Tuesday, December 12, 2017

LHM Advent Devotion - December 13, 2017 "A BREATHING SPACE"


Advent Devotions from Lutheran Hour Ministries

"A BREATHING SPACE"

December 13, 2017

And Mary remained with her about three months and returned to her home.
~ Luke 1:56 (ESV)

Three months of peace. God gave Mary a heavenly gift when He encouraged her to visit her cousin Elizabeth, who was also with child. For three months she would not have to deal with the reactions of her family and Joseph. Instead, she would be with two people who believed her story absolutely-two people who rejoiced with her instead of doubting or fearing or even getting angry.

Those three months would allow Mary to get through the worst discomfort of early pregnancy-the morning sickness, the hormone shifts, and the sudden emotional storms. Elizabeth would be able to give her help and good advice. In turn, Mary could do the practical work of cooking, cleaning, and shopping that Elizabeth would be finding difficult as she reached the end of her own pregnancy. The two could help each other in love.

Best of all, those three months would allow Mary to come to terms with the amazing thing God was doing through her. She would have time to think over all the wonderful promises the angel made. She would think back over everything she had learned about God's promised Messiah, and how He would save His people. Mary would gather strength from all this so that when the time came, she could go back and face her parents and Joseph, trusting God to work everything out.

God offers us times of peace and comfort as well. Sometimes they may be short-no more than a few minutes here or there during a work break or a child's nap. But whenever they come, they are a gift from the God who loves us enough to come into the world through the body of a tired pregnant woman who needed peace.

As the Prince of Peace, Jesus knows our needs and provides for them, now and forever. He has earned true peace for us through His death and resurrection. When we are in need, we can ask Him for rest. He will help us.

THE PRAYER: Dear Lord, give us the peace and rest You see we need so much. Amen.

Use these devotions in your newsletter and bulletin! Used by permission; all rights reserved by the Int'l LLL (LHM).
Three months of peace...

Devociones de Adviento de 13 de Diciembre de 2017 - "Un lugar de descanso"


ALIMENTO DIARIO

"Un lugar de descanso"

13 de Diciembre de 2017

María se quedó con Elisabet como tres meses, y después volvió a su casa.
~ Lucas 1:56 (RVC)

Tres meses de paz. Cuando Dios alentó a María a que fuera a visitar a su prima Elisabet, quien también estaba embarazada, le estaba dando un regalo celestial. Durante tres meses no tendría que lidiar con las reacciones de su familia o de José. Al contrario, estaría con dos personas que creían por completo su historia-dos personas que, en vez de dudar o temer o incluso enojarse, se alegraron con ella.

Esos tres meses le permitirían a María superar los malestares de comienzos del embarazo: las náuseas, las fluctuaciones hormonales y los cambios emocionales bruscos. Elisabet la podría ayudar y aconsejar y María, a cambio, podría ayudar con la cocina, la limpieza y las compras que a Elisabet se le iban a hacer pesadas hacia el final de su embarazo. Las dos se ayudarían mutuamente en amor.

Lo mejor de todo: esos tres meses iban a servirle a María para aceptar la maravilla que Dios estaba haciendo a través de ella. Tendría tiempo para pensar en todas las tremendas promesas que el ángel le había hecho, en todo lo que había aprendido acerca del Mesías prometido por Dios y en cómo habría de salvar a su pueblo. Todo eso habría de darle fuerzas para que, cuando llegara el tiempo, pudiera regresar y enfrentar a sus padres y a José, confiando en que Dios se encargaría de todo.

A nosotros Dios también nos ofrece momentos de paz y de consuelo. A veces son cortos-sólo unos minutos en el trabajo, o mientras los niños descansan. Pero cuando llegan, son un regalo de ese Dios que nos ama tanto, que vino al mundo a través del cuerpo de una joven embarazada cansada que necesitaba paz.

Jesús, el Príncipe de Paz, conoce nuestras necesidades y provee para ellas ahora y para siempre. Él ha ganado la verdadera paz para nosotros a través de su muerte y resurrección. Cuando lo necesitamos, podemos pedirle que nos ayude dándonos descanso.

ORACIÓN: Jesús, nuestro Príncipe de Paz, danos el descanso y la paz que tanto necesitamos. Amén.

© Copyright 2017 Cristo Para Todas Las Naciones. Que a través de estos devocionales, la Palabra de Dios te refresque en tu diario caminar.

The Daily Readings for TUESDAY, December 12, 2017

Matthew 22:34-46
Daily Readings

Amos 7:10-17

Then Amaziah, the priest of Bethel, sent to King Jeroboam of Israel, saying, "Amos has conspired against you in the very center of the house of Israel; the land is not able to bear all his words. For thus Amos has said, 'Jeroboam shall die by the sword, and Israel must go into exile away from his land.'" And Amaziah said to Amos, "O seer, go, flee away to the land of Judah, earn your bread there, and prophesy there; but never again prophesy at Bethel, for it is the king's sanctuary, and it is a temple of the kingdom." Then Amos answered Amaziah, "I am no prophet, nor a prophet's son; but I am a herdsman, and a dresser of sycamore trees, and the LORD took me from following the flock, and the LORD said to me, 'Go, prophesy to my people Israel.' "Now therefore hear the word of the LORD. You say, 'Do not prophesy against Israel, and do not preach against the house of Isaac.' Therefore thus says the LORD: 'Your wife shall become a prostitute in the city, and your sons and your daughters shall fall by the sword, and your land shall be parceled out by line; you yourself shall die in an unclean land, and Israel shall surely go into exile away from its land.'"

Revelation 1:9-16

I, John, your brother who share with you in Jesus the persecution and the kingdom and the patient endurance, was on the island called Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. I was in the spirit on the Lord's day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet saying, "Write in a book what you see and send it to the seven churches, to Ephesus, to Smyrna, to Pergamum, to Thyatira, to Sardis, to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea." Then I turned to see whose voice it was that spoke to me, and on turning I saw seven golden lampstands, and in the midst of the lampstands I saw one like the Son of Man, clothed with a long robe and with a golden sash across his chest. His head and his hair were white as white wool, white as snow; his eyes were like a flame of fire, his feet were like burnished bronze, refined as in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of many waters. In his right hand he held seven stars, and from his mouth came a sharp, two-edged sword, and his face was like the sun shining with full force.

Matthew 22:34-46

When the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together, and one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. "Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?" He said to him, "'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets." Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them this question: "What do you think of the Messiah? Whose son is he?" They said to him, "The son of David." He said to them, "How is it then that David by the Spirit calls him Lord, saying, 'The Lord said to my Lord, "Sit at my right hand, until I put your enemies under your feet" '? If David thus calls him Lord, how can he be his son?" No one was able to give him an answer, nor from that day did anyone dare to ask him any more questions.

New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The New Revised Standard Version Bible may be quoted and/or reprinted up to and inclusive of five hundred (500) verses without express written permission of the publisher, provided the verses quoted do not amount to a complete book of the Bible or account for fifty percent (50%) of the total work in which they are quoted.

Prayer of the Day for TUESDAY, December 12, 2017


As streets fill with shoppers Bright lights and tempting offers Christmas songs and children’s laughter, You lead us along a different path to a desert river and a Prophetic voice, a call to repentance, a call to service, a call to immerse ourselves in living water that will never run dry. A call to prepare a way in our own lives for the Saviour of the world to enter in to know the touch of tender mercy and rest in your forgiving love. For your faithful prophets and your Living Word we give you thanks.
Amen

Verse of the Day for TUESDAY, December 12, 2017


James 1:17-18 (NIV) Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created.

Read all of James 1

Listen to James 1

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Morning Devotions with Cap'n Kenny - Twinkle Lights


Twinkle Lights

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created.
~ James 1:17-18 (NIV)

“Two hundred fifty strands of lights, one hundred individual bulbs per strand, for a grand total of twenty-five thousand imported Italian twinkle lights,” Clark Griswold proudly proclaims in the National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation movie. Eyes wide with expectation he stands, hand paused for the grand plug-in. A drum roll from the family, and Clark’s excitement soon vanishes as the plug-in result was a total disappointment; void of any lights at all.

The movie is funny because we can relate. We go out into life with our plans of expectation, but only too many times, we have our hopes and dreams dashed. Christmas tends to be a season, where we usually are a little less impressed than we had hoped. Maybe a gift we gave was not exactly right, or the gift we received was not what we had hoped. The children played with their toys all of five minutes, then grew disinterested. We burned the turkey, or the cake fell. We did not get a telephone call from a loved one. We were lonely and a little sad. We build up these grandiose ideas in our minds, only to be a little disenfranchised by the outcome.

One thing we can count on being perfect is the gift God gave us. He is the creator of all the lights in the sky, and He gave us the light of the world, Jesus. The birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, was a gift that did not disappoint. He came to give us redemption and life everlasting. The story never changes. His light has no shadows, never fades, and never ceases to shine. God showed us through this gift that we were the most important of all that He created.

When Clark plugged in the extension cord, there was nothing, because the source of electricity had been turned off. When we plug into God, through the conductor of light, Jesus Christ, we also become a conductor of His power and might. We too will be an illumination of Him. When we step into eternity, we can do it with great expectation, because the imagination of our minds will probably not suffice the amazing glory of it all. There will be no need for twenty-five thousand imported Italian twinkle lights, because the light of the world will shine for all to see.
As streets fill with shoppers Bright lights and tempting offers Christmas songs and children’s laughter, You lead us along a different path to a desert river and a Prophetic voice, a call to repentance, a call to service, a call to immerse ourselves in living water that will never run dry. A call to prepare a way in our own lives for the Saviour of the world to enter in to know the touch of tender mercy and rest in your forgiving love. For your faithful prophets and your Living Word we give you thanks. Amen
In Jesus,
Cap'n Kenny


Seeking God?
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Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Two hundred fifty strands of lights, one hundred individual bulbs per strand, for a grand total of twenty-five thousand imported Italian twinkle lights.

Un Dia a la Vez - A todos nos pueden sustituir


A todos nos pueden sustituir

Por lo tanto, pregunto: ¿Acaso rechazó Dios a su pueblo? ¡De ninguna manera!
~ Romanos 11:1 (NVI)

El mundo dice que a todos nos pueden sustituir. Para muchos, lo que tú y yo hacemos en nuestro trabajo se valorará hasta el día que estemos vigentes. Sin embargo, cuando no estemos, lo más probable es que la gente nos olvide.

¿Sabes? Eso será teoría para otros, yo no voy con esa línea de pensamiento. Voy por la línea del Señor, que es muy diferente.

Primero que todo, Dios es el que nos bendice cada día. Es el que nos ha dado los dones y talentos, y será el más feliz cuando los utilicemos. Además, si reconocemos que somos hijos del Creador y que le interesa que nos vaya bien, Él será el que abrirá y cerrará las puertas, y nos colocará en lugares de privilegio.

Este concepto de sustitución sucede también en el ámbito de las relaciones. Me refiero a las personas que cambian de pareja como cambiar de zapatos, sin valorar principios y sentimientos. Así que van por el mundo dejando heridas, a veces incurables, en la vida de otros.

La enseñanza de hoy es que no importa quién te deseche, ni quién te abandone, ni quién te sustituya en tu trabajo, pues no eres menos por eso. Piensa que hay un Dios que te ama y tú eres único para ese Creador.

Un Día a la Vez Copyright © by Claudia Pinzón

Standing Strong Through the Storm - FAITH IS NOT A SECRET


FAITH IS NOT A SECRET

And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ…

Some twenty-five years ago Boutros from a Middle East country became a Christian. Since then he has revealed a big heart for evangelism. Wherever he goes, he is always very open about his Christian faith.

A couple of years ago he was arrested and questioned by the police. They asked him if he had baptized people and he replied, “I told them that I had baptized 1,000 people—the real figure at that time was only 700 but I increased the numbers because I knew I would probably soon reach that number.” Boutros is a secret believer that when guided by God doesn’t make a secret of his faith.

An Open Doors co-worker reported it was a great joy to meet him. After a visit with Boutros he commented, “At his work place he has a cross hanging. Everyone who comes to his place sees the cross. Recently his chief started asking Boutros if he could go and work for another company. Family members who work for the government told Boutros’ brother that certain people wanted Boutros killed. Our co-worker asked him if he was afraid at all. He paused for a second and then nodded and said, ‘A little bit, now.’”

Boutros meets many people who want to know more about his Christian faith. They ask him, because he openly and clearly is a Christian. “I don’t have enough time in the day to talk with them. I have to work hard to make enough money for my living”, he apologizes. “I earn just enough to buy my daily food.” But even though he has to work hard, sometimes he can work and speak at the same time. “Then I have long conversations about the Christian faith.”

Boutros shared a vision he had recently. “I was lying in a pool of water in a beautiful garden and all around me were many people that I’ve known previously who had since left my country and were living in other countries. All of them were praying for me. Through this I felt that God was assuring me that many people around the world were praying for me.”

Our co-worker was impressed and encouraged meeting Boutros. “What a great testimony of how God uses our prayers for the persecuted Christians. The prayers really are a comfort and support to the secret believers,” he concludes.

After some prayer time together, Boutros and the co-worker moved to a safer place where no one would overhear what they were praying about. “It seemed important for him to have some form of physical contact, so we held hands and prayed for just a few moments before he indicated that we should get back. Although admitting that he was a little afraid at that moment, he seemed in a good mood, and very much encouraged by the vision he had of people praying for him. He did add though that he really needed prayer.”

RESPONSE: Today I will not keep my faith a secret but share openly with everyone I contact.

PRAYER: Pray for Boutros and other secret believers who are so bold in sharing their faith and winning many to Jesus.

Girlfriends in God - Giving the Perfect Gift


Giving the Perfect Gift

Today’s Truth

“Each one should give as you have decided in your heart to give. You should not be sad when you give, and you should not give because you feel forced to give. God loves the person who gives happily.’

Friend to Friend

We make a living by what we get out of life, but we make a life by what we give and how we give it. I am convinced that God loves to see us give for no other reason than the joy of giving.

The true story is told of a self-made millionaire who had lived in New York City his entire life. Born and raised in a ghetto, he worked hard and achieved much. Anyone who knew this man would testify to the fact that he was generous - to a fault, some would say. One year, the man was disturbed by an attitude of selfishness and greed that seemed to pervade the Christmas holiday season and everyone around him. Not one to condemn, the millionaire decided that since he had been given so much, it was up to him to do his part in combating greed and came up with an unusual plan. Wearing a disguise, this man stuffed his pockets with $100 dollar bills and set out for a walk on the streets of New York City. When he saw someone in need, he whipped out one of the bills, pressed it into that person's hands and with a "Merry Christmas" and made his way down the street. "It was the most wonderful part of my holiday season," the man reported, and he has been doing it every since.

When our children were in middle school, we owned what I affectionately called a “Mini-Gym.” It was a set of bar bells, a weight lifting bench, and a few free weights. Both Jered and Danna loved their “gym” and used it almost every day. When the Christmas season rolled around, we learned that two of their good friends, Jeff and Jeremy, were not going to have much of a Christmas because their dad had lost his job. Jered came up with a plan. “Mom,” he said, “Danna and I have talked about it. We think that Jeff and Jeremy would love to have a gym like ours, but we don’t want them to know we gave it to them because they might be embarrassed. What do you think?” I thought I was in the presence of two joyful givers and quickly joined them in their plan.

A few days before Christmas, Jered and I took the gym apart and loaded it in our car while Danna found a huge red bow and made a sign that read, “Merry Christmas!” Danna then blew up balloons while Jered dug out some Christmas lights. We enlisted the help of a neighbor who had a key to our friend’s house. Her job was to let us know when our friends left and then unlock the back door so we could complete our mission. We parked down the street until the neighbor called, giggling, to let us know the coast was clear.

Once we were inside, we raced to assemble the gym, tie the balloons, and tape the lights to the front door. We then high-tailed it home as fast as we could. The neighbor reported that just minutes after the boys and their mom returned she heard shouting and “whooping and hollering.” The joy of that Christmas still lingers today.

Greed doesn’t hold a candle to joyful giving. Greed is never satisfied and never at rest. There is always something more to be gained and someone else to outdo. I’m afraid our motives are all too often self-serving when it comes to giving. Our pride is at stake, so we give to impress others. Perhaps we give out of fear and guilt, hoping to buy God's forgiveness from our sin. People are watching, so we give in order to gain their approval.

God is much more interested in our motive for giving than in the gift itself. If that motive is tainted with greed of any kind, the gift simply does not count. This year, before you give, ask yourself, “What’s in it for me?” If the answer is “nothing,” then go ahead and give the gift. Be a joyful giver.

Let’s Pray

Father, You have given me so much. Thank You for the blessings in my life. Thank You for meeting my every need. Now help me to give with a joyful heart. I want You to be pleased and honored by the gifts I give this Christmas.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen.

Now it’s Your Turn

Read Proverbs 11:24-25 “Some people give much but get back even more. Others don’t give what they should and end up poor. Whoever gives to others will get richer; those who help others will themselves be helped.”

What truths about giving do you see in these verses?

How can you apply those truths to the gifts you give this Christmas?

Have you considered the fact that your gift may very well be the answer to someone’s prayer?

More from the Girlfriends

"I am flat broke and Christmas is just around the corner!" Do those words sound familiar? Don't let gift giving become a chore instead of a joy. In this MP3 download message, Giving the Perfect Gift, you will discover how to give ten wonderful gifts without spending a penny!

Be sure to check out the FREE MP3s on Mary’s website and connect with Mary through email or on Facebook.

Seeking God?
Click HERE to find out more about how to have a personal
relationship with Jesus Christ.

Girlfriends in God