Scripture – John 10:11; Name of Jesus – The Good Shepherd; Ornament – Shepherd Staff
When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.
Matthew 9:36
I love this picture that Scripture paints of our Savior. He saw me among the multitudes – and felt compassion for me – because I was distressed and downcast like a sheep without a shepherd. God in His goodness gave me Jesus, a shepherd to care for me and who willingly laid His life down for His sheep. I am so thankful for His rod and staff, they truly do comfort me. By them, I have known His protection and when I have strayed He has pulled me back to His path of righteousness. – Father, I am forever totally dependent on You and ever grateful for Your Gift of the Savior, my Good Shepherd.
Me – from the Insideout
“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd sacrifices his life for the sheep.
Jesus, the Lamb of God The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!
John 1:29
On the Eighth-Day of Christmas, my ‘True Love’ gave to me … A Lamb to take away my sins. That’s right, in God’s goodness He provided the Perfect Lamb, the Spotless Lamb – Jesus Christ. He did this so that my sins and those of the world might be forgiven. A lamb isn’t powerful like a lion, but this Lamb had all the power of heaven – for His blood was pure. He was the perfect and complete sacrifice – sent by the Father as a free gift of salvation to a lost and dying people whom He loved.
Me – from the Insideout
For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son so that whoever believes in Him would not perish but have everlasting life.
John 3:16
For the wages of sin is death but the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Romans 6:23
Father, I celebrate Your Gift of Jesus Christ as the Lamb sacrificed for my sins. I praise You for the gift of His blood that cleanses me and makes me white as snow.
The More You Know
The only hope we have of Heaven is Jesus. If you don’t know Him or have questions about salvation I would love to help you. I invite you to visit my link, Know These Truths or email me at mryelnb@aol.com and reference “know these truths”.
This is my life verse and a great reminder of TRUTH to start the first day of the New Year with! How wonderful is it to know that as believers, we can purpose to live every day of 2024 with the awareness that we belong to God – and are made new in Christ! The baggage of the past is gone … and while we may not know what 2024 holds – God does and He has given us everything we need to live a godly life regardless of what each day brings. His mercies will be new every morning … His grace will be all-sufficient … we will see that His power is made perfect in weakness … His love will never fail … His forgiveness is guaranteed … His peace will pass all understanding … His comfort will be present in troubles … when we listen we will hear His “still-small-voice”, and when we look – we will see His finger-prints … when we commit our words and thoughts to Him – He will make them pleasing and acceptable to Him – and He will use them and us as salt and light in this unsavory and dark world. May 2024 be a year blessed with an awareness of Him and of the New Creations we are in Him!
Scripture – Revelation 22:16; Name of Jesus – The Bright Morning Star; Ornament – Star
Today, on this 6th-Day of Christmas I have unwrapped the “STAR”, an ornament that symbolizes God’s Gift of Jesus, The Bright Morning Star. He is God’s son, my Savior – begotten of God – not created – God in flesh – greater than any created being. He is more powerful than Satan or any ruler on earth – The Prince of Peace and the Giver of all true LIGHT. As the wise men followed the star to find the Baby Jesus, when I follow Christ, The Bright Morning Star, I will find the awe and “excitement, and the LIGHT of that perfect day when He will raise us up to live with Him in heaven to worship Him forever.”
Father, Thank You for Your Gift of The Bright Morning Star, who is Christ the Lord! Spirit, help me to keep my eyes on Him from here to eternity – where, like the wise men, I will bow down in worship of Him who no longer lies in a manger, or hangs on a cross, or remains in the tomb – but who sits at the right hand of Your throne in Heaven!
Scripture – John 8:12; Name of Jesus – The Light of the World; Ornament – Candle
God is good and in His goodness He sent LIGHT to those walking in darkness. He extended His goodness to “All Men” and to those who have believed – He has given the right to be called the sons of God. He has filled them with His Spirit – that others may see the LIGHT of Christ and want to know and follow Him. So, on this 5th-Day of Christmas, I celebrate Christ, The LIGHT of the world! May His LIGHTbe seen in me. May it light up the darkness and shine out for all to see that they might give praise to God in heaven. Me – From the Insideout
“Youarethelightoftheworld—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father. Matthew 5:14-16
Scripture:John 4:10; Name of Jesus – The Giver of Living Water; Ornament – Water jug
On this Fourth Day of Christmas, I am reminded of Jesus’ words to the woman at the well – where He revealed Himself to her as the Giver of Living Water. The living water He was referring to was the Holy Spirit, a gift from the Father to every believer. A gift, that was only available through Him. In John 7:38, Jesus says, ” Anyone who believes in Me may come and drink! For the Scriptures declare, ‘Rivers of living water will flow from his heart.” He wasn’t concerned about her physical need for water but rather her spiritual need for a Savior. Do you know someone who needs the Living Water? Introduce them to Jesus, The miracle Baby in the manger, the Door to God, the Life Giving Vine, and The Giver of Living Water. Read the story – John 4:1-42 NLT – Jesus and the Samaritan Woman – Jesus – Bible Gateway – the woman didn’t even know she was thirsty but once Jesus introduced her to the Living Water her life and the lives of countless others were changed forever.
Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.”
Scripture:John 15:5; Name of Jesus – The Vine; Ornament – Cluster of Grapes
On this third day of Christmas, I am reminded to celebrate Jesus, not just as an infant in the manger, but as The Vine who gives me LIFE. I know and have experienced that apart from Him I can do nothing, but by ‘abiding’ in Him – I will bear much fruit, be known as His “true Disciple”, and bring glory to the Father.
Jesus, the True Vine “I am the true grapevine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch of mine that doesn’t produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more. 3 You have already been pruned and purified by the message I have given you. 4 Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me. 5 “Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.Read More
John 15:1-8
The fruit we bear is unique to those who abide in Jesus, The Vine, because it is a product of His Spirit in us. His Life-Giving Spirit produces love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control – Galatians 5:22-23. Abiding in Him changes us from the inside-out. We will look different, sound different, act different, respond differently, and think differently than the world. Abiding in Jesus, we will learn to live and grow to look more like Him – which is God’s ultimate goal for our life. The question is, “How do we stay connected to Him?” The answer – by faithfully spending time with Him in prayer and in His Word and living obediently to it. Abiding in Jesus may not always be easy – there will be hard choices and things we must give up in order to cling to the VINE but God has given us everything we need to live a godly life. Think of it this way – while John 5:5 teaches us that apart from Jesus “we can do nothing”, Paul teaches us that through Jesus “we can do all things”, Philippians 4:13. The struggles we face in this life are only truly surmountable when we are abiding in – or sometimes clinging to – The Vine – God’s gift of LIFE.
Me – From the Insideout
3 By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know Him, the one who called us to Himself by means of His marvelous glory and excellence. 4 And because of His glory and excellence, He has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share His divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.
Day 2: Scripture – John 10:9; Name of Jesus – The Door; Ornament – Door
On this second day of Christmas, I remember not just the baby in the manger – but the “Door” that He came to be.
Yes, I am the door. Those who come in through me will be saved. They will come and go freely and will find good pastures.
John 10:9
He came to be a door or gateway to God. When we choose to believe in Him we are given access to His safe pasture. We are invited into His Presence to live under the protection of the Great Shepherd. We feed on His Word and learn to know His voice and live in obedience to Him. In His presence there is peace and hope and strength, there is love and life everlasting. Those who choose not to enter are sheep without a shepherd, living in darkness and jeopardy, without hope.
Jesus says , “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me.”
“Adornaments” It started as something I did with my children when they were growing up. The “adornaments” reading and ornament were a way to help them/us focus on the true meaning of Christmas amidst all the presents and lights of the seasons. Thirty plus years later and it is still a treasured part of our Christmas. For us, it has evolved through the years – from the 12 days leading up to Christmas to the 12 days after Christmas – leading to the Epiphany [əˈpifənē]1
1The manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles as represented by the Magi (Matthew 2:1–12) and the celebration commemorating the Epiphany on January 6.
My hope is that by sharing these 12 adornaments over the next 12 days – together we can enter the new year with a fresh awareness of JESUS beyond the manger. Each day we will be focusing on a different name of Christ leading us to understand – or perhaps just reminding us – who He is and why we should truly adore Him not just at Christmas but throughout the year.
Me – from the Insideout
Day 1: Scripture – Matthew 1:23; Name of Jesus – Immanuel; Ornament – Baby in a manger
On this first day of Christmas I remember God, my One True Love, from the depth of His goodness gave to me a Savior – who is Jesus Christ the Lord! Born as a baby in a manger – God in the flesh – He came to save His people from their sins.
21 And she will have a son, and you are to name Him Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” 22 All of this occurred to fulfill the Lord’s message through His prophet: 23 “Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and they will call Him Immanuel, which means ‘God is with us.’”
Matthew 1:21-23
John 3:16 proclaims the reason for this gift was because – God loved the world so much that He gaveHis only begotten Son, so that whoever believes Him would not perish but have everlasting life. Why such a lavish gift? Because God loves with an amazingly lavish love! He knew we were sinners, unable to keep the law, unable to save ourselves, and by His standards deserving of death. Yet, as with Barabbas we were set FREE and Christ was sent to the cross – crucified for the sins of the world – making a way for sinners to have a relationship and everlasting life with God – the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
9 God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. 10 This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.
Ah! This descriptive picture of Jesus is far more pleasing than the one of His suffering that we looked at last week. These promises of who He would be, His title, His throne, His reign, His forever kingdom are all a far cry from the stable we picture with cattle and hay at His birth or the scene of the suffering Savior weighed down with sins not His own. Yet all are descriptions of promises fulfilled or yet to come, and all of them leading us – pleading for us even – to worship Him – the infant, the crucified, the risen and ruling King!
My mind cannot fully grasp the truths of this announcement but my heart rejoices with Mary at the message Gabriel brought her. It was a message of a Messiah promised long ago, a message of hope that would change the world. Born a child and yet a King, born to die but yet to live – and to reign forever. Son of the Most High God yet born to man. Born in a lowly stable but given the throne of his father David. May every heart receive Him and every tongue confess the name of Jesus Christ the Lord.
I do not own the rights to this music
How are you worshipping Christ during this Advent season?
Me From the Inside Out 