Read: Luke 1:46-55 and Psalm 113; SOAP: Psalm 113:1-2
Praise the Lord!
Yes, give praise, O servants of the Lord.
Praise the name of the Lord!
Blessed be the name of the Lord
now and forever.
Psalm 113:1-2
Reflection: It’s the last Friday of our Advent study, The greatest Gift Given, and it’s time to praise the Lord again. Is there something you can praise Him for today? Think back through the week – where did you see God’s fingerprints or hear HIs voice. What has He done that you know could only have been Him? Have you known peace in your heart or mind? Take some time to give God praise! Let’s end our study time together with some Praise for the Greatest Gift Ever!
I pray you have a wonderful Christmas celebration! Our Savior has arrived—the King of kings and Lord of lords! Our Redeemer has been born and we get to join with angels in heaven as we sing His praises. Before the gifts are opened, before the meals are shared, before the carols are sung, sing praise to God, for He alone is worthy.
Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.
8 And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.
Philippians 4:6-8
Paul taught the people of Philippi to not be anxious about anything. He encouraged them to talk to God about their concerns and needs, and to set their minds on things that are true and honorable, and right and pure, and lovely and admirable. They were told to think about things that are excellent and praiseworthy. It seems Paul had learned that the best way to put out the fires of anxiety is to change the focus of his mind. – Go ahead, give it a try – I promise it works!
Reflection: What do you think about when you become anxious? Is it a help or a hindrance to the peace we read about here in Philippians – peace that guards our hearts and minds?
Read today’s devotional to find out what we should do with all of our anxious thoughts –
I invite and encourage you to join me for this final week of our study as we explore God’s gift of PEACE.
We will discover how to have peace in our hearts, minds, circumstances, and future – and then we will finish the study with a look at Mary’s song of praise. You won’t want to miss a single day!
And the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:7
Week 6 Challenge: In Philippians 4:6-8 Paul tells his readers the peace of Christ guards our hearts. Hows does meditating on things that are true , worthy of respect, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, or praiseworthy guard our hearts and minds? This week, take time to evaluate your thoughts, making sure to focus on things that match this list.
Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, “I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.”
John 8:12
Father, You are Good. As James says, You are the giver of every perfect gift, James 1:17. You are the giver of the gift of LIGHT and LIFE to You be the glory. For in your goodness You have given us The Light that shines in the darkness. Light that leads to life according to John 8:12. Light that frees us to follow Jesus out of the darkness. It frees us to to be the light to the darkness around us, to love like He loves, to be kind and tenderhearted, forgiving others as You, in Your goodness, have forgiven us. It is a light, the only TRUE SOURCE OF LIGHT, that shines through us and leads others to You.
In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.
Matthew 5:16
Thank You for the ‘gift of Light’ that has led me to Life in Jesus Christ, and for the joy that comes from both. Joy that comes from not walking in the darkness but in the glorious light, and in the joy that comes from ‘life in Christ’, 2 Corinthians 5:17.
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!
Taste and see that the Lord is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!
Psalm 34:8
Father, You are good! My mind never doubts this sustaining TRUTH. You are simply and yet profoundly good. My heart rejoices in Your goodness to sustain, to love and teach, and to build up those who now belong to You. In Your goodness You brought us in and have transformed us from strangers and from enemies to members of Your family, not simply or haphazardly brought in but carefully joined together in Christ.
So now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens along with all of God’s holy people. You are members of God’s family. Together, we are his house, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. And the cornerstone is Christ Jesus himself. We are carefully joined together in him, becoming a holy temple for the Lord. Through him you Gentiles are also being made part of this dwelling where God lives by his Spirit.
Ephesians 2: 19-22
In your goodness You protect and strengthen, You comfort and encourage, and You fill us and guard us with a peace that passes all understanding. Surely, as the Psalmist wrote, You guide us on paths of righteousness for Your namesake. However, I have learned that even when we walk through the valleys that seem dark and lonely and covered with the daunting shadows of sorrow, discouragement, and fear – in Your goodness You are also there. I find You quietly dispelling the shadows with the gentle reminder from your Spirit that we have no cause for fear or discouragement, for in Your goodness You will strengthen us and You will help us. You will hold us up with Your victorious right hand.
Don’t be afraid, for I am with you.
Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you.
I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.
Isaiah 41:10
My mind is riddled with a series of questions that beg to be asked. Why do You love us who were Your enemies? Why have you made us part of Your family and continue to build us up into Your Holy Temple? Why do You lead us and show us the right way to go or dispel the shadows in the valleys? The only answer that comes is this: You are simply and profoundly good! Even if I had not tasted and seen Your goodness for myself – You, proclaimed Yourself to Moses as – “The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abounding in goodness and truth”, Exodus 34:6.
Now the Lord descended in the cloud and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the Lord. And the Lord passed before him and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abounding in goodness and truth,keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the children’s children to the third and the fourth generation.”
Psalm 34:5-7 NKJV
One final question lingers – what is my response? To which I gladly and humbly answer – relying once again on Your goodness … Answer graciously this prayer my God – that I might convey the truth , reality, and depth of Your goodness in my thoughts, both written and spoken, and in my life lived out, so that others might truly know and forever share in Your goodness through Christ Jesus my Lord – Your good and perfect gift of salvation to all who believe.
“For the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
Romans 6:23
How great is the goodness you have stored up for those who fear you. You lavish it on those who come to you for protection, blessing them before the watching world.
Psalm 31:19 NLT
Want to know more about the goodness of God, salvation through Christ, eternal life, or how to get through the valleys? Reply below or message me at mryelnb@aol.com –
