Bringing Us Together by Scott Groshans (reprinted from Advent Devotions - 1996)

Malachi 4:4-6

Remember the law of my servant Moses, the decrees and laws I gave him at Horeb for all Israel.⁵ “See, I will send the prophet Elijah to you before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes. ⁶ He will turn the hearts of the parents to their children, and the hearts of the children to their parents; or else I will come and strike the land with total destruction.

In 1994, I spent six months in China, helping start up a new chemical plant. It was an exciting project, but I hated being separated from my wife and our one- and three-year-old sons. When I returned, my youngest son Aaron did not know me. He was very attached to my wife, Laura, and he treated me like a stranger.  I was hurt, but I felt certain things would get back to normal after a few weeks.

Well, they didn’t.  Although Aaron got used to having me around again, he clung to his mother, and I couldn’t develop a bond with him, so I began to resent him for not giving me a chance.  After a year, things hadn’t changed much, when Laura received an opportunity to start working again, part-time in the evenings.  Although we were worried about how this would impact our family, we decided to give it a try.

With Laura gone at night, Aaron had to depend on me, and I had to take care of him. Gradually, the tension between us disappeared, and we finally formed that bond I wanted so badly.  The Lord is constantly at work in our lives, trying to help us become the people He wants us to be.  His presence isn’t always made known through the dramatic voice of a prophet.  Sometimes, key events occur in our lives which bear the unmistakable mark of His grace.

Prayer:

Dear Lord, thank you for Your healing presence in our lives, as you work to help us reconcile our differences, and thereby bring us closer to you. Amen.

All People Shall See by Frances Duncan (reprinted from Advent Devotions - 1996)

Isaiah 40:5

And the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all people will see it together. For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.

A church school teacher asked the children in her class to write a letter to God. One little girl wrote, “Dear God, my mommy says you are everywhere, but I can’t see you.  Will you come to my house so I can see you?”

Many of the important things in our lives we cannot see – love, friendship, understanding, devotion, faith – but we can many times see the results in ourselves and in others.

Isaiah tells us to prepare our lives to see God work. This is not always easy, for none of us is immune to problems. But our faith need not be hindered by them.  Our lives are mortal, but God and His word are eternal and unfailing.  God’s word is constant and we can see Him through His Word.

Prayer:

Dear God, Open my heart, my eyes, my mouth and my ears that I may see you through your words and your works. Amen.

I Will Restore by David Brashear (reprinted from Advent Devotions - 1996)

Jeremiah 33:10-16

 This is what the Lord says: ‘You say about this place, “It is a desolate waste, without people or animals. “Yet in the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem that are deserted, inhabited by neither people nor animals, there will be heard once more ¹¹ the sounds of joy and gladness, the voices of bride and bridegroom, and the voices of those who bring thank offerings to the house of the Lord, saying,

“Give thanks to the Lord Almighty,
    for the Lord is good;
    his love endures forever.”

For I will restore the fortunes of the land as they were before,’ says the Lord.

¹² “This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘In this place, desolate and without people or animals—in all its towns there will again be pastures for shepherds to rest their flocks. ¹³ In the towns of the hill country, of the western foothills and of the Negev, in the territory of Benjamin, in the villages around Jerusalem and in the towns of Judah, flocks will again pass under the hand of the one who counts them,’ says the Lord.

¹⁴ “‘The days are coming,’ declares the Lord, ‘when I will fulfill the good promise I made to the people of Israel and Judah.

¹⁵ “‘In those days and at that time
    I will make a righteous Branch sprout from David’s line;
    he will do what is just and right in the land.
¹⁶ In those days Judah will be saved
    and Jerusalem will live in safety.
This is the name by which it will be called:
    The Lord Our Righteous Savior.’

God’s covenant to his people is always unswerving. He has promised to love and care eternally his children and keep us safe within his strength and power. It is when our resolve to his covenant is weak that we strain our relationship with God.

In the Old Testament times of Jeremiah, the situation was dark for the Hebrew people.  God called it a wasteland, devoid of life, where the streets of the cities of Judah were desolate.  True to his unfailing love, God promises to restore life again to this wasteland. He promises to restore the happy sounds of a prosperous community; where couples are joyously married and future generations insured; where shepherds once again bring their flocks to the mountain valleys to graze. A light will come to shine in darkness and drive back the gloom of past years. A “Righteous Branch” from David’s lineage will spring forth to renew the spirit of the people and revitalize all the land.

Jeremiah prophesied the renewal of God’s covenant to his people in the coming of Jesus Christ, and it would be through him that they would be saved and would dwell in security.  We are reminded of this promise as we look forward to Christmas Day and to the birth of our Savior.

Prayer:

Our most gracious heavenly Father, we humbly ask you to lift the shroud of darkness that clouds our thoughts and vision so we can be filled with the light of Christ.

The Prophet by Bob and Charlotte Laughlin (reprinted from Advent Devotions - 1996)

Deut. 18:15

The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your countrymen, you shall listen to him.

Our family has always looked forward to the Christmas season, and on this day of Advent, we would be receptive to any lesson God would bestow upon our hearts, realizing that “as for God, His Way is perfect.” (Ps. 18:30) and isn’t it wonderful!

When the children of Israel asked for a prophet to speak to them for God, He answered, “Yes.” (The children of Israel were terrified by the awesome power of God’s voice when he spoke to Moses on Mount Horeb.) He promised to give them a prophet from their own nation, but they didn’t always listen.

Then, He sent His only son to fulfill the promise. Christ, the Son of God Himself. He came to teach us and to take our sins on his shoulders and die to give us all eternal life. There can be no greater gift.

 

Prayer:

Lord, we thank you for the gift of your son, who came that first Christmas to save us all from our sins. You said we should listen to Him.  May we not only listen, but also obey.  Amen.