House of Prayer

January 2010

Lord Jesus-  May the words of our mouths and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in Your sight, O loving and merciful God.  Amen.

Luke 2:1-20 says:

¹In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. ²(This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) ³And everyone went to his own town to register.

 ⁴So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. ⁵He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. ⁶While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, ⁷and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

⁸And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. ⁹An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. ¹⁰But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. ¹¹Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. ¹²This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."

 ¹³Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,  ¹⁴"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests."

 ¹⁵When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let's go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about."

 ¹⁶So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. ¹⁷When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, ¹⁸and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. ¹⁹But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. ²⁰The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

Praise be to God!  Even though we may be “officially done” with the Christmas season, this is always nice to remember this marvelous and life-altering account of the birth of Jesus Christ!  Many times throughout the Christian season of Christmas, this story is read while we sing songs of good tidings and much joy.  Women think of poor Mary who had to ride 9 months pregnant on the back of a donkey.  Men think of how much they, too, hate long road trips like the one Joseph had to take.  Kids think of how gross it would be to be born in a horse trough.  But really, there is SO much more.

Two things come to mind for me.  The first is the obedience of everyone in this story.  Mary and Joseph… for taking the trip in the first place.  The angel… for delivering the message to the wise men.  The wise men… for going to a place they had not planned to go, and then returning another way altogether.  All of these people followed God’s leading, even though to the outside observer it may have seemed crazy.  And what blessing did they receive for doing so!  We too can be blessed for following the lead of our Heavenly Father who loves us.

The second thing that comes to mind for me is the faithfulness of God.  He knew the road would not be easy for Mary and Joseph (literally and figuratively), but He did provide a place for them, albeit not the most comfortable accommodations.  He did not abandon them, not once.  The gospel of Matthew mentions how dangerous it was for the wise men to make the journey that they did.  God was faithful in protecting them in order that they might give homage to Jesus the Son.  God is faithful to His children today just as He was 2010 years ago.

I am sure you can also think of lessons that can be learned from this well-known, and sometimes overlooked, Bible account.  Our prayer for you during this new year is that you would have Jesus in your heart, and that you would be obedient in everything you do for your faithful and loving Father.

As you pray, keep in mind the following prayer points:

†  For those who do not know Christ, that they would find Him in the manger and follow Him for the rest of their lives.

†  For those who have no family or friends to rejoice with them during this new year , that they would find comfort in the loving arms of Christ and in their church families.

†  For those who feel lost, that they would follow THE WAY obediently.

†  For churches who are seeking to reach out to the world in this new year, that all would be welcomed into the house of God and that they would find love and peace there.

†  For any other people or situations God lays on your heart.