01/02          Joshua 4:21-24

21 Then Joshua said to the Israelites, “In the future your children will ask, ‘What do these stones mean?’ 22 Then you can tell them, ‘This is where the Israelites crossed the Jordan on dry ground.’ 23 For the LORD your God dried up the river right before your eyes, and he kept it dry until you were all across, just as he did at the Red Sea when he dried it up until we had all crossed over. 24 He did this so all the nations of the earth might know that the LORD ’s hand is powerful, and so you might fear the LORD your God forever.”

KNOW

We must tell everyone what Jesus has done for us.  Children must know about the Lord so that they can make their own choice.  Do not let anyone be ignorant about Jesus our Lord and Savior.  He is Lord.  He is Lord of all.  Jesus is God.    

01/01          Deuteronomy 6:20

20 “In the future your children will ask you, ‘What is the meaning of these laws, decrees, and regulations that the LORD our God has commanded us to obey?’ 

RESPONSIBILITY

We must educate our children about the Lord.  They need to know what their parents think.  Do not let your children be ignorant about Jesus tell them what Jesus has done in your life and then let them see the reflection of Jesus in you as they grow up.  They can make up their own mind as an adult but they must know the truth to decide.  Tell everyone about Jesus.   

12/31          Isaiah 40:30-31

30 Even youths will become weak and tired, and young men will fall in exhaustion. 31 But those who trust in the LORD will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint.

TRUST

Whatever you are facing, whatever you are doing the Lord God will give you the strength you need for living a life like God’s life.  He calls us to grow in Christ likeness.  Jesus is alive today.  He is our Savior. 

12/30          Romans 5:5

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.

FILLED

Our hearts are filled to overflowing with His love.  He loves individually and corporaterly.  He loves us because He created us.  He loves us because that is His nature.  For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son that we might have life and not death. 

12/29         Isaiah 40:1-11

1 “Comfort, comfort my people,” says your God. 2 “Speak tenderly to Jerusalem. Tell her that her sad days are gone and that her sins are pardoned. Yes, the LORD has punished her in full for all her sins.” 3 Listen! I hear the voice of someone shouting, “Make a highway for the LORD through the wilderness. Make a straight, smooth road through the desert for our God. 4 Fill the valleys and level the hills. Straighten out the curves and smooth off the rough spots. 5 Then the glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all people will see it together. The LORD has spoken!” 6 A voice said, “Shout!” I asked, “What should I shout?” “Shout that people are like the grass that dies away. Their beauty fades as quickly as the beauty of flowers in a field. 7 The grass withers, and the flowers fade beneath the breath of the LORD. And so it is with people. 8 The grass withers, and the flowers fade, but the word of our God stands forever.” 9 Messenger of good news, shout to Zion from the mountaintops! Shout louder to Jerusalem — do not be afraid. Tell the towns of Judah, “Your God is coming!” 10 Yes, the Sovereign LORD is coming in all his glorious power. He will rule with awesome strength. See, he brings his reward with him as he comes. 11 He will feed his flock like a shepherd. He will carry the lambs in his arms, holding them close to his heart. He will gently lead the mother sheep with their young.

HERE
Jesus was propheicied to be coming in the Old Testament and now He is here.  God stepped down from Heaven in the form of a helpless baby born into a poor Jewish family in a backwater of the Roman Empire.  He lived a perfect life.  He died on the Cross for you and me-He knew us before the foundation of the world.  He was raised from the dead by the power of the Almighty God.  He is alive today giving us the wisdom, mercy and grace that we so desperately need daily.  Praise God.  Jesus is alive. 

12/28                   Psalm 135:19-21

O Israel, praise the LORD! O priests of Aaron, praise the LORD! 20 O Levites, praise the LORD! All you who fear the LORD, praise the LORD! 21 The LORD be praised from Zion, for he lives here in Jerusalem. Praise the LORD!

PRAISE

Praise the Lord.  He is worthy of all praise.  He is the author and finisher of our faith.  Praise the Lord.  All the good things that happen to us originate with the Lord and everything that comes into our life is under His power and He can take evil and turn it to good-Praise the Lord.

12/27          Matthew 2:19-23

But when Herod died, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, and said, 20 “Get up, take the Child and His mother, and go into the land of Israel; for those who sought the Child’s life are dead.” 21 So Joseph got up, took the Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel. 22 But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. Then after being warned by God in a dream, he left for the regions of Galilee, 23 and came and lived in a city called Nazareth. This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophets: “He shall be called a Nazarene.”

NAZARETH

Jesus lived in Nazareth.  It was a simple town of Galilee.  He grew up there growing in wisdom and grace.  He was the Son of God.  Joseph obeyed God and moved to Nazareth.  Amazing what happens when we obey God.  He knows the end from the beginning.  Praise the Lord. 

12/26          Matthew 2:13-18

13 Now when they had gone, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up! Take the Child and His mother and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is going to search for the Child to destroy Him.” 14 So Joseph got up and took the Child and His mother while it was still night, and left for Egypt. 15 He remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet: “OUT OF EGYPT I CALLED MY SON.”
Then when Herod saw that he had been tricked by the magi, he became very enraged, and sent and slew all the male children who were in Bethlehem and all its vicinity, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the magi. 17 Then what had been spoken through Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled: 18 “A VOICE WAS HEARD IN RAMAH, WEEPING AND GREAT MOURNING, RACHEL WEEPING FOR HER CHILDREN; AND SHE REFUSED * TO BE COMFORTED, BECAUSE THEY WERE NO MORE.”    

TRAGEDY

On the way to the Cross the Babe in Bethlehem endured a great deal of tragedy.  The World is an evil place.  The power of God in Christ can change everything in our life.  He makes the weak strong.  He gives the strong humility.  The Lord God Almighty has come and we are celebrating His birth. 

12/25          Matthew 2:9-12

9 After this interview the wise men went their way. Once again the star appeared to them, guiding 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 where the child and his mother, Mary, were, and they fell down before him and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasure chests and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 12 But when it was time to leave, they went home another way, because God had warned them in a dream not to return to Herod.

CHILD

A child is born.  A world changer.  Born in Bethlehem.  Born to Jewish parents in a backwater town like Bethlehem on the edge of the Roman Empire.  This child would change the world.  He would bring the opportunity for you and me to have a relationship with God.  He would provide forgiveness for our sin and eternal life-life like God’s life.  Jesus has come in the flesh.  He walked among us and saved us from our sin.    

12/24          Matthew 2:1-8

1 Jesus was born in the town of 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 have seen his star as it arose, and we have come to worship him.” 3 Herod was deeply disturbed by their question, as was all of Jerusalem. 4 He called a meeting of the leading priests and teachers of religious law. “Where did the prophets say the Messiah would be born?” he asked them. 5 “In Bethlehem,” they said, “for this is what the prophet wrote: 6 ‘O Bethlehem of Judah, you are not just a lowly village in Judah, for a ruler will come from you who will be the shepherd for my people Israel.’ ” Then Herod sent a private message to the wise men, asking them to come see him. At this meeting he learned the exact time when they first saw the star. 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!”

BETHLEHEM

In the little Israeli town of Bethlehem God came in the flesh in the form a baby.  He chose to live as we live, to suffer as we suffer and to show us the way in living a Godly life.  By faith we accept Him and by faith we live by His power.  Jesus is born in Bethlehem-Hallelujah!