mary kept thinking about all this and wondering what it meant.

    As the shepherds returned to their sheep, they were praising God and saying wonderful things about him. Everything they had seen and heard was just as the angel had said.

A Ruler Will Come

Micah 5:2 (NLT)

But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah,

are only a small village among all the people of Judah.

Yet a ruler of Israel will come from you,

one whose origins are from the distant past.

I love how God's ways are so different than what we expect at times and are also so much better than what we expect all the time!

The Lord Is Our Righteousness

Jeremiah 23:5-6 (NLT)

“For the time is coming,”

says the Lord,

“when I will raise up a righteous descendant from King David’s line.

He will be a King who rules with wisdom.  He will do what is just and right throughout the land.

And this will be his name:

‘The Lord Is Our Righteousness.’

In that day Judah will be saved,

and Israel will live in safety.

He Came To Get Messy

Glory to God!

Luke 2:8-20 (NLT)

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

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

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

  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.”

  They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger.  All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished, but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often.  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. After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. 

A Servant Brings Salvation

Isaiah 49:7 (Message)

God, Redeemer of Israel, The Holy of Israel,
   says to the despised one, kicked around by the nations,
   slave labor to the ruling class:
"Kings will see, get to their feet—the princes, too—
   and then fall on their faces in homage
Because of God, who has faithfully kept his word,
   The Holy of Israel, who has chosen you."

God's Chosen One

Isaiah 42:1-4 (NLT)

Look at my servant, whom I strengthen.
      He is my chosen one, who pleases me.
   I have put my Spirit upon him.
      He will bring justice to the nations.
  He will not shout
      or raise his voice in public.
  He will not crush the weakest reed
      or put out a flickering candle.
      He will bring justice to all who have been wronged.
  He will not falter or lose heart
      until justice prevails throughout the earth.
      Even distant lands beyond the sea will wait for his instruction.

The Birth of Christ

Matthew 1:18-25 (NIV)

This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit.  Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

  But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.  She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

  All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet:  “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).

  When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife.  But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus. 

"While Rome was busy making history, God arrived." 

-Charles R. Swindoll

Don't be so busy that you miss God all around you this week.

A Few Days Late

Friday and Saturday were really busy for me and I barely had any time on my computer.  Here are the verses for those days if anyone out there reading this is missing it...

Friday: A Sign!

Isaiah 7:14 (NIV)

Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.

Immanuel - GOD WITH US! 

If you do not stand firm in your faith,  

you will not stand at all.

Isaiah 7:9 (NIV)

Saturday: A Righteous Judge

Isaiah 11:1-5 (Message)

A green Shoot will sprout from Jesse's stump, from his roots a budding Branch.  The life-giving Spirit of God will hover over him,  the Spirit that brings wisdom and understanding, The Spirit that gives direction and builds strength, the Spirit that instills knowledge and Fear-of-God.
Fear-of-God will be all his joy and delight.  He won't judge by appearances, won't decide on the basis of hearsay.  He'll judge the needy by what is right, render decisions on earth's poor with justice.  His words will bring everyone to awed attention.  A mere breath from his lips will topple the wicked.  Each morning he'll pull on sturdy work clothes and boots, and build righteousness and faithfulness in the land.

A Prophet to Come

Deuteronomy 18:17-19 (NLT)

Then the Lord said to me, "What they have said is right.  I will raise up a prophet like you from among their fellow Israelites. I will put my words in his mouth, and he will tell the people everything I command him.  I will personally deal with anyone who will not listen to the messages the prophet proclaims on my behalf."

I did some extra reading on this one to understand it all a little more.  The "me" is Moses talking to the Israelites letting them know that after he is gone there will be someone else who will speak God's words since they did not want to hear directly from God.  Moses refers to multiple prophets that will come but also to the Prophet that they were waiting for - Jesus. 

"God sent his Son into the world 

not to judge the world, 

but to save the world through him." 

John 3:17 (NLT)

Are you open to hearing and receiving God's message from Him, His Son or are do you prefer Him from afar like the Israelites because He is to much for you right now?

Man and Woman get a PROMISE

Genesis 3:15 (NLT)

And I will cause hostility between you and the woman,

and between your offspring and her offspring. 

He will strike your head,

and you will strike his heel.

Today is a day to CELEBRATE!  God had a plan to fix the fall, to restore us to that relationship He created us for.  It didn't take Him years to think how to I fix this mess.  He knew what He was going to do because He loves us so much that He was not going to let us go.

Man and Woman FALL

Genesis 3:1-7 (NLT)

The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the Lord God had made. One day he asked the woman, “Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?”

“Of course we may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,” the woman replied.  “It’s only the fruit from the tree in the middle of the garden that we are not allowed to eat. God said, ‘You must not eat it or even touch it; if you do, you will die.’”

“You won’t die!” the serpent replied to the woman.  “God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil.”

The woman was convinced. She saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it, too.  At that moment their eyes were opened, and they suddenly felt shame at their nakedness.


As I read this passage this morning I am reminded that to often I entertain conversations with that serpent and allow him to place doubt in my mind and misguide me away from God's truth.  So where are the areas in your life that you are allowing the serpent to influence your thoughts about what is TRUE?
 

Man and Woman CREATED

Genesis 1:27, 31 (NLT)

  So God created human beings in his own image.
      In the image of God he created them;
      male and female he created them. 

  Then God looked over all he had made, and he saw that it was very good!
   

If nothing else know this about God - He created us to be in a relationship with Him not a religion; and what He created was VERY GOOD and He still finds us good enough to save us regardless of what we do.  For that I am thankful!

Preparing for Christmas Day!

I love this time of the year, not so much for being way to busy; But for what it brings in tradition, family, smells, food and especially what I celebrate in God being faithful to what He said in the garden - JESUS!

So for me I am going to post verses each day leading up to Christmas in my preparation of this day.  This mostly for me, to give me a reason not to let being busy rob me of the time I need to set aside to remember all that leads up to that Christmas night.

Over Thanksgiving break we were able to visit my parents and relax and play in the snow (more on that adventure later) while I was there my mom gave me a book for a family Advent celebration and that is what I am going through and where I got this idea (I am not posting everything from the book).

So since I am a day behind in starting this here is the verse to start this all off!

A Child Will be Born to Us

Isaiah 9:2,6 (NLT)

 The people who walk in darkness
      will see a great light.
   For those who live in a land of deep darkness,
      a light will shine.

For a child is born to us,

 a son is given to us.
   The government will rest on his shoulders.

And he will be called:
   Wonderful Counselor, 

Mighty God,

Everlasting Father, 

Prince of Peace.