Born

“She gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them.”

‭‭Luke‬ ‭2‬:‭7‬ ‭NLT‬‬

My first child was a daughter. She was precious to me. She remains precious to me! We might disagree on many things but she remains precious to me. My second born was my son. He was precious to me also. He also remains precious to me.

When a baby is born you fall in love in a way you never imagine. These beautiful little ones hold your every gaze, you want to keep them close.

Mary is no different, except she knew she held the Son of God. What an honour, what a responsibility! Jesus needed Mary to feed Him, clean Him, hold Him in comfort. How amazing it would be for the keeping of God in the flesh. There would be constant amazement and joy.

The Father knew Mary was betrothed to Joseph. He trusted Joseph with the role of father to the Son of God. What a responsibility and joyful opportunity to teach Jesus the ways of God!

Would Mary and Joseph have been embarrassed to bring Jesus in the world in a manger? What would their prayers have been like? Would they have felt heavens eyes upon them at all times?

I am grateful for the obedience of Mary and Joseph!

https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=ifCWN5pJGIE&si=dQ4gRZ3kCkwELIXv

Blessed

“Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!”Luke‬ ‭1‬:‭45‬ ‭NIV‬‬

These are words spoken by Elizabeth to Mary. They apply to all of us. We are blessed when we believe God’s word to us.

Many of us would have words spoken over us that are yet to be fulfilled. Yet, we patiently wait. This word comes to me to wait patiently for God to perform His words over my life and keep trusting Him for a good result.

I have just awaken from a very vivid dream about a husband and wife who are experiencing trouble and the husband asked for a divorce in front of his daughter. The coups are plagued with volumes of people in the house constantly. They are pastors and have just moved house. The wife struggles with all the people and wants peace. The husband seems oblivious. The wife continues to attempt to unpack and find things put away by the children in odd and random places. A friend comes to visit to help and the wife tells her what her husband has said, he happens to come in as she is speaking. The friend is a prayer and the wife asks her to pray.

Now, the above scripture speaks to all our circumstances. At this time of year we all face difficulties, but we can seek the Lord and trust His word. Amen!

Holy Spirit

“The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.”Luke‬ ‭1‬:‭35‬ ‭NIV‬‬

In the beginning the Holy Spirit hovered over the face of the deep, waiting for the command, “let there be!” Here we find the Holy Spirit coming upon Mary and when the word was spoken, “let there be!” A child was conceived.

The Holy Spirit came upon Jesus in the form of a dove at His baptism and He drove Jesus out into the wilderness for 40 days and nights, so that Jesus could receive preparation for His earthy ministry.

The Holy Spirit is God’s power source, He is a person and He comforts and counsels us. Right now I am praying for His counsel about a relationship conflict. Rather than running with upset feelings I want Him to talk to me. I am aware that certain things anger me easily, I don’t like that and want to change. His power is here for me to make changes. He is good! Amen!

Pioneer

“fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”Hebrews‬ ‭12‬:‭2‬ ‭NIV‬‬

The Passion Translations says this:

“We look away from the natural realm and we focus our attention and expectation onto Jesus who birthed faith within us and who leads us forward into faith’s perfection. His example is this: Because his heart was focused on the joy of knowing that you would be his, he endured the agony of the cross and conquered its humiliation, and now sits exalted at the right hand of the throne of God!”Hebrews‬ ‭12‬:‭2‬ ‭TPT‬‬

Jesus taught us where to focus. He kept His eyes on the Father. He had 30 years to learn this and He did it well during the three years of His revelation to His people, and His ultimate death on the cross.

Right now, all my plans to celebrate Christmas seem to have fallen through. I was planning a trip to the snow with friends. However, the weather reports say ‘no snow’. I wonder what the Lord has in mind?

I will make a back up plan but prefer to trust the Lord.

He knows who and when He wants us to meet people, what He wants us to say to them and how He plans to use it in their lives. I will trust Him! Amen!

Making allowances

“Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love.”Ephesians‬ ‭4‬:‭2‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Making allowances is something we do only for those we really love. However, as Christians we are called to love all. Paul in the above verse is talking to the church, so we assume just believers.

Yet, there are believers who test our patience. We struggle more when we are unwell or tired, or they are unwell or tired. As we approach Christmas we can fall into a ‘have to’ mentality and fail to enjoy and love the season of ‘goodwill to all mankind’. May we pull back and gear down a cog and enjoy.

I was planning to take my flatmates to the snow. However, it is reluctant to snow within a few hours of Kathmandu before New Year. Whilst that will be fun, it will also be a trial as snow can cause you to be bogged, snow melts and you become wet. I must maintain the joy of seeing my flatmates experience snow for the first time.

Remembering why Christmas is important! Amen!

Children of God

“But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. They are reborn—not with a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan, but a birth that comes from God.” John‬ ‭1‬:‭12‬-‭13‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Jesus came to a world that did not recognise Him, the demons did, however, the people expected a king and were looking at a man who would save them from their sins. They did not understand their plight and need of a saviour. They did not comprehend His offer, until the Holy Spirit came upon them and revealed the truth of what Jesus came to give, eternal life.

 

For us who do believe and have received His gift, we are grateful. He is the eternal One, the beautiful saviour, the door opener. There is no eternal life but His.

I am currently living in Nepal which has many gods and can easily see Jesus as just another God. However, Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth and the life. No man comes to the Father but by Me!” John 14:6.

There is no other God for me! I am content in knowing Jesus! Amen!

Faith

“So faith comes from hearing, that is, hearing the Good News about Christ.”Romans‬ ‭10‬:‭17‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Hearing about Jesus is a beautiful gift we can give to the people of the world. If they do not hear, faith cannot arise. We must look for ways to share the good news.

I like good news! I believe everybody likes good news. We don’t like to hear about the people that are killed because they are Jews or Christians, or just because they are children. Yesterday, in Australia 12 people were killed, 11 were of the Jewish faith, one was the gunman.

However, last night a group of us gathered to sing Christmas carols and celebrate Christmas here in Nepal. It was a joyous occasion.

In Africa many are killed because they are Christians. The enemy of our souls is hatefully seeking to main, kill and destroy. Praise God Jesus came to bring life and it is the news about Him that brings change.

We are blessed to know Him! Let’s tell others about Him! Amen!