Glad Tidings of Great Joy, An Advent Devotional

With just days until we celebrate Christmas, here’s my Advent Devotional, “Glad Tidings of Great Joy”.

A Devotional Thought for Advent Week before Christmas [#1]

Luke 2:10

Then the Angel said unto them, “Be not afraid: for behold, I bring you glad tidings of great joy, that shall be to all the people.”  (1599 Geneva)

John 16:33

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (NIV)

The word of the Lord for you and me today?

Do not be afraid. Fear not. Take heart. Be of good courage. For the Savior has come for you, the Messiah is here now to rescue you from all your failures, and sin, and self sabotage, and deliver you from all evil darkness, depravity and oppression. 

Through His angelic messenger, the Lord is pronouncing a world changing message, and this is good news. These are “Glad tidings” that will be a source of great,  exuberant joy for all people – every race, every ethnicity, every nationality –  everyone, everywhere, in every condition.

The words of the Messiah are comfort and joy. “I have conquered the world so that in me you may have peace”. Yeshua is the source of Peace, in fact one of his names is Prince of Peace. His peace is beyond comprehension and logical reasoning. His presence carries His peace and that is the gift that keeps on giving – regardless of any and all trials, troubles and suffering.

So how do we respond to this good news? By saying yes to the invitation of God. And God is continually inviting us to be with Him.

My friend Jennifer Martin wrote a wonderful Christmas song called “Oh come be born again”. Every time I hear those words, I think – what a compassionate God we have, that we can be born again, again.  Every time we draw close to God, we receive the best gift of all – His acceptance, His favor, His love.

Prayer:

Father God we thank you for the gift of your Son. May we receive the gift of His presence deep in our hearts today, that we may be born again again. Change us and transform us from the inside out. Fill our minds with your Hope, Love, Joy and Peace. May we be ambassadors for Christ and share glad tidings of great joy. In Jesus name and for His glory, amen!

I hope you enjoyed this Advent Devotional! Celebrate the season with my Christmas music project,  JOYFUL!: Christmas Praise and Worship, available on iTunes, Amazon, CDBaby and Bandcamp.