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I pray these thoughts and ponderings will touch your soul … and will remind you of the great love God
has for you.
This seven-day journey will help you prepare your heart for the great truth of Christmas … “A savior, who
is Christ the Lord” was born in a dirty stable behind an inn and placed in an animal’s feeding trough in a
small Judean town. The first recipients of this glorious news were shepherds who left their flocks and
found this Baby, Emmanuel—God with us—and shared all they heard with others.
In that spirit of sharing, I want to give you these devotions … feel free to share with others who might be
blessed by them.
Teri Lynne
The commercialization of Christmas has been written about and discussed and preached
about ad nauseum ... and I truly doubt that anyone reading this devotion has any issue
with the notion that as a culture we have lost sight of the meaning of Christmas.
I'm not going to list how much money is spent on Christmas gifts or how dangerous
Santa is to the faith of our children ... because I honestly don't think God is all that con-
cerned with Santa or spending.
In light of this, my belief is that commercialism is not just measured in overspending time
or money. Commercialism is the opposite of holiness. And buying or not buying gifts
doesn't make us "set apart." Simply participating in advent celebrations doesn't make us
holy. God's call to us is this:
"Wash yourselves. Cleanse yourselves. Remove your evil deeds from My sight. Stop doing evil. Learn to do
what is good. Seek justice. Correct the oppressor. Defend the rights of the fatherless. Plead the widow's cause."
~ Isaiah 1:16-17 (HCSB)
I believe it's easy for us to point at commercialism in "them" ... the ones who buy ex-
travagant gifts that are unnecessary (by our definition), the ones who participate in inap-
propriate rituals and traditions (by our standards) ... oh we can always point "them" out ...
My prayer for my heart is that I'll remember commercialism isn't about what I buy or
what traditions I keep ... commercialism is anything that distracts me from the
holiness of Christ. And not just at Christmas, but all through the year ... the ongoing
call on my life is to be holy, to be set apart for Christ. This post was so hard to write ...
trying to articulate what the Lord has shown me ... that it's okay to buy nice gifts or have
Santa ... and it's okay not to ... none of that is the issue ... it's just HIM ... am I loving
Him and honoring Him? Does my life bear the sweet aroma of obedience?
"But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, {Too} little to be among the clans of Judah, From you One will go forth
for Me to be ruler in Israel. His goings forth are from long ago, From the days of eternity." ~ Micah 5:2
The prophecy was clear ... and the residents of Bethlehem were probably quite proud of
that piece of Scripture that said the Messiah would come from their town. And yet, they
were so distracted by the preparations for the census that they lost sight of the promise of God.
We sing the familiar carols and yet remain untouched by the holiness of that "Silent
Night."
We read the Christmas story in Luke and yet lose the reality of John's account - "God
moved into the neighborhood." (John 1:14, MSG)
We search for meaningful tokens to express our love for others and yet fail to extend
kindness to those around us.
We feast on the bounty of foods as we celebrate this joyous season and yet neglect the
very Bread of Life that sustains us.
We can be oblivious in the midst of the majesty of "The Messiah" and the sweetness of
family Advent celebrations ... for if our hearts are not focused on the Christ, born in a
manger and crucified on a cross, then all the family time and "spiritual" trappings are
meaningless.
"He who testified to these things says, 'Surely I am coming soon.' Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!"
~ Revelation 22:20
Have you ever found yourself oblivious to the sweetness of the gift of
Christ? Do the activities of Christmas, even ones designed to point
you to Christ, ever become a distraction from Him? How do you live
in expectation of Christ's sweet promise of His return?
Maybe you are not sure exactly what all this "presence of God stuff" is all about. I'd love to share
with you the joy and peace I have found in the promise of salvation through Christ. Email me,
please, and let me help you find this great love that God has for you! ~ Teri Lynne
The innkeeper was, I'm sure, wishing the days of the census were over ...
that the hustle and bustle would give way to the calm of normal life.
Exhaustion.
Psalm 46:10 has been the cry of my heart this holiday season.
I find myself snatching moments of quiet even in the midst of the holiday frenzy.
Stolen moments ... grabbed where I can find them ... taken from the chaos around me.
It's a choice I'm making ... Sometimes an inconvenient choice… sometimes a difficult
choice … but it’s what I know is the best choice.
It's hard to stop the merry-go-round ... sometimes it just won't stop. Sometimes we must
just jump off. Life will keep spinning around us ... but we can be still.
We can choose stillness ... and when we choose stillness even when the busy contin-
ues something amazing happens...
We notice ...
We notice beauty.
We notice peace.
We notice people.
I bet I've heard at least 38 sermons on the shepherds. Seems like every year they get their
obligatory "15 minutes" because they represent the lowest of society ... they give us the
picture that Christ came for all ... that the gift was for everyone, regardless of station. And
I believe all of that. I really do. And I'm thankful for all of that. I really am.
But, in true Paul Harvey fashion, I wonder if we've missed the rest of the story with these
guys.
In verse 16 we find "they went with haste" to find the baby in the manger.
With haste ...
They were excited! They didn't wait to see if they could find another group of shepherds
who would watch their flock. They didn't even stop to think about their flock. They
"went with haste" ... and they found Mary, Joseph and the baby.
What if they had talked about it and decided they needed to stay put and take care of the sheep?
What if they had met in committee and discussed how they could go? In smaller groups,
maybe, so that everyone had a turn but not all at once?
What if they had been frustrated about the bright light and loud noise that had disturbed the
slumbering sheep?
What if they had complained about the interruption to what they had planned?
What if they had stayed put ... afraid that people would not believe what they had seen?
What if?
The very idea that those ten tiny fingers were on the very hands that separated the land from the
water ...
That those ten little toes stepped down from heaven's grandeur to walk this dusty, earthly sod ...
That the sleepy yawn came from the mouth that breathed life into mankind ...
That those beautiful newborn sounds were but a glimpse of the words that would bring salvation ...
That the baby sleeping in His mother's arms will reign forever as the Alpha and Omega ...
This year, I'm asking God for a little more wonder in my life. To help me see through
fresh eyes ... to notice the beauty of a child gazing into the lights on the tree, to encourage
the ones who feel forgotten and unimportant.
Part of my personal Advent preparation this year has been to read a chapter of Luke’s
Gospel every day ... and in chapter 10 we find that familiar story of Martha and another
Mary. This Mary also knew how to treasure things in her heart ... she chose "the better
part" ... she chose time in the presence of Christ. Is there any more wonder here on earth
than this simple truth ...
Jesus Christ, the Son of God, longs for a relationship with us ... a personal,
intimate relationship ... and He was willing to give up the glory of Heaven
to come and show us how to live.
"For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but
have eternal life." ~ John 3:16, NLT
A God who looked down from heaven and determined the distance between the Creator
and the created was too far ... and the only way to bridge that gap was His Son.
Perhaps my favorite description of Christ was given to the church at Philippi by the
Apostle Paul ...
"Though He was God, He did not demand and cling to His rights as God. He made Himself nothing, He took
the humble position of a slave and appeared in human form." ~ Philippians 2:6, NLT
Perfect, sinless.
Born to die. The wooden manger was the start of a journey that would lead to a wooden cross.
Last year, my husband Scott was teaching from Luke 2 and in his research found some-
thing I had never heard before ... those "swaddling clothes," the "strips of cloth" ... they
were very similar to the strips used to bury the dead.
“And in human form, He humbled Himself EVEN FURTHER by dying a criminal's death on a cross.” ~ Philip-
pians 2:8, NLT, emphasis added
Because God longed for intimacy with us ... He who breathed the very life into Adam
was willing to give His very best for a relationship with us.
When you look at the manger this year, remember this ... He didn't HAVE to do it ... He
could have said, "No." But He chose obedience to the Father ... He chose love for us.
And so the lesson of the manger is intimacy ... a deep knowledge of the Father's
love for us. Of His longing for relationship with us.
I urge you to long for intimacy with Him ... to choose obedience to Him ... to choose love
for Him and for others. Today, my prayer for myself and all of us is that we leave behind
the superficial trappings of religion and move into relationship with Him.
As we entered Bethlehem, we were faced with the truth that instead of living in eager
expectation, we are often caught up in distracted oblivion.
Next we stopped at The Inn ... and we were reminded of the need for stillness even in the
midst of great busy-ness.
We joined the shepherds in The Field for a great celebration of the birth of the Savior!
We traveled with that excited crew to The Stable where we paused in wonder of this
great miracle brought to us.
We drew close to The Manger ... and encountered the precious intimacy of relationship
with God.
“The shepherds went back to their fields and flocks, glorifying and praising God for what the angels had told
them, and because they had seen the child, just as the angel had said.” ~ Luke 2:20, NLT
There are two things I notice from this verse and, because it's just how God works, these
two truths match up with some other very familiar passages of Scripture.
"Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and
the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am
with you always, even to the end of the age." ~ Matthew 28:19 - 20, NLT
"But when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, you will receive power and will tell people about me every-
where – in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." ~ Acts 1:8, NLT
As I look at the shepherds, I see two important truths about encounters with God … two
facts which we must recognize and understand.
1. Encountering Christ changes our perspective but not always our place.
2. Encountering Christ leads to praise.
We discussed that the shepherds "went with haste" ... they didn't complain or discuss or
try to figure it all out, they obeyed. So, too, we are called to obey: to "Go and tell ..."
Surely, like me, you have heard it explained that "Go" means "as you go" ... it's about liv-
ing out our relationship in the situations and circumstances we are in ... sharing the
blessed truth of Christ with the people in our lives.
They were excited about what they had heard. They were "glorifying and praising God"
all the way back to the fields. And, I imagine, they continued to share what they had ex-
perienced long after the bright star over Bethlehem had disappeared.
Likewise, Christ's admonition to us is to tell His story to everyone. In all places, in all
ways, at all times. What a big task we face!!
And yet, we have the promise that we are not alone. I absolutely love the ending
of the Great Commission: "And be sure of this, I am with you always, even to the end of
the age." We are promised the very presence of Christ with us ... in all places, in all ways,
at all times. Suddenly the task seems less daunting.
Finally, we have a power from beyond ourselves. In Acts, Christ says, "You will
receive power" and at Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came, filling all believers with the very
power of God in us as we seek to do His will.
Merry Christmas!!
Teri Lynne Underwood
P.S. I’d love to hear your thoughts about these devotions … feel free to
email me! And if you haven’t visited my website, I’d love to have you join
me in my journey of living a life that is
Pleasing to Him.
May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to You,
oh Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer. ~ Psalm 19:14