DAY TWENTY THREE: OUR ANCHOR
12/23/24
There are so few things in life that we can rely on. We may feel like we can rely on our family, until relational turmoil rocks our world, and our “normal” isn’t so normal anymore. We may feel like we can rely on our job, until corporate cuts mean that we lose that position that we love. We may feel like we can rely on our money or our physical health, until a medical condition costs us our savings. But Paul closes chapter 6 of Hebrews with the following words: “We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.”
The only thing we can have as a “sure and steadfast anchor of our souls,” is the fact that God always fulfills His promises. If you look back a few verses, you can see that Paul says that “it is impossible for God to lie.” While everything else in this world has the potential to lie to us, God never does. We have “a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain,” which is the holy of holies. For centuries, only high priests were allowed to enter the holy of holies, the place where they could experience God’s presence. Not only was that invitation only extended to the high priests, they could only enter the holy of holies once a year. But God, sending His son to go “as a forerunner on our behalf,” allows Jesus to set the example for what we are now able to do: confidently draw near to God. Jesus’ birth leads to Jesus’ death, which leads to our ability to draw near to our loving Father. We can have a sure and steadfast anchor for our soul in His promise to draw near to us and meet us there
- Haleigh
DAY TWENTY TWO: OUR BLESSED HOPE
12/22/24
What does it look like to hope in something? Of course, hope is something that happens inside us, but how do people tell what you hope for when looking at you on the outside? They see a sense of excitement, they see you make practical adjustments in your life in preparation of what you’re hoping for, they may see you share with others what’s causing such great hope in you. Hope takes place inside us, but it actively transforms us on the outside.
Jesus is our blessed hope, and people know He’s our blessed hope by looking at what takes place on the outside. They see the outward joy that we have in anticipation of His arrival. They see our lives being transformed in preparation for His arrival—renouncing ungodliness and worldly passions, living self-controlled, upright, and godly lives. They see us rejoice in Jesus, not just with our actions, but with our words as well.
In the season of Advent, we celebrate that Jesus came to earth once as a baby, and He will come to earth again, in glory, where the whole world will know Him as our great God and Savior! This is our hope, and our lives have been transformed as a result of this blessed hope.
- Dane
DAY TWENTY ONE: THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD
12/21/24
In 1 Peter 3:15, Peter calls us to “revere Christ as Lord” in our hearts, placing Him at the center of our lives. This is the foundation of our hope: a living, active relationship with Jesus, who is both Savior and King. Our hope is not abstract; it is grounded in the person of Jesus Christ and His work in our lives. Advent reminds us that this hope was not only born in a manger but was also secured on a cross and declared victorious through the resurrection. It is this hope—rooted in Christ—that we carry within us.
In this Advent season, we are reminded that Jesus came to dwell with us, and He continues to be with us in our struggles and joys alike. As His followers, we are called to live out this hope in such a way that others may be drawn to ask about the reason for our confidence and peace. We share this hope with those around us in humility and gentleness, so that instead of a confrontation of beliefs, it becomes an invitation to experience it. We don’t impose our hope on others, but extend it gently to share the joy and peace that Jesus brings in the way we live and speak.
As we anticipate the celebration of the birth of Jesus, let's remember that the hope he brings is not only meant for us to cherish, but to share with a world in need of His light.
- Jess
DAY TWENTY: TRUST
12/20/24
Do you trust in Him?
It’s easy for us to respond “yes” but in reality, we so easily allow doubt to captivate us when we face anything except perfection. In Romans 15:13 we see Peter say, “I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in Him. Then, you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.” Peter’s prayer here is emphasizing the importance of trusting in God. IF we trust in Him, THEN we will be filled with joy, peace and hope. We often think that IF we can get joy, peace and hope THEN we will trust in Him but Peter is demonstrating here that we ought to do the opposite.
Christmas is just days away and you are most likely feeling all the emotions. Stress, excitement, anticipation or maybe even anxiety. The challenge today is to reorder your IF and THEN. When we operate out of God’s preferred alignment, we may feel more fatigued than free – more hopeless than hopeful. Read Romans 15:13 once more – “I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in Him. Then, you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.” When God is your source, you will be filled by what He Himself is already. Peace, Joy and Hope. Not only will you be filled but you will overflow. Keep your gaze on Him and all else will be added to you. He is the living hope and YOU have great access to Him if only you trust in Him.
- Reese
DAY NINETEEN: HOPE
12/19/24
“Hope is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen.”
Hope came to life in the most humble of circumstances–in a manger, in Bethlehem, under the light of a star. For centuries, the Israelites prayed for the Messiah. They couldn’t see him yet, but they trusted in God’s plan. The birth of Christ was the evidence of God’s faithfulness to His people. Hope came to earth as a gift from God, a deliverance of his promise.
The Hope we have in Jesus is not based on a fleeting wish, or a “maybe”, but on the unshakeable truth of God’s love and faithfulness. It is a hope, like the star over Bethlehem, that lights the way through darkness, uncertainty, and doubt. Faith helps us believe that God is at work, even in the unseen moments, and that He will fulfill His promises in His perfect timing. Jesus came into this world to give us a living hope. A hope that is not just for the Advent season, but for all seasons, for all times, until the day of his return. This season and beyond, may the Hope of Jesus fill your heart with peace and joy, knowing that He is the evidence of all good things God has for you.
- Jess
DAY EIGHTEEN: A LOVE THAT CAN’T BE COMPETED WITH
12/18/24
We’re often touched when we read books and watch movies of people sacrificially laying their life down for the people they love. We’re moved when we see Jack give up his life to keep Rose alive after the Titanic sank. We cry when we witness Tony Stark selflessly sacrifice himself to save the universe. We are moved to tears because we’re witnessing the ultimate act of love before our eyes—sacrificially laying down your life for the good of others.
On the night of His arrest, Jesus taught His disciples that there is no greater love than laying down your life for your friends, something He would do just hours later. The Bible teaches that Jesus’s sacrifice is God showing His love for us (Rom. 5:8), while Jesus says that there is no greater love than this sacrifice. Have you ever thought about that fact that Jesus is saying it is impossible for Him to love you anymore than He already has? No answered prayer, no gift from God, nothing could ever communicate God’s love for you more than Him dying for you!
When Jesus came to this earth, He was on a divine mission to show the Father’s love—a love that can’t be competed with.
- Dane
DAY SEVENTEEN: STEADFAST
12/17/24
Unwavering. Loyal. All-Consuming. Steadfast.
To experience the love of our Savior is to know His goodness. His love is sweeter than honey that nourishes your soul. It satisfies hunger. It quenches thirst. It overwhelms fear. It suffocates the enemy. It drives out darkness. It is not conditional, fleeting, or temporary. His love is steadfast.
The Hebrew word for steadfast is chesed which means “loyal love.” Throughout Psalm 86, David writes of God’s steadfast love. “For great is your steadfast love toward me…”and “For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving, abounding in steadfast love to all who call upon you.”
This Advent season, are you sitting in and receiving God’s steadfast love toward you? Are you remembering that God loves you so much that He freely gave his only son as ransom for you? Are you reminding yourself that his love is loyal-not dependent on anything that you could do to earn it or deserve it? The arrival of Jesus is such a beautiful picture of God’s steadfast love toward us. God’s loyalty in his love for us surpassed his royalty when King Jesus left his throne to be made flesh to save the world. Unwavering. Loyal. All-consuming. Steadfast.
Thank you, God, for your loyalty in loving us.
- Jess
DAY SIXTEEN: WHAT IS LOVE
12/16/24
What is love? “Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends” (1 Cor. 13:4-8).
Who is love? God is love. However Paul describes love in 1 Corinthians 13, God is those things. He is patience. He is kindness. He is humility, but how can He be these things? It makes sense to say God is loving, but how does it make sense to say that God is love?
Who is God? There is one God who exists as three distinct co-equal, co-eternal persons—the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. This is why love isn’t simply an attribute of God. In the Trinity, we see love actively being displayed between the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit! The Father loves the Son. The Son loves the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit loves the Father. We can say that God is love because there is an active loving relationship that exists within God Himself!
- Dane
DAY FIFTEEN: THE LORD OF OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS
12/15/24
So, who would you die for? (Merry Christmas everyone!) Romans 5:6-11 may seem like an odd scripture to focus on during the Christmas season, but if any section of the Bible should fill you with unending joy, it’s this one.
Paul writes that “while we were still weak, at the right time, Christ died for the ungodly.” He comes at the right time. Galatians 4:4 says that “when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth His Son.” God’s plan, His timing, is always perfect. Throughout our lives, and especially as the end of one year and the dawn of another come, we may become doubtful of that truth. We may be impatient for the next job, the next relationship, the next raise, the baby, the acceptance letter, but He works at His own pace. Let the Christmas story this year remind you that His arrival may not come on your timeline, but His pace is the pace we want to run at.
Not only did He come at the right time according to His perfect plan, but He came at the right time for us, As Paul writes, “one will scarcely die for a righteous person,” but our God, the King of the Universe, loves you and I enough to die for us, even prior to our sanctification. His children who consistently turn away from Him, who seek perfection rather than connection, He chose to die for those people. For us.
This Christmas season, be sure to remind yourself of God’s perfect timing. Recenter your heart on being thankful for where you are, what you have, and the way God is currently working through you. Remind yourself of His perfect timing, not just in the direction of your life, but in the rescue of your soul. The Savior you didn’t know you needed came to this broken world to meet you in the muck and mire you’d dug yourself into, and offered His Son on a cross to pull you out. Remind yourself that He has always been Jehovah Tsidkenu (The Lord Our Righteousness) always and forever. Yes and Amen.
- Haleigh
DAY FOURTEEN: THE STANDARDS OF LOVE
12/14/24
I love the Christmas season. I love the lights, the decorations, the hot chocolate, and the warm fuzzies I feel when I see my children enjoying their gifts. I love the Christmas Eve church services, and the crafts, the hugs, and teaching kids the Christmas story.
During the Advent season, do you find yourself like me–lost in loving all the things that come with the season? Are you neglecting to direct that love toward the Savior himself, who is the definition and standard of love; a standard he set by humbly entering the earth just to die a death we deserved?
In Mark chapter 12, Jesus is posed with the question, “which commandment is the most important of all?” Jesus’ answer flipped the world upside down. “And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength.”
This Advent season, I pose a question to you, “How are you loving God with all of your heart, soul, mind, and strength?” As you sit in reflection, my prayer is that you direct your love toward the Father; that your love for Him consumes your heart, soul, mind and strength; that more than the love of the things that usher in with the Advent season, you remember to love the Father first and entirely.
- Jess Meadows
DAY THIRTEEN: THE ARRIVAL OF LOVE
12/13/24
The Arrival of Love.
Love is in the air, or so it is supposed to be. Culture tells us this season should be the arrival of love. Whether it’s movies like The Holiday that tell us we should find the love of our life in an entirely different country, or The Grinch that tells us we should find loved ones to surround us during the holidays, or A Christmas Story that tells us if we receive the perfect gift it means that we are loved. I mean who didn’t want a red ryder bb gun?
It is this expectation of love that leads to what psychologist have deemed “The Holiday Blues.” Where if we don’t have the Hallmark Christmas then something is wrong. Something or some one is missing.
But what if there was a love that lasts? A love that outlasts the holiday season and changes everything, not just for the month of December but for all of eternity.
During the Advent season we celebrate the single greatest act of love this world has ever seen. That God SO LOVED the world, he gave his one and only son on a rescue mission to seek and save the lost.
More than looking for love in another Christmas movie, or a Mariah Carey song, or in giving or receiving the best gift, we look to our first love.
- Caden Dulmage
DAY TWELVE: KING OF OUR HEARTS
12/12/24
Joy.
Jesus Only You.
Joy is not a fleeting feeling that only appears when circumstances in our life are favorable. I would argue that joy isn’t a feeling at all. Joy is a state of heart.
Joy is a gift from God. 2000 years ago, this gift of joy came humbly as a baby boy laid in a manger; the Savior of the world. When announcing the arrival of this gift, the angel of the Lord declared to the shepherds, “I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all people.” Joy is available for all people, because King Jesus is available for all people. Joy comes from knowing Jesus and abiding in Him. Joy is cultivated as the Holy Spirit works in us and God’s will is carried out in our lives for His Glory.
This Advent season I hope you experience true joy. I pray your heart returns to and stays in a state of joy. Joy that is like a steady rush of sweet, satisfying water that nourishes your soul and overflows to those around you. Joy is not a gift, season, or a candle. Joy is a lived experience that comes from walking with, abiding in, and loving Jesus. May the joy of the Lord surround you and sustain you today and always.
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.” Romans 15:13
- Jess Meadows
DAY ELEVEN: THE SECRET WEAPON
12/11/24
Psalm 100
“Joy is the secret weapon of advent.”
In the season of advent, we spend time both remembering Jesus’s first coming to this earth as a baby, and we anticipate His second coming when He will return and make all things new.
I don’t know where you find yourself on the joy spectrum this Christmas. Can I remind you that your King left heaven and came down to earth to step into your story and make way into your mess. He traded his crown for the cross, for you and for me. This is good news! For this we should rejoice!
What would it look like for you to allow the joy of the gospel to be so alive in you this Christmas that you can’t help but sing?
This season, we can choose to be joyful regardless of our circumstances or surroundings because we know the end of the story. We know that in the end our God reigns! Our King has not only come, but He’s coming again. He is King on a manger throne.
And so may this truth lead you to “Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise!” (Psalm 100:4) Lift up shouts of praise and sing joyful songs to the Lord this Christmas, for our God is great and He is greatly to be praised.
- Baylee Dulmage
DAY TEN: JOYFUL ANTICIPATION
12/10/24
1 Peter 1:8-9
Hebrews 11:1 says, “Now faith is the assurance of the things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” Faith is more than intellectually agreeing with a list of facts. There is a heartfelt assurance and hopefulness that’s present when a person has faith in God’s promises. Our faith in Jesus enters us into a relationship with Him—a hopeful, joy-filled, glorious relationship with Him that’s far better than a dull list of theological affirmations.
Our newfound relationship with Jesus is often compared to a bride’s relationship with her groom. Her groom proposes to her and gives her an engagement ring as a promise that he will marry her in the future. She joyfully celebrates the anticipation of her wedding day. On her wedding day, wearing a spotless white dress, she finally meets her groom, and he brings the engagement to its final outcome—their marriage.
We are the bride; Jesus is the Groom. Jesus proposed to us when He gave Himself up for us. He gave us the Holy Spirit as an engagement ring—a promise that He will return in all His glory to be united with us once again. In the meantime, we wait as described in 1 Peter 1:8-9: though we do not see Him, we love Him, and we rejoice with inexpressible joy for that day when we will finally marry our Groom—Jesus.
On that day, He will meet His bride, who has been made white and spotless by His blood, and He will bring the engagement to its ultimate fulfillment—the salvation of our souls.
- Dane Bateman
DAY NINE: IN JESUS’S NAME (Copy)
12/9/24
Do you find yourself longing for joy today? Are you in a season of captivity and waiting for the Lord’s deliverance? Are you in a season of drought and waiting for it to rain?
In Psalm 126, we see the Israelites clinging to a past season of joy to anticipate the joy of a future deliverance. God previously delivered them out of captivity, and here we see the psalmist praying in belief that what He’s done before He will do again.
The phrase ‘seed to sow’ in verse 6 is reminiscent of Haggai’s encouragement to the people to sow whatever little they had left because the Lord will bless them.
Maybe this Christmas season you find yourself pouring out of an empty cup. Or grief has a tighter grip on you. Be encouraged today, to sow whatever little you have left this season. Take heart knowing God will turn your sorrow to joy and your tears to laughter. So ask God today to be your restorer. To restore your dreams. To restore your soul. To restore your joy.
“Those who sow in tears shall reap with shouts of joy!” Friend, perhaps your tears are watering a harvest. May you reap that harvest with great joy and give all glory to the King, for He has done and He will do great things!
- Baylee Dulmage
DAY EIGHT: IN JESUS’S NAME
12/8/24
Jesus teaches His disciples to ask the Father “in His name”. When we end our prayers with the phrase, “in Jesus’s name”, what we really mean is that we are appealing to the authority of Jesus, and we are praying in alignment with His character and will. Even though Jesus promises that whatever we ask in the Father’s name will be given to us (Jn. 16:23), many of us are still suspicious of this promise. We may have had unanswered prayers in the past that made us doubt God’s faithfulness, or there may be a general sense that God doesn’t even want to answer our prayers.
Psalm 37:4 is the cure to these doubts. It writes, “Delight yourself in the LORD, and He will give you the desires of your heart.” When we delight ourselves in God, He is the one who becomes the desire of our heart. When He becomes our heart’s desire, our prayers naturally align with His will, and when our prayers align with His will, we are asking in Jesus’s name, and Jesus assures us we will receive that our joy may be completely full.
It's not wrong to pray your heart’s desires, and we should believe that God will answer those prayers, but we should make sure we are first delighting ourselves in God. Has your prayer life felt powerless lately? Do you feel that God isn’t answering your prayers consistently? Has your prayer life felt dull? If so, ask the Father to reveal His beauty and majesty to you, and when you see Him as infinitely worthy, you’ll find yourself delighting in Him, and He will give you the desires of your heart.
- Dane Bateman
DAY SEVEN: THE MIRACULOUS AND MUNDANE
12/7/24
Mary has just been met with the wildly unexpected. The news that she is miraculously carrying not only a child as a virgin but that the child she is carrying is the Savior of the world.
In Luke 1:39-45, she goes to visit her cousin Elizabeth (who is also miraculously pregnant in old age) to tell of the news. Before she can even muster up the strength to share that the impossible is at work within her, the miracle baby inside of Elizabeth responds. The baby leaps for joy, and Elizabeth is filled with the Holy Spirit…for the Messiah is in the room. Can you imagine the scene? Terrified Mary trying to comprehend the miraculous is met with great joy and celebration in the mundane moment of sharing the news with her family.
What a beautiful reminder that even the everyday, mundane things we experience around this time of year such as visiting family or getting to share exciting news with loved ones can be met with such great joy as we are reminded of the miraculous gift of our Jesus.
This Christmas season, you might be living in the joy of an answered prayer. Maybe you even know the joy of sharing good news.
Or maybe you know the shock of weighty news and joy feels far. I imagine that Mary may have felt lonely when first given the news that would quite literally change everything.
Joy meets her when the baby leaps within Elizabeth, for the Messiah is here.
Fight to find joy this Christmas because the Messiah is here. Maybe the rooms you find yourself in this Christmas season are far from joyful. Your office at work, or your empty one bedroom apartment, or your childhood home filled with lost memories might bring stress, sadness, and disappointment. Friend, whatever room you find yourself in this Christmas, whatever mundane moment, be reminded of the miraculous news of Immanuel. Find yourself in the presence of God. Allow the truth that He is in the room to meet you and fill you with the fullness of joy.
- Baylee Dulmage
DAY SIX: MIGHTY TO SAVE
12/6/24
Psalm 29 begins with heralding God’s glory—His strength, His splendor, His holiness. We see how God is sovereign over all of creation. The power of His voice brings forests to ruin, causes fires to flash, and causes the wilderness to tremble. Even the deer in the forest will not give birth unless God makes them. He sits enthroned as a king forever, and the entire universe is upheld “by the word of His power” (Heb. 1:3).
This epic psalm ends with the benediction, “May the LORD bless His people with peace.” How could this terrifying God who “shakes the wilderness” and “flashes forth flames of fire” bring peace to His people? It’s because that God became a man, and He bought peace by His own blood, “But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed” (Isa. 53:5).
In the month of Advent, when we imagine Mary swaddling her newborn Son, we should remember that she was caring for the God of the universe who was upholding the universe by the word of His power. This child once sat in a throne room, where legions of angels were crying out to Him, “holy, holy, holy!” That child came down from His throne to bring us peace, and it’s the peace that was hoped for in Psalm 29.
- Dane Bateman
DAY FIVE: THE WORD BECAME FLESH
12/5/24
This time of year can feel both exhilarating yet exhausting. Where peace is preached, patience is tested. Family is coming together and for some of us, this is an exciting time. For others, this season feels restless and weary because not all of us have a Christmas card family.
Let me remind you of this —
“For He Himself is our peace, who made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by setting aside in His flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in Himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace…” Ephesians 2:14-15
Scripture shows us here that peace is not a feeling but a person. Peace is not a perception but a Prince. “He Himself is our peace.” Despite what your Christmas season looks like, we must not forget where our peace comes and most importantly, WHO our peace is.
“If God so loved the world that He sent His one and only son” (John 3:16) to destroy the barrier and divide the wall of hostility between God and us so that we can live in relationship with our Father, we must be capable to do the same and extend grace and forgiveness to those we’ll be surrounded by this holiday. Peace won’t come from presents but His presence alone. Encompass your life in Him and trust that He will accompany you being the peace you need to make it through. For He Himself is our bond of unity.
- Reese Burgess
DAY FOUR: GIFT OF PEACE
12/4/24
Peace.
What is Peace? A mindset? A journey? A place that is longed for but never reached?
Ultimately, Peace is a gift from God; a gift in the form of Jesus, His son.
Isaiah prophesied that the child born to us shall be the “Prince the Peace.” God sent his son so that we may experience true spiritual peace that comes from trusting in Him; peace of mind and heart.
“Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”
Oftentimes, peace is the last thing we experience during the hustle and bustle of the Christmas season. Between gift giving, parties, and obligations, life is just chaotic. We seek peace by looking for just one quickly fleeting moment of quiet in between checking off our to-do lists.
But, peace should be the lasting thing we seek as we remember the birth of Jesus. The kind of peace that dissolves feelings of worry and anxiety; the kind that rests on our souls, allowing our bodies to collapse under the weight of the everlasting peace that only comes from Jesus. May our hearts remember that the King of the Universe humbly entered into this world in a stable, forsaking a throne in Heaven to be the peace that we desperately long for. True peace is obtainable only through the gift of our Lord Jesus Christ.
- Jess Meadows