Father, we come to you this morning like expectant little children, our noses pressed against the glass, shouting joy to the world, the Lord has come! And yet we wait and watch for your great and awesome return when you will descend in glory and power, and you will whistle and your servants will be gathered safely in from the four winds. And like children, Father, we itch and scratch against the ‘now and not yet’ nature of our ultimate salvation. Father, we want to be faithful to the end, through suffering, through pain, through lonliness, through sudden unexpected trauma and also long term, exhausting seasons of grief. And we confess that we are not strong enough, or brave enough or clean enough to remain faithful till the end. So Father we ask for courage and comfort, so that we can stand in all things, and strangely and ironically, we know this as well, that it is in this holiday season that many among us struggle the most. … So, Father, for them especially we ask for courage and comfort.
Read MoreOr maybe you are like me, seemingly righteous and virtuous on the outside and yet dead on the inside, full of pride and self-righteousness because of your attempts at virtue. Christ’s righteousness and sacrifice is enough for you. It covers everything and gives you a new start. You can become a new creation, a new woman THROUGH HIM. And you don’t have to wait until you get yourself all together or until you get older, or until you reach some point of moral standard that qualifies you for God’s grace. God’s saving grace meets you where you are, which is where you sit tonight, and He offers you new life. Jesus says in the book of John, “I have come that they may have life and have it abundantly.”
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