Preparing for Christmas: A 5-Day Advent Devotional From Worship TogetherSample

HOPE!

Imagine a gift you’ve wanted for a really long time. How do you feel when you have to wait to receive it? Imagine hearing someone promise you the gift for years and years, but not telling you when the gift would come. Would you get tired of waiting? Would you give up hope? God’s people were given a promise of the Messiah. He would be the One God would send to rescue Israel once and for all. All throughout the Old Testament, God gave His people hope through signs that pointed to their Savior. God even sent prophets like Isaiah and Micah to foretell the arrival of the Messiah. But God’s people had to wait hundreds of years before the time was right for the promise to be fulfilled. Many of God’s people were tired of waiting. Some gave up hope. But God operates on His timetable, not ours. God's timing is always right. On a night in Bethlehem, on that very first Christmas, the time was right. God chose to send the Hope of the World—His Son, Jesus, at exactly the right time to save the world from sin. So, you can rejoice in knowing that God chose to give Israel the gift of Jesus at just the right time.

But the gift of Jesus is not just for the nation of Israel, it is for every person who believes in Jesus as Lord and Savior and chooses to follow Him daily. As you prepare for the season of Christmas during Advent, ask yourself, “Have I accepted the free gift of Jesus?” If not, don’t let the most important decision you could ever make pass you by. There’s no better time than right now to begin trusting in Jesus. When you do, Christmas becomes so much more than gifts and happy feelings. It becomes all about God’s gift to humanity. His name is Jesus—the Son of God, given for us, to save us and give us eternal life. He is the greatest gift you could ever receive.