01/01               Philippians 2:1-2

1 Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from his love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and compassionate?  2 Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one mind and purpose. 

NEW YEAR

Focus your daily life on Jesus.  Purpose to become more like Jesus this year.  Follow Him.  Obey Him. Love one another.  Change will be happening every single day.  Jesus is Lord. 

12/31               Psalm 4:7

7 You have given me greater joy than those who have abundant harvests of grain and new wine. 

RICH

In Christ we are rich in the things that count.  Life in Jesus is a life that is filled to overflowing with value and worth.  We have His joy and peace; and grace overflowing and renewed daily.  Jesus is Lord. 

12/30               Romans 5:1-5

1 Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us. 2 Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory.  3 We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. 4 And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. 5 And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love. 

DONE

Jesus has provided everything we need to lead a life that is joyous and productive.  He is with us. 

12/29               John 15:11

11I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow! 

REJOICE

Our Lord and Savior Jesus has provided everything we need to lead a joyous and fulfilling life. Trust in the Lord and all of His ways and He will lead you.  Praise the Lord. 

12/28               John 1:1-5

1 In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He existed in the beginning with God. 3 God created everything through him, and nothing was created except through him. 4 The Word gave life to everything that was created, and his life brought light to everyone. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it. 

JESUS

He came, he lived, he died and was raised from the dead by the power of God.  And, He is still with us.  Jesus is Lord. 

12/27               Matthew 2:16-23

16 Herod was furious when he realized that the wise men had outwitted him. He sent soldiers to kill all the boys in and around Bethlehem who were two years old and under, based on the wise men’s report of the star’s first appearance.  17Herod’s brutal action fulfilled what God had spoken through the prophet Jeremiah: 18 “A cry was heard in Ramah— weeping and great mourning. Rachel weeps for her children, refusing to be comforted, for they are dead.”  19 When Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt.  20 “Get up!” the angel said. “Take the child and his mother back to the land of Israel, because those who were trying to kill the child are dead.” 21 So Joseph got up and returned to the land of Israel with Jesus and his mother.  22 But when he learned that the new ruler of Judea was Herod’s son Archelaus, he was afraid to go there. Then, after being warned in a dream, he left for the region of Galilee.  23 So the family went and lived in a town called Nazareth. This fulfilled what the prophets had said: “He will be called a Nazarene.”

LIFE

His life was lived out before a watching world.  Jesus the Christ is going to the Cross to pay the price for our sin. 

12/26               Matthew 2:13-15

13 After the wise men were gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up! Flee to Egypt with the child and his mother,” the angel said. “Stay there until I tell you to return, because Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.”  14 That night Joseph left for Egypt with the child and Mary, his mother, 15 and they stayed there until Herod’s death. This fulfilled what the Lord had spoken through the prophet: “I called my Son out of Egypt.” 

PROTECTION

The Lord had a plan and it would be played out on His time schedule and not the rulers of the world’s time schedule.  He has a plan for you. 

12/25               Matthew 2:7-12

7 Then Herod called for a private meeting with the wise men, and he learned from them the time when the star first appeared.  8 Then he told them, “Go to Bethlehem and search carefully for the child. And when you find him, come back and tell me so that I can go and worship him, too!” 9 After this interview the wise men went their way. And the star they had seen in the east guided them to Bethlehem. It went ahead of them and stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they were filled with joy!  11 They entered the house and saw the child with his mother, Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasure chests and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.  12 When it was time to leave, they returned to their own country by another route, for God had warned them in a dream not to return to Herod. 

ACTIVITY

His plan in place everything begins to unfold as written by the Lord. 

12/24               Matthew 2:1-6                                  

1 Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. About that time some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking, 2 “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him.”  3 King Herod was deeply disturbed when he heard this, as was everyone in Jerusalem.  4 He called a meeting of the leading priests and teachers of religious law and asked, “Where is the Messiah supposed to be born?”  5 “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they said, “for this is what the prophet wrote:  6 ‘And you, O Bethlehem in the land of Judah, are not least among the ruling cities of Judah, for a ruler will come from you who will be the shepherd for my people Israel.’ ” 

HE IS HERE WITH US

Jesus arrives in Bethlehem and is now among His Creation.  Praise the Lord that He came for us 2,000 plus years ago in that little town of Bethlehem.  Thank you Lord.  Thank you Lord. 

12/23               Luke 2:17-20

17After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. 18 All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished, 

19 but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often.  20The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them. 

TESTIMONY

This is the testimony of a bunch of shepherds independent of the establishment or the government.  They were ordinary people changed by the arrival of an extraordinary Lord and Savior Jesus.