The Necessity Of Waiting
Sunday, December 8
Malachi 3:1-4
“See, I am going to send my messenger, and he will clear the way before me. Then the Lord you seek will suddenly come to his temple, the Messenger of the covenant you delight in—see, he is coming” (v. 1, CSB).
Malachi speaks of a messenger preparing the way for God’s arrival, akin to the anticipation felt before a grand event. This imagery captures the essence of Advent, a season of waiting with eager hearts for the coming of our Savior. For just as silver is refined in the fire, our lives are often refined through periods of waiting. Not simply by receiving that for which we wait, but through the waiting itself. Waiting is integral in forming us to be a people who prepare for Jesus in all things. During this Advent season, let us embrace the waiting with patience and persistence. Let us allow God to refine us, purifying our hearts and minds so that we may reflect his light more brightly in the world.
O God of highest heaven, prepare our hearts to welcome the Lord Jesus anew into our lives as we anticipate the celebration of his birth. Amen.
Preparing For Jesus And Justice
Monday, December 9
Jeremiah 33:14-16
The anticipation and preparation for Jesus cannot be divorced from the anticipation and preparation for justice. It is easy to get caught up in the sentimentality and tradition of this time of year and to entirely miss the fullness of why Christ has come. Even in our attempts to remedy the over-commercialization of Christmas with the refrain “He is the reason for the season,” we can still find ourselves failing to properly prepare for his coming. Have we sanitized the Christmas story to be one that merely caters to our cultural sensibilities? In so doing, have we lost sight of the justice of God in giving us the “righteous branch” of Christ? If we are not preparing for Jesus by preparing to trust and delight in a God of justice, then we are not preparing for Jesus in the way we ought.
O God of justice, we delight in the beauty and truth that in Christ our righteous branch, you have made a way for all injustices to be dealt with. Prepare our hearts to receive the just King in whom we find our righteousness. Amen.
Looking Back To Look Forward
Tuesday, December 10
Luke 1:68-75
I recently began remodeling our master bathroom. I have just enough home repair knowledge to be dangerous. One of the ways I prepared for this project was to look back at the projects I did in the past. There is something about reflecting on the past that prepares us for the present. More than any other time in the Christian year, Advent is when we look back in order to look forward. We remember the first advent of Christ as we prepare for his second advent. In some ways, this is what Zechariah is doing through his prophetic words recorded by Luke. As he celebrates the birth of his son, John, the forerunner of the Messiah, Zechariah is looking back on all the ways God has been faithful. This posture enables him to more fully anticipate the coming Messiah who is yet to be born. Part of our holy preparation for what is to come requires a holy reflection on what has come to pass.
O God of faithfulness, grant us the eyes to see your goodness and provision throughout our years as we await your many blessings to come. Amen.
Don’t Forget To See The Darkness
Wednesday, December 11
Luke 1:76-79
“Advent begins in the dark.” These words by Fleming Rutledge describe both the literal and figurative reality of this season. While everything around us may lead us to think it is a time of light, followers of Jesus must see beyond the superficialities created by the imposter holiday spirit. Advent is when we face the fact that without Christ, we are left in the dark. Christ has come to shine the light of God’s love and truth upon us because we are a people living in darkness. If that key part of the story is missed, then the light of Christ will not shine as brightly. Again, the words of Fleming Rutledge are a sober reminder for how we must prepare for Jesus in this time: “Advent is designed to show that the meaning of Christmas is diminished to the vanishing point if we are not willing to take a fearless inventory of the darkness.” Is this part of our preparation?
O God of light and love, awaken us to see that apart from you we remain in darkness. May we see the darkness in and around us, that we might see the fullness of Christ. Amen.
Not A Bad Seat In The House
Thursday, December 12
Luke 3:1-6
My wife and I saw two of our favorite musical groups of all time perform live in a sporting arena. It was a great experience, but it paled in comparison to when we saw them 20 years ago in a much smaller and more intimate venue. The sporting arena clearly had good seats and bad seats. That’s not how Jesus arrived onto the scene. John makes clear that the Messiah would come in such a way that the lifted up in society would not be more privileged than those of lower position. For “everyone will see the salvation of God” (v. 6). As we prepare for Jesus this Advent, are we preparing room for those in our life who may occupy a different position in society than us? Is there some way that our preparation for Jesus could involve lifting up those whom society deems as lowly? As we do, we will find ourselves preparing room for Jesus himself.
O God of our salvation, grant us the eyes to know and the hearts to love all peoples regardless of their place in life so that all might see the salvation of our King. Amen.
The Monkey Trap And The Apostle Paul
Friday, December 13
Philippians 1:3-7
Have you heard of the monkey fist trap? The way to trap a monkey is to dig a hole in the ground and place bait in it. The hole must be big enough for the monkey’s hand when opened, but small enough that when it closes its fist it can’t get out. The monkey will grab the bait and be stuck because it isn’t smart enough to let go of what it wants—even
if it results in being captured. Paul’s words are a form of guarding us
from the monkey trap. We all hold things in our fists that we boast, be it our possessions, power, or prestige. But the more we hold onto these things, the less we are able to receive from Jesus. To boast in ourselves
is foolishness. But to boast in Christ is our only hope.
What do you need to let go of in order to prepare to receive from Jesus this Advent?
O God of my sufficiency, humble me and remove my pride in order that I might receive my worth, significance, and identity through Christ alone. Amen.
What Is Your Goal?
Saturday, December 14
Philippians 1:8-11
By now you probably have a growing shopping list and a sizable to-do list as Christmas draws near. You undoubtedly have many tasks, chores, priorities, and goals during this season. I by no means want to add to your lists, but let us consider whether we have the right goals on our lists. More pointedly, do we have Paul’s goal on our list? Do we have the goal to know Jesus? In one sense we can say, “Of course we do. He is the reason for the season.” But in another sense, we may find ourselves knowing less and less of who Jesus is as he is crowded out by the countless other things vying for our time and attention.
It may sound simple, but I pray that we all would slow down, simplify our lists, and reprioritize our goals so as to prepare ourselves to know Jesus. May every one of our hearts prepare him room by making the goal to know him.
O God of our longing, slow us down and reorder our loves that we might see the beauty and necessity of knowing Jesus above all else. May it be so in our lives. Amen.
