Have hope in God's promise

So I don't know about y’all but my first week of December has been insane. Between the parades, parties, and church stuff my head is spinning. This is my first Christmas season as a worship leader and oh my it’s so busy and beautiful! This past week I got very wrapped up in all of the things that I’ve gotta do and the thing that’s keeping me sane is my daily time where I get to read scripture and just be with Jesus.

Today, I want to talk about what I have studied this first week of Advent because it has really brought me back to reality and opened my eyes to the true meaning of this season! 

Everyday this week I have been diving into God’s promises to His people. Each day has been a different promise that He has made to a different person in the Bible. I’ll list them below that way y’all can go back and study them:

1. Promise to Abraham: God promised Abraham that all people on earth would be blessed through him. In Jesus, a descendant of Abraham, this promise was fulfilled.“All peoples on earth will be blessed through you” (Genesis 12:3).
2.  Promise to Isaac: God promised an everlasting covenant with Isaac (Abraham’s son). In Jesus, a descendant of Isaac, this promise was fulfilled. God said to Abraham,“‘Your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will call him Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him’” (Genesis 17:19).
3. Promise to Jacob (also called Israel): God promised Jacob that all people on earth would be blessed through him. In Jesus, a descendant of Jacob, this promise was fulfilled.“All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring” (Genesis 28:14).
4. Promise to Judah: The Bible reveals that a descendant of Judah would be ruler over all the nations. Jesus, a descendant of Judah, is this ruler.“The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until he comes to whom it belongs and the obedience of the nations is his” (Genesis 49:10).
5. Promise to the people of Israel: God promised that a Righteous One would be born out of the line of David. Jesus, a descendant of David, fulfilled this promise. “‘The days are coming,’ declares the Lord, ‘when I will fulfill the gracious promise I made to the house of Israel and to the house of Judah. In those days and at that time I will make a righteous Branch sprout from David’s line; he will do what is just and right in the land’” (Jeremiah 33:14-15).
6. Promise Fulfilled: Jesus descended from the exact lineage that God promised. “A record of the genealogy of Jesus Christ the son of David, the son of Abraham . . . there were fourteen generations in all from Abraham to David, fourteen from David to the exile to Babylon, and fourteen from the exile to the Christ” (Matthew 1:1 and 1:17).
7. Promise for All: The promise of Jesus is for all people; he offers hope! “This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 3:6). 

As I studied all the different promises God has presented to His people I began to realize how often we as His children forget His promises for us. Especially entering this season that is often filled with christmas trees and jingle bells we forget about the manger and the cross. We are blind to the promise that God gave us: His son Jesus. 

Christmas is not easy for everyone. Many are reminded of past hurt and loss and don't feel like God has kept any of His promises. If you are feeling that I want to remind you that it’s ok to grieve. It’s ok to mourn the loss and to acknowledge the hurt during this season, but it’s also apparent that we go back to scripture and remember the ultimate promise that God has given us. 

As God’s children we get to share in the amazing promise in Christ Jesus! He has promised us freedom from sin! He has promised us everlasting joy! He has promised us eternal life with Him in heaven! 

However this Christmas season is looking in your life I pray that you would give yourself a spiritual check and find hope in God’s promises. Bask in the glory of your Father! Our King will come back and fulfill His promise to us! He will deliver us from our earthly pain and we will live with Him forever in Heaven. 

“And this is God’s plan: Both Gentiles and Jews who believe the Good News share equally in the riches inherited by God’s children. Both are part of the same body, and both enjoy the promise of blessings because they belong to Christ Jesus.” Ephesians 3:6

Advent study can be found at: http://www.celebratingholidays.com/?page_id=1423