The Lord Is Near Advent Devotional
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THE LORD IS NEAR 2012 ADVENT DEVOTIONAL Written by the members of Macedonia Evangelical Lutheran Church Burlington, North Carolina 2012 ADVENT THEME: “The Lord Is Near ” Special thanks also to the Macedonia Writers who contributed to this year’s Advent Devotional. Special thanks to our editors, Joy Rust and Cindi McCarthy. 2 “Advent - The Lord is Near” TABLE OF CONTENTS Day Month Date Verse Author Page # Sunday December 2 Mark 13:35-37 Emily Adkins 4 Monday December 3 Isaiah 40:9 Dan Voelkert 5 Tuesday December 4 Isaiah 11:1 Sarah Menz 6 Wednesday December 5 Isaiah 25:7-8 Inez Honeycutt 7 Thursday December 6 James 5:7-8 Joy Rust 8 Friday December 7 Matthew 9:27 Julie Russell 9 Saturday December 8 Isaiah 30:19 Chrissy Adkins 10 Sunday December 9 2 Peter 3:13-14 Frank Rhue 11 Monday December 10 Isaiah 35:10 Cherub Choir 12 Tuesday December 11 Isaiah 2:2-3 Sheila Gibson 13 Wednesday December 12 Matthew 11:28-29 Wade Spencer 14 Thursday December 13 Matthew 11:11 Melinda Menz 15 Friday December 14 Isaiah 48:17-18 Bruce Moore 16 Saturday December 15 John 16:16 Tom Macklin 17 Sunday December 16 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 Ally Lockard 18 Monday December 17 Psalm 72:11-12 Shannon Lynch 19 Tuesday December 18 Zephaniah 3:12-13 Robin Huffman 20 Wednesday December 19 Isaiah 45:6-7 Stephanie Braxton 21 Thursday December 20 Luke 7:24-26 Greg Myers 22 Friday December 21 Matthew 1:1-2 Ellen Greeson 23 Saturday December 22 Matthew 1:20-21 Yvonne White 24 Sunday December 23 Luke 1:38 Kristin Spencer 25 Monday December 24 John 1:3-5 Abigail & Amanda Cary 26 Tuesday December 25 Isaiah 9:2 Connie Poovey 27 Christmas Note from Pastor Rust , page 28 3 Sunday, December 2 Written by Emily Adkins Mark 13:35-37 35Therefore, keep awake — for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or at dawn, 36or else he may find you asleep when he comes suddenly. 37And what I say to you I say to all: Keep awake." I was given these verses with the disclaimer that they were “perfect for a college student.” It didn’t take long to figure out why, and it is not simply because any college student worth their salt can stay awake long past the hour any rational human being would go to bed. These verses are perfect for a college student because they contain a message that becomes clearer as we venture out into life on our own: A huge part of faith in God is knowing that God can come to us seemingly out of the blue, bringing us something we’d never dream we’d need, let alone want. This is why we are told to stay awake. God’s timetable is different from ours. God works in mysterious ways. These are not new ideas—many of us have heard these philosophies dozens of times before. However, these are crucial to understanding God’s plan for us and for the world. Jesus reit- erates both of these concepts in these verses. We pray, and we believe that God will send an answer. Our part of the bargain is to simply stay awake and wait for God’s presence. Not only must we accept that God’s answer to prayer may or may not come at a time that we expect, but we also must always be alert, be- cause the answer may be sent to us in a way that we would never have imagined ourselves. Very simply, we must stay awake because otherwise we may miss what God sends us. There is no better time to remember to stay awake than at Christmas time. When restoration of the Davidic line was hu- manly impossible due to Roman rule, the promised King was born just the same. As we have been told time and time again, salvation for all the world came from the most unlikely place imaginable — a tiny baby, whose parents were not even impor- tant enough to warrant a room in an inn. The fullness of God’s power is seen in the birth of Jesus because it is so far above humanity that it goes beyond even human imagination. God chooses not to let us know exactly what is coming for a reason. He never asks us to be totally unsurprised by His actions, to completely anticipate everything He does. All that is asked of us is to be receptive to His presence in our lives, and to be constantly alert to His answers to our prayers- whether this is recognizing the baby in Bethlehem, or trusting that He will give you the right resources to succeed when you cannot see how success is possible. We must stay awake if we wish to live in the wonder of all that God has blessed us with. 4 Monday, December 3 Written by Dan Voelkert Isaiah 40:9 9Get you up to a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good tidings; lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good tidings, lift it up, do not fear;say to the cities of Judah, "Here is your God!" For those of you who may have been on another planet since July, I recently became a grandfather. (Don’t know how I missed you but I do have pictures.) I mention my darling Bethany partly because that is what grandparents do at every opportunity but also because my reaction to her birth gives me insight into what Isaiah is talking about in the verse above. Bethany Darcell Weant was born July 19 at 2:25 a.m. I took her very first picture. It was a dark and pitiful attempt. I should have used a flash but didn’t want Have I Got News for You!!! to startle her. Nevertheless, by 3:13 a.m. it was posted to my Facebook page as the first of many proud announcements in various media of this wonderful event. The next day, it was all I could do not to stop people on the streets of Boone and tell them about her. (That urge has somewhat subsided but if you see me reach for my phone and it is not ringing, excuse yourself politely, and run for your life.) In the verse above, Isaiah is speaking to the Israelites who are returning to Jerusalem after the long Babylonian Captivity. The people of Israel had been exiled after losing a war with Babylon. When they wondered how such a defeat could happen to God’s chosen people, it was seen as God’s punishment for Israel’s continuing disobedience. The end of this 70 year exile was cause for great joy. This was a day that had been greatly anticipated—the day when the Lord’s favor had returned to them. They were to shout the glad tidings from the mountaintop, “Here is your Lord!” This Advent season we, too, are anticipating a great day when we can say to the whole world, “Here is your Lord.” Advent reminds us of the great message we have. Unlike Israel, God does not exile us in our disobedience. When the fullness of time was accomplished, God dwelt among us. He does not meet us halfway or even three quarters of the way. He covers the entire gap that separates us from Him. This great event comes in the form of a small baby in a cattle feeding trough. Just as Papa Dan takes great joy in talking about the new delight of his life, so we, as Christians, are called to proclaim the good news of the Babe of Bethlehem. Let us go to the mountain tops to shout the news. Let us tell our friends. Let us use Facebook and all media and methods to tell the world the greatest news it will ever hear: “Here is your Lord!” Let us pray: Heavenly Father, in this advent season, stir up your Spirit among us that we may with great joy proclaim your saving message to all. In Jesus name we pray. Amen. 5 Tuesday, December 4 Written by Sarah Menz Isaiah 11:1 A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots. As the Son of God, it seems like Jesus should be born into an important family. This passage describes them as “the stump of Jesse”. The family line of Jesse included powerful people, like King David, so the Jesse tree was important to the Jewish people. Jesus, however, wasn’t born when the family had lots of power. He was sent into the world as a baby into a humble family. Jesus is the “shoot” and the “branch” - new life from a lowly stump. This humble entrance reflects the way he lived and how he helped people who society had neglected. LET US PRAY: Dear God, Thank you for sending Jesus into the world. During this season of Advent, help us to learn about You, and bring new life to our church and our faith. Amen. 6 Wednesday, December 5 Written by Inez Honeycutt Isaiah 25:7-8 7And he will destroy on this mountain the shroud that is cast over all peoples, the sheet that is spread over all nations; 8he will swallow up death forever. Then the Lord GOD will wipe away the tears from all faces, and the disgrace of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the LORD has spoken.