II Corinthians 1:24 ” Not that we lord it over your faith, but we work with you for your joy, because it is by faith you stand firm. “

You are being an example to those around you whether you realize it or not.  You are an ambassador for Christ everywhere you go…whether you want to be or not, for when you take on the name “Christian”,  people will judge you by higher standards.  They will watch you closer and judge you harsher.  When you take on the name Believer,  you become an example… whether that be a good one or bad.

Daniel 3: 16-18 ” Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to the king, ‘O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and He will rescue us from your hand, O king. But even if He does not, we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.’ “

The three Hebrew children knew just where their strength came from…there was no need to defend themselves before the king.  For their faith and trust in God enabled them to rest in the knowledge that the battle was the Lord’s, not theirs.  We too don’t need to fight our battles alone…the Lord is standing ever ready to advocate for us.  All He asks is that we walk in faith while He does the work.

Proverbs 14:3 ” A fool’s talk brings a rod to his back, but the lips of the wise protect them. “

Prudence…a word you seldom hear now a days.  It’s definition means to have carefulness and foresight.  If before we spoke,  we would employ both these concepts mentally…I dare say we would  not be blurting out things we wish we hadn’t said.

My wish for you this Christmas Season

Just think, you’re here not by chance, but by God’s choosing.  His hand formed you and made you the person you are.  He compares you to no one else – you are one of a kind.  You lack nothing that His grace can’t give you.  He has allowed you to be here at this time in history to fulfill His special purpose for this generation.

Written by Roy Lessin, Co-founder of DaySpring

Isaiah 9:6 ” For to us a child is born, to us a son is given…

All of humanity was lost…floundering in a sea of sin…sinking to never rise again.   When a baby was brought forth…God bestowing this precious gift on all.   For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only son – Jesus Christ – to bridge the chasm between God and man…and bring  eternal life to a dying world.

Micah 5:2 ” But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for Me one who will be Ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.”

700 years later, in a quiet unpretentious little town, the Messiah was born.  There was no fanfare, no pomp and pageantry…just a barn and a baby.  The Lord would rather use the humble…the plain and ordinary to do His best work.  Common,  simple people are His very best instrument for some of His most wonderful miracles.  Don’t ever dismiss yourself as someone God could never use…for in fact, you are exactly who He wants.

Luke 1:38 ” ‘I am the Lord’s servant,’ Mary answered. ‘May it be to me as you have said.’ “

The Lord has called you and laid on your heart a promise, but like Mary,  you can’t understand how this could possibly happen. Like Mary, you have questions…but also like her, God will faithfully answer them all  in due time.  And in the end, like Mary,  we will need to put our complete faith and trust in God, knowing that what He has placed on our heart will come about. Today you too are  pregnant… you’re pregnant with a promise…a promise that’s about to come full-term.

Psalm 10:14 ” But You, O God, do see trouble and grief; You consider it to take it in hand. The victim commits himself to You; You are the helper of the fatherless.”

The Lord understands the misery and sorrow you may feel today.  He wants to take that pain from you…placing it in His all-powerful  hands and off your shoulders.  If burdens are weighing you down today…entrust yourself to God’s mercy and fall upon His  grace.

John 15:26 ” When the Counselor comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth Who goes out from the Father, He will testify about Me.”

Right before Jesus left this earth, He designated the Holy Spirit as the Paraclete…another of equal quality in His place.   The Holy Spirit is called a Paraclete because He undertakes Christ’s office here while Christ is away from the world.  Bearing witness to the absolute, ultimate, and saving  truth of Jesus, the Holy Spirit gently nudges us ever in the right direction.

James 1:23 ” Anyone who listens to the Word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.”

You know your face better than anyone else…every nook and cranny – every spot and wrinkle.  You’re familiar enough with your face that you can readily pick yourself out of a group picture.  We need to know the Word of God in the same manner.  We can’t causally listen to His Word allowing it to go in one ear and out the other.  His Word must go deep inside…changing us for the better – not being dismissed and forgotten.  The key is to contemplate, internalize, and apply His Word to your life…mirroring His life with yours.