Do Not Be Afraid

Do Not Be Afraid TODAY'S SCRIPTURE: …an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. ‘Joseph, son of David,’ the angel said, ‘do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit.’ Matthew 1:20, NLT. TODAY'S WORD: Have you ever felt overwhelmed or even afraid of what God has called you to do? Maybe you were pursuing a dream or goal and things didn’t turn out the way you planned. Joseph had planned to take Mary as his wife, but when he found out she was pregnant, he didn’t know what to think. He was afraid that he might be making a mistake because things didn’t turn out the way he planned. But, God sent a messenger in a dream to reassure Joseph that he was on the right path. Today let me reassure you that God knows right where you are, and He knows how to get you to where you need to be. Even when things don’t go the way you planned, His hand is on you. Do not be afraid. Trust that God is working behind the scenes on your behalf, and that He will lead you into the life of blessing that He has prepared for you. PRAYER FOR TODAY: Father in heaven, I choose to trust in You. Even when things don’t go the way I planned, I know You are at work in my life. Thank You for Your perfect love which casts out all fear. I love You and surrender every area of my life to You in Jesus’ name. Amen.

PS...https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SP1BuokYSdQ

God’s Gift to You by Rick Warren “There is only one God, and Christ Jesus is the only one who can bring us to God. Jesus was truly human, and he gave himself to rescue all of us.” (1 Timothy 2:5 CEV) Christmas is all about Good News. But it’s not the good news of special gifts. It’s not the good news of a big meal. It’s not even the good news of spending time with friends and family. Christmas is about the Good News of God’s love. The Bible says all of us are lost without God. We’re directionless. We’re without protection from God. Our potential eternal impact upon the world is unrealized. We’re without real joy. Our eternity in Heaven isn’t secure. The Good News about Christmas is that God sent Jesus to seek and save the lost. The Bible says, “There is only one God, and Christ Jesus is the only one who can bring us to God. Jesus was truly human, and he gave himself to rescue all of us” (1 Timothy 2:5 CEV). If you’ve ever spent time in church, you’ve likely heard the word “salvation” many times. But you may not know what the Bible means with the word. The word is like a diamond. You can look at it from many different angles. Jesus came to rescue us. We can’t solve all of our problems on our own. Without Jesus we’re trapped in the expectations of others. We’re trapped in living for the approval of our peers. We’re trapped in addictions. We’ve tried to change over and over again, but we don’t have the needed power to escape. Jesus came to give us that power. Jesus came to recover us. We all long to recover parts of our lives that have been lost. Without Christ, we long to recover our strength, our confidence, our reputations, our innocence, and our relationship with God. Only Jesus can do that. Jesus came to reconnect us. Many people think that God will scold them if they come back to him. But God isn’t mad at you. He’s mad about you.Jesus came to Earth on the first Christmas to reconcile us to God, to give us harmony with him again. Jesus came to Earth to give us the gift of himself. Too many of us celebrate his birthday without accepting this free gift of salvation. It goes unwrapped year after year after year. That’s not smart. You were made by God and for God. Until you understand that, life will never make sense. This Christmas, open up the most important present you’ve been given: a new relationship with God through Jesus. Talk It Over Which of the above facets of salvation has been the most important in your relationship with God? Why? How can you “unwrap” God’s gift of Jesus this Christmas? In what ways can you tell others about this gift? What can you do to better celebrate Jesus’ birthday?