Advent Devotional 2021
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“And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.”
Luke 11:9-10 (NLT)
Luke 11:9-10 (NLT)
Persistence in prayer. It’s not something that we talk about very much. If you’re like me, I tend to pray for something once and consider it covered in prayer. Check that one off the list and move on to the next.
I mean, if we’ve prayed for it, doesn’t God know that it is on our hearts? The answer is, of course, yes. God knows it’s on our hearts before we even pray, and yet this passage clearly teaches us the importance of being persistent in our prayers.
And so I leave you with this encouragement: Pray, pray continually, pray with gratitude, pray your requests, and pray with persistence. Pour your heart into your prayer life.
I mean, if we’ve prayed for it, doesn’t God know that it is on our hearts? The answer is, of course, yes. God knows it’s on our hearts before we even pray, and yet this passage clearly teaches us the importance of being persistent in our prayers.
And so I leave you with this encouragement: Pray, pray continually, pray with gratitude, pray your requests, and pray with persistence. Pour your heart into your prayer life.
Prayer focus: Pray continually, pray with gratitude, pray your request, pray with persistence and pour your heart into your prayer life
Community prayer focus: Families that are struggling financially
Community prayer focus: Families that are struggling financially
Favorite Christmas Tradition
Every year since we moved to Modesto in 1988, we attended the 7PM Christmas Eve Service. Once our granddaughter, Liberty arrived in 2011, we switched to the Children’s 5:30 service and she attended with our daughter, Heather and husband, Jeremiah. As Liberty grew old enough to hold her own candle, it was such a blessing to see the expression on her face as she stared at her candle which would illuminate her tiny face. As time went on, our daughter and Jeremiah were able to adopt and add four more children to the family and like Liberty, they were fascinated with the candlelight. 2020 was a unique and sad year for most of us and we wondered how we could keep the candlelight tradition with no Children’s service. We could not meet in person and as we recall, the church had to close for some time. Since we always meet at our daughter’s home on Christmas Eve, I came up with an idea. Liberty learned to play Silent Night on her piano, the children held battery operated candles, and our daughters, husbands, and us held real candles as we all sang Silent Night. Even in the midst of a pandemic, we were determined not to let the darkness steal our Light and our joy, which is Christ Jesus.
Sandra H.
Every year since we moved to Modesto in 1988, we attended the 7PM Christmas Eve Service. Once our granddaughter, Liberty arrived in 2011, we switched to the Children’s 5:30 service and she attended with our daughter, Heather and husband, Jeremiah. As Liberty grew old enough to hold her own candle, it was such a blessing to see the expression on her face as she stared at her candle which would illuminate her tiny face. As time went on, our daughter and Jeremiah were able to adopt and add four more children to the family and like Liberty, they were fascinated with the candlelight. 2020 was a unique and sad year for most of us and we wondered how we could keep the candlelight tradition with no Children’s service. We could not meet in person and as we recall, the church had to close for some time. Since we always meet at our daughter’s home on Christmas Eve, I came up with an idea. Liberty learned to play Silent Night on her piano, the children held battery operated candles, and our daughters, husbands, and us held real candles as we all sang Silent Night. Even in the midst of a pandemic, we were determined not to let the darkness steal our Light and our joy, which is Christ Jesus.
Sandra H.
