Do we, who are busy preparing for Christmas, parties and presents and decorations and food and church programs - and visitors - do we prepare with equal fervor for the visitation of the Lord? If you are consumed by one more Christmas (one mere Christmas among two thousand) your Advent is fleeting, time-bound, and likely self-absorbed. Desperate preparations often indicate an anxiety about the opinions of others regarding ourselves.~Walter Wangerin, Jr., Preparing for Jesus
"You are my servant,I have chosen you and not cast you off"; fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God;I will strengthen you, I will help you,I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." For I, the LORD your God,
hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, "Fear not,I am the one who helps you."~Isaiah 41:9-10, 13 (ESV)
Sometimes it's hard to accept that God can bring about His purposes through our trials. It's hard to see past our circumstances to a future that, for us, doesn't exist yet. But God is not constrained by time. He is not reined in by our circumstances. Because of this, we have to trust that our limited perspective simply cannot process His higher purpose...Even when I don't understand and even when it's hard to wait, waiting anyway is part of growing in faith as we simultaneously grow in our relationship with Him. As our dependence on Him grows, so does our relationship with Him.Marybeth & Curt Whalen, Learning to Live Financially Free
(Links to these books are in my sidebar)
1 comment:
Encouraging! Thank you for sharing these thoughts!
The Isaiah passage is one of my favorites from that book of the Bible.
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