Advent Devotional - November 30, 2020

Scripture
Psalm 40

1 I waited patiently for the LORD; he inclined to me and heard my cry. 2 He drew me up from the desolate pit, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure. 3 He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many will see and fear, and put their trust in the LORD. 4 Happy are those who make the LORD their trust, who do not turn to the proud, to those who go astray after false gods. 5 You have multiplied, O LORD my God, your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us; none can compare with you. Were I to proclaim and tell of them, they would be more than can be counted. 6 Sacrifice and offering you do not desire, but you have given me an open ear. Burnt offering and sin offering you have not required. 7 Then I said, “Here I am; in the scroll of the book it is written of me. 8 I delight to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart.” 9 I have told the glad news of deliverance in the great congregation; see, I have not restrained my lips, as you know, O LORD. 10 I have not hidden your saving help within my heart, I have spoken of your faithfulness and your salvation; I have not concealed your steadfast love and your faithfulness from the great congregation. 11 Do not, O LORD, withhold your mercy from me; let your steadfast love and your faithfulness keep me safe forever. 12 For evils have encompassed me without number; my iniquities have overtaken me, until I cannot see; they are more than the hairs of my head, and my heart fails me. 13 Be pleased, O LORD, to deliver me; O LORD, make haste to help me. 14 Let all those be put to shame and confusion who seek to snatch away my life; let those be turned back and brought to dishonor who desire my hurt. 15 Let those be appalled because of their shame who say to me, “Aha, Aha!” 16 But may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; may those who love your salvation say continually, “Great is the LORD!” 17 As for me, I am poor and needy, but the Lord takes thought for me. You are my help and my deliverer; do not delay, O my God.

Devotional

“Do not delay, O my God” (v. 17). With a sense of urgency and trust, the psalmist petitions the Lord. This same immediacy drives our souls to sing Advent hymns such as “Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus” and “O Come, O Come Emmanuel.” These sweet melodies carry lyrics of longing and desperation, and with them we join all the saints across time and miles in crying out, “Do not delay, O my God.”

As we enter this season of waiting, may we be encouraged to cry out to God with this kind of candor. We can be this direct with God, who knows the chaos of our hearts and of our world, for in Psalm 40 we are promised God’s listening ear—an ear that does not turn from our cries and frustration. “He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God” (v. 3).

And so we wait, and while we ask God not to tarry, we give God our whole selves in worship! We raise our voices in adoration because God is faithful in raising us up from the pit and giving us stability. The psalms model for us patterns of praise even in times of trouble and uncertainty. May we give honor to the God who beckons us near, whose love knows no bounds.

Our God invites us to postures of both urgent longing and exuberant praise. God welcomes our exhaustion and our gratitude. Let Psalm 40 be our prayer this Advent as it gives voice to the tensions we feel as we approach this season of expectation.

Prayer

Lord, do not delay your coming. We need you in our midst to change our hearts and our world. We praise you, our God of strength and tender care, who listens to our longings with love. Draw us near to yourself as we wait. Amen.

Advent Prayer Program - Day 2

Day 2 - Glorify God

Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:13-14

Growing your faith is a life-long process. Ask God to remove any barriers that keep you from drawing near to Him. Have hope about your future and strive to keep your spiritual life on track.

Advent Devotional - November 29, 2020

Scripture

2 Peter 3:1-10

1 This is now, beloved, the second letter I am writing to you; in them I am trying to arouse your sincere intention by reminding you 2 that you should remember the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets, and the commandment of the Lord and Savior spoken through your apostles. 3 First of all you must understand this, that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and indulging their own lusts 4 and saying, “Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since our ancestors died, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation!” 5 They deliberately ignore this fact, that by the word of God heavens existed long ago and an earth was formed out of water and by means of water, 6 through which the world of that time was deluged with water and perished. 7 But by the same word the present heavens and earth have been reserved for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the godless. 8 But do not ignore this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like one day. 9 The Lord is not slow about his promise, as some think of slowness, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish, but all to come to repentance. 10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a loud noise, and the elements will be dissolved with fire, and the earth and everything that is done on it will be disclosed.

Devotional

I’m a dad of three amazing kids. My kids live life to the fullest—they play hard and laugh often. They dump Legos on the floor, scatter toy cars across the ground, and get other toys out that they won’t even play with. Our basement is often hit hardest by our children’s playing. It takes only about 30 minutes to turn a pristine, immaculate basement into a complete mess.

Interestingly enough, sometimes it takes even less time than that to turn our own lives into a complete mess. For Adam and Eve it only took one bite. The great news from our text today is that we can turn our lives away from the mess of sin and into the restorative life that only Christ offers. Our text outlines how we can do so as we begin this Advent’s journey.

First, remember the words spoken by the holy prophets (v. 2). The words of Scripture are life giving, transformative, and applicable for all moments of life. The writer of Hebrews describes the Word of God as alive and active, sharper than any two-edged sword and able to judge thoughts and the intentions of the heart (Heb. 4:12). God’s word is something we are called to remember, internalize, and put into practice. Let’s take this Advent season and be intentional about remembering the words of God and the prophetic voices of the past and present.

Second, trust that God will fulfill his promises (2 Pet. 3:3). It can be very easy to doubt God’s promises when the world we live in seems to get crazier by the minute. Trust God anyway. When brokenness is all you have known for so long, it is easy to see the mess. Trust God anyway. This Advent season let us not be scoffers (as in v. 3). Instead, let us be people who unconditionally trust that the promises of God will come true.

And third, be patient as you await God’s timing (v. 8). At the time of writing of this text, it was widely thought that many followers of Jesus believed his return was imminent. Here we are, 2,000 years later, still waiting. We need to be patient. I must confess that I don’t do well with patience. I want things to happen now, but that’s not how God works. God works patiently, deliberately, in his timing to bring about his glory, and to transform us into the likeness of Christ. In obedient response, we are patiently to await God’s timing. If and when we do, we’ll be amazed at how we experienced the promised restoration found only in Jesus Christ.

Prayer

Lord, we thank you that your promises always come true. Help us during this Advent season to be patient, to be hopeful, and to trust you unconditionally, no matter the circumstances going on in our lives. Fix our eyes and hearts on the Christ Child in the manger this Advent. Amen.

Advent Prayer Program - Day 1

Day 1 - Let There Be Light

The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned. Isaiah 9:2

The word “Advent” is from the Latin word adventus, meaning “coming.” Today people around the world will light the first candle on their Advent wreaths. Christ, the Light of the World, is coming!