Friday, December 18, 2015
Devotion VIDEO here
And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you.
John 14:16(NLT)
In this Season of Advent our
church has been looking again at the promises of what and who we are to each
other and the Kingdom of God as members of Christ’s body, the church.
This past Sunday’s theme was
“presence”. The shepherds (Luke 2)
didn’t stay “abiding in the field” – they came to the manger; they became a presence
of rejoicing at what God had done.
And we are to be a presence in each other’s lives, as well as Christ’s
presence in this world.
Our enemy, the devil, uses doubt
as his chief weapon. And so often,
especially when feeling alone or a little blue, we take the bait.
There was a time years ago when
much had gone wrong for our family with sickness and financial woes, and a job
that wore me down like a ground-out tree stump.
I took the bait, and it led directly into the parlor of despair. My dear friend Jerry Hutchinson came to the
house one Sunday afternoon and sat with me for a good while. He couldn’t change any of my circumstances; my
kids were still sick, the finances were a mess, and Monday morning the job
would still be there. But, there was
just something comforting and reassuring having a brother to share the load. It gave me courage that I wasn’t alone and
the strength of hope for the days ahead.
Presence like that cannot be
purchased. And there is no way to imitate
the genuine presence of God’s Spirit in another coming alongside to comfort
when you’re in distress!
Last
Sunday, as we were coming to the close of worship, this message of presence was
demonstrated to our church family so dramatically, I was blown-away by the
sight.
In
our church the children serve as acolytes, lighting candles representing God’s
presence with us as we worship, and carrying that light out at the end of
service. For the child who served last
Sunday, it was her first time, and she was nervous, having a responsibility in big
church where everyone would be watching. She did fine lighting the candles as the
choir called us to worship, but was hesitant and unsure about what to do as we
sang the last hymn.
And
so, as I walked toward the candles where I meet the acolyte each week, I
noticed this small child had company coming with her to the altar. Her older cousin walked with her, and stood
with her, and she did just fine.
And
then the rest of us made a big deal out of how well she did.
This
was presence – one came alongside to help – and then many others who joined-in
the comforting and strengthening of a little sister in Christ.
And
that is the meaning of the word “Paraclete” – one who comes alongside.
When
Jesus was teaching his disciples the hard truth that he was leaving soon, he
also assured them that the One who was coming to them would never leave nor
forsake them in life’s difficult times. He
would be so close, so in tune with our fears, hopes, dreams and questions that it
would be like He is on the inside, carrying on a God-conversation with us,
encouraging, comforting, building hope and assurance.
He
showed-up at Pentecost like tongues of fire, and He has been warming believers
from the inside ever since!
For You Today
Need
a travelling companion for the tough times?
He’s always there!
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