Advent Devotional Dec 13
Week Three:
Creating Shalom means Sounding Joy
Tuesday, December 13, 2022
“God’s Abiding Care” – Read Jude 1:17-25
But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life. (vv. 20-21, NIV)
I visited Charlie in the hospital, a wise elder of our congregation. He spoke rarely, but when he did, the church listened. We had just gone through a “rough patch” that almost caused me to be moved. The crisis had passed, caring members embraced us, and while there had been several months of turmoil and discouragement, we found ourselves and the congregation moving forward once again. It had taken its toll on me, and I had struggled to remain positive during the event.
As our visit came to a close, I had a prayer with Charlie and started to leave. He called me back and said, “David, do you know how we got through this?” I said, “No, how did we?” He replied, “Because you never ceased to love us, you never scolded us, you modeled care for our church.” I thanked him and asked him to pray for Paula and me. He nodded, squeezed my hand, and I left.
We live in discouraging times. Turmoil abounds. Our beloved United Methodist Church struggles with how to practice a Jesus-like openness to all people. But as I read the passages of scripture in today’s lectionary, I realized that in each time period, there was much about which to be discouraged, yet each writer spoke words of encouragement. Ezekiel 47 tells of healing waters; Psalm 42 speaks of God’s constant presence and love.
Jude, a brother of Jesus, has a short letter written around the year 60 when the Roman army was about to descend and destroy the Temple. Jude encourages the people and commends them to the God of creation when he says, “To him who is able to keep you from stumbling (being discouraged?) and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy – to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power, and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore (vv. 24-25, NIV).
O Lord, today let me take to heart the injunction of John Wesley, a man who understood tough times, who says to us: “Stay in love with God.” Amen.
Rev. Dr. David Severe
Retired Elder, the Heartland District
“God’s Abiding Care” – Read Jude 1:17-25
But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life. (vv. 20-21, NIV)
I visited Charlie in the hospital, a wise elder of our congregation. He spoke rarely, but when he did, the church listened. We had just gone through a “rough patch” that almost caused me to be moved. The crisis had passed, caring members embraced us, and while there had been several months of turmoil and discouragement, we found ourselves and the congregation moving forward once again. It had taken its toll on me, and I had struggled to remain positive during the event.
As our visit came to a close, I had a prayer with Charlie and started to leave. He called me back and said, “David, do you know how we got through this?” I said, “No, how did we?” He replied, “Because you never ceased to love us, you never scolded us, you modeled care for our church.” I thanked him and asked him to pray for Paula and me. He nodded, squeezed my hand, and I left.
We live in discouraging times. Turmoil abounds. Our beloved United Methodist Church struggles with how to practice a Jesus-like openness to all people. But as I read the passages of scripture in today’s lectionary, I realized that in each time period, there was much about which to be discouraged, yet each writer spoke words of encouragement. Ezekiel 47 tells of healing waters; Psalm 42 speaks of God’s constant presence and love.
Jude, a brother of Jesus, has a short letter written around the year 60 when the Roman army was about to descend and destroy the Temple. Jude encourages the people and commends them to the God of creation when he says, “To him who is able to keep you from stumbling (being discouraged?) and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy – to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power, and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore (vv. 24-25, NIV).
O Lord, today let me take to heart the injunction of John Wesley, a man who understood tough times, who says to us: “Stay in love with God.” Amen.
Rev. Dr. David Severe
Retired Elder, the Heartland District
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1 Comment
"Jesus-like openness..." so beautifully said. In discouraging times, coming from a place of love is a wonderful start for healing and whooeness.