We have a choice every day throughout this life:
– Faith or Fear
– Courage or Cowardice
– Walk or Talk
– Do or Excuses
– Responsible or Blame
– Benefit or Lose
– Significance or Shame
– Pleasure or Guilt
– Favor or Trouble
– Focus or Confusion
– Diligence or Laziness
– Blessed or Cursed
Choose wisely today!
America, and I am sure most countries right now, could use an Ezekiel or three in this current world devolution, this beastialization of humanity.
Here is what God said to Ezekiel … may God speak to someone soon!
The Text of Ezekiel 2
He said to me, “Human being! Stand up! I want to speak with you!” As he spoke to me, a spirit entered me and put me on my feet, and I heard him who was speaking to me. He said,
“Human being! I am sending you to the people of Isra’el, that nation of rebels who have rebelled against me—they and their ancestors have been transgressing against me to this very day. Because they are defiant, hardhearted children, I am sending you; and you are to tell them, ‘Here is what Adonai ELOHIM says.’ Whether they listen or not, this rebellious house will still know that a prophet has been among them!
“As for you, human being, don’t be afraid of them or their words, even if briars and thorns surround you, and you sit among scorpions. Don’t be afraid of their words or be upset by their looks, for they are a rebellious house. You are to speak my words to them, whether they listen or not, for they are very rebellious.
But you, human being, hear what I am telling you: don’t you be rebellious like that rebellious house. Open your mouth, and eat what I am about to give you.” When I looked, there was a hand stretched out to me, holding a scroll. He spread it out in front of me, and it was covered with writing front and back. Written on it were laments, dirges and woes.”
Christmas reminds us that God visits the willingly obedient (Luke 1:38)
This Christmas, remember, many will say, “Happy Holidays!” instead of “Merry Christmas!”
Don’t be upset at them … they are just professing that the Jesus Christ of Christmas hasn’t come to them yet!
Love them, pray for them and share that devotion, that faith, that favor you know in the God who does the impossible and visits the obedient with them.
Who knows, perhaps THIS will be the year Christmas will change everything for them as well!
Prayer
Father in Heaven,
Thank you for sending your son to be our Savior, but not ours alone, but for everyone who will accept your love and leadership through your Son, Jesus!
Thank you for reminding us that you are real, that you love our devotion and reward our faith!
Thank you for reminding us that you favor the sexually pure, by accomplishing the seemingly impossible in their lives by visiting them because they are willingly obedient to follow your will and word.
For the glory of your story in our daily lives, Amen
What is your response to God when He wants to do the impossible?
Listen to Mary,
“Then Mary said, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.” (Luke 1:38)
Are you willing to allow God to be God in your life?
Sexual purity today is mocked and ridiculed as “Puritanical” and “Victorian”
The trouble is, those who do such things are the sexually immoral, those who have chosen to reject the wisdom of God for the foolishness of humanity.
Such a life course leads to eternal damnation, not eternal life, as Paul repeatedly tells us in the New Testament letters.
Mary’s question, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?” is answered in Luke 1:35–37 …
35And the angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.
36Now indeed, Elizabeth your relative has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren.
37For with God nothing will be impossible.”
37For with God nothing will be impossible.”
“‘Ah Lord Yahweh! Look, you made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm. Nothing is too difficult for you,” (Jeremiah 32:17, LEB)
God wants our faith
Have you thought about Christmas like this?
God wants faith from us; God expects faith from us!
We may not have an angelic visitation, but we have a Biblical revelation – we have the Word of God right here at our fingertips … the Words of God, the will of God, are always available!
God is so real, He loves our devotion to Him!
But the story of God’s glory in the lives of His people continues, for God is up to something.
And when God is up to something, He works on many fronts at once using many people to accomplish His will and whim!
In Nazareth, the Virgin Mary
Luke 1.26-56
26Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth,
27to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.
28And having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!”
29But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was.
30Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.
31And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus.
32He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David.
33And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.”
34Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?”
34Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?”
As you start to prepare for the upcoming holiday, Dr. Matthew Lee Smith would like to remind you that
Christmas interrupts our lives with the reminder, “GOD IS REAL” (Luke 1:7–17)
18And Zacharias said to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is well advanced in years.”
19And the angel answered and said to him, “I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and was sent to speak to you and bring you these glad tidings.
20But behold, you will be mute and not able to speak until the day these things take place, because you did not believe my words which will be fulfilled in their own time.”
21And the people waited for Zacharias, and marveled that he lingered so long in the temple.
22But when he came out, he could not speak to them; and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple, for he beckoned to them and remained speechless.
23So it was, as soon as the days of his service were completed, that he departed to his own house.
24Now after those days his wife Elizabeth conceived; and she hid herself five months, saying,
25“Thus the Lord has dealt with me, in the days when He looked on me, to take away my reproach among people.”
I once worked with a guy named George who, for Christmas, gave his wife, for her big gift – and I am not making this gift up – a chain saw. (As he later explained: ‘Hey, we NEEDED a chain saw.’) Fortunately, the saw was not operational when his wife unwrapped it. – Dave Barry
How many of you have made such a terrible mistake? We know what happened to this man, he thought about himself too much and his wife too little.
That’s normal for most of humanity … after all, we are human and we think about ourselves … a lot!
And, all too often, when we think about ourselves too much, like in marriage, we pay the consequences for our failure to think of another.
But Christmas changes everything … whether we realize it or accept it. When Jesus came, He came for a simple purpose:
“I didn’t come to call righteous people but sinners to change their hearts and lives.”” (Luke 5:32, CEB)
Jesus actually came for you and I, people who mess up and think too much of ourselves too often!
The amazing thing about the Christ of Christmas is that Jesus came from Heaven to help us!
“The Father sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.” (1 John 4:14, NLT)
And since Jesus came from heaven to help us, and He is God’s Son, we understand that He is also
“King of all kings and Lord of all lords.” (Revelation 19:16, NLT)
In other words, He’s the boss, and we are not! Which is a good thing, considering how often our selfishness gets us in trouble!
As a result, His coming to Earth changes everything!
Agendas – we all have them and, if we are bluntly honest, we all work from our own most of the time. But when Jesus comes into our lives, He changes our focus; He breathes life into our schedules!
In this very intimate message, I want to show you how the revealing of God’s presence changes everything in our lives.
Join us as we notice that Christmas, the coming of Jesus, the Christ, refocuses our lives, provides purpose to our existence and births hope in our hearts!
In Jerusalem, the Priest Zechariah
Luke 1.5-25
God sends us six reminders at Christmas that should cause us to restructure our daily agendas!
“There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the division of Abijah. His wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.
And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.” (Luke 1:5–6)
And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.” (Luke 1:5–6)
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Hope Enabler is the real-life story of one Christian parent’s struggle with a runaway child and the hope that God enabled her to have during the darkest moments of that struggle.
