SACRED HOLIDAYS: A DEVOTIONAL LEADING UP TO CHRISTMASExemplo

DAY THREE

One of the hardest things for me about following God is that I can’t see Him. Faith has never come easily for me. I am a natural skeptic, so faith has been something I’ve had to fight for, even now nearly two decades after first choosing to follow Jesus. 

Do you struggle with faith in a God you can’t see, or is it something that comes naturally to you? 

1 Timothy 1:17 says, “Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever…” 1 Timothy 6:16 says God is the one “...whom no one has seen or can see.” John 1:18 says, “No one has ever seen God…” When I struggle with just wanting a burning-bush-moment where God makes Himself visible to me, I find great hope and help in His Word—for that’s where he makes himself clear to us. 

Yes, we can’t see God in front of us. But His Word also says in Romans 1:20, “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.” And in Colossians 1:15, “He (Jesus) is the image of the invisible God…” While we can’t see God the way we’d expect, we can see his qualities in the world around us. And thank heaven for Jesus, who is God in the flesh!

I love that God acknowledges that we can’t see Him, but He doesn’t leave us in the dar/ He sends us the Light, Jesus, the image of the invisible God. This is what this Christmas season is all about—setting our blind eyes on the invisible God made visible through His Son. 

Read Isaiah 42:16 and make a mental note of the "I will" statements God says.

 

Friend, did you need to hear all those things He says He will do for you? I know I do! There is so much unknown in our lives, and it can be frustrating, terrifying, annoying, or heart breaking. 

We all have unknowns—significant or seemingly insignificant. As hard as the not-knowing is for me, remembering that God knows the unknown brings me a significant amount of comfort. Let it bring you comfort today—the God who knows the unknown is your great light this Christmas season.

> Light your second candle.

God says that He will lead us when we can't see—down roads we couldn't fathom or even imagine. As He does all of those things, the darkness changes to light.

If you are in Christ, you have not been overcome by the dark or unknown that surrounds you. Do not live in defeat my friend. It is not yours to own. Romans 8:37 says "we are more than conquerors" all because of "him who loved us."

Whatever unknown situation lies in front of you, know today that it will not overcome you. More than that, God will use it for your good. He is for you. He is good. I can prove it.

Read James 1:2-4 and note the benefits of trials.  

The unknown, testing, or trials can all feel like God is withholding from us. But in reality, he is testing us and increasing our perseverance, so that our character won’t lack anything. The hard of the unknown is for our good, and as we follow Christ as our light through those dark times, we will end with more endurance, and eventually, we will be "perfect and complete."