Advent

(our theme for December)

Luke 1:41-44 (NIV)

“When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.  In a loud voice she exclaimed: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear!  But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?  As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy.”

Sometimes news is so joyful that our heart leaps within our breast, just as the baby leapt in Elizabeth’s womb!  I know my heart leapt with joy, when I heard the news of the births of my two new great grandbabies in September of this year!  A beautiful 9-pound baby girl and a perfect 9-pound baby boy arrived for my two grandsons, only five days apart!  Two perfect gifts from God!  JOY!

We experience Joy when the wonderful news comes that the cancer is in remission.  Joy when the news of a successful surgery reaches our ears.  Joy that a prodigal of ours has come home.  Joy that you got the job you wanted so badly.  Joy that you have a bed tonight.  Joy that the war is over.  Joy that your loved ones are coming to visit for the holidays.

But I can’t imagine how much bigger that feeling of JOY that filled Elizabeth, as her baby leapt in her womb and she knew it was God’s son greeting her from Mary’s womb!

We celebrate that glorious good news of Christ’s birth, each year on December 25, but the joy of his coming to earth, his ministry and his ultimate gift for us, we can celebrate joyfully, every day of the year.

So, during this Advent and Christmas season, let’s turn to this JOY and when the hustle and hurry of Christmas makes us feel stressed, or the news fills us with dread, let’s promise God and ourselves that we will remember the real JOY and the reason for it!

Christ is born!  Christ has died!  Christ is risen!

Joy to the World!  The Lord is come!

Let earth proclaim her king!

Let every heart prepare Him room, and Heaven and nature sing – with JOY!

Joy to the World! 

Hallelujah, the Joy of life everlasting in Christ Jesus, Our Lord!

This episode was written and read by Bernice Howard.

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.

If you would like to respond to these devotionals in any way, we would enjoy hearing from you. Our email address is: podcasts@1stchurch.org.

First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.