12 Days of Christmas
Advent & Christmas Devotional — The 12 Days of Christmas Candles of love to inspire all my living Reflect: The season of Christmas has begun. For each of these 12 days, write down one way you will show God’s world the love of Christ. Consider this the start of your 2021 spiritual resolutions to carry with you throughout the new year. Day 1 | Christmas Day, Friday, Dec. 25 A gift for God But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of any works of righteousness that we had done, but according to his mercy, through the water of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit. This Spirit he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. — Titus 3:4–7 A worship service on Christmas morning was not a tradition in the little rural church I served, but one year I decided to offer such a service. The turnout was small. The worship was casual. “Make sure to bring the cookies that Santa didn’t finish,” I told the children beforehand. Truth be told, I didn’t have time to bake, and I was on the search for some homemade goodies. Snow was gently falling as we gathered in the fellowship hall around the Christmas tree. We sang our favorite carols and did a candy cane prayer of praise, where I invited the person holding the piece of candy to say what they were grateful for.
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