#122025

God, I come to You in spite of my doubts and fears. I'm choosing to believe You and trust Your promises, no matter what challenges I face, Strengthen my faith. Fill me with discernment, gratitude, and belief. In Jesus' name, Amen.

MATTHEW 28:7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples that he ahs risen from the dead, and behold, he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him. See, I have told you

Imagine how it must have felt seeing Jesus alive after He died on the cross. Rejoice and glorify the Lord because Jesus is alive!

LUKE 15:7 Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over 99 righteous person sho need no repentance.

Heaven rejoices when you turn to God for help! Ask God for what you need-tell Him what's on your mind.

MATTHEW 28:8 So they departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples.

Think about the people in your life who need the joy of Jesus. Pray for them in this moment. No matter what you will face today… Jesus is alive and He is bigger than your circumstances.

DAILY BIBLE READING: MICAH 1-3 REVELATION 11 THE COMING DESTRUCTION WOE TO OPRESSORS Woe to those who devise wickedness and work evil on their beds! When the morning dawns, they perform it, because it is in the power of their hand. RULERS AND PROPHETS DENOUNCED Hear, you heads of Jacob and rulers of the house of Israel! Is it not for you to know justice?— 2you who hate the good and love the evil But as for me, I am filled with power, with the Spirit of the Lord, and with justice and might, to declare to Jacob his transgression and to Israel his sin. THE TWO WITNESSES THE SEVENTH TRUMPET

MATTHEW 1:18-25 THE BIRTH OF JESUS CHRIST 18Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. 19And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. 20But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” 22All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: 23 “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us). 24When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, 25but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus. INSIGHT Jesus is Immanuel, which means “God with us” (Matthew 1:23). John’s gospel describes His incarnation in this way: “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). The concept that God is with His people can be seen throughout the Bible. It’s the theme of Psalm 46, where the repeated refrain is: “The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress” (vv. 7, 11). The psalm concludes with this tender appeal to those facing loneliness or any other life challenge: “Be still, and know that I am God” (v. 10). Whatever we’re facing today, God is with us, and we’re never alone.

WITH US IN OUR LONELINESS Henry David Thoreau described a city as a place where many people are “lonesome together.” Those words have the ring of truth. In my youth, songs like “Mr. Lonely,” “Only the Lonely,” and “Eleanor Rigby” focused on isolation and loneliness. In recent years, the pandemic was one of the most isolating seasons the world has known. And social media can feed that loneliness, giving us connection without relationship. Perhaps loneliness is the new pandemic.

As Matthew shared the story of the birth of Jesus (1:18-25), he told us, “All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet [Isaiah]: ‘The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel’ (which means ‘God with us’) ” (vv. 22-23). Ponder that for a moment. God with us!

As believers in Jesus, we’re never alone. We’ve been born again into the family of Christ, a family that spans the globe and the ages. The apostle Paul said, “You are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household” (Ephesians 2:19). We’re loved by the ever-present God, who said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5).

Whatever you’re facing today, your heavenly Father is present with you. Allow Him to help you as you step into life’s uncertainties and challenges. He’s with you.

By: Bill Crowder

REFLECT AND PRAY When have you felt lonely? When experiencing this sense of isolation, how do you respond to it?

Thank You, Father, that because of Your abiding presence, I’m never alone. in Jesus' name, Amen.

RESTORED: WHEN WHO YOU ARE STARTS TO SLIP AWAY NAMING WHAT WAS NEVER MOURNED There are some losses we never got to name. Losses that didn’t come with casseroles, condolences, or compassionate check-ins. Losses we moved past but never truly healed from.

The loss of a role we once found purpose in. The friend who faded without explanation. The dream that quietly died. The body that’s changing in ways we didn’t expect. The version of ourselves we don’t even recognize anymore.

These losses don’t make headlines, but they make heart wounds. And when left unaddressed, they don’t disappear. They just settle into the spaces where our purpose is meant to rise.

Grief doesn’t cancel your calling.

But ungrieved losses? They clog the flow of clarity, God-trust, and forward movement. This is why we begin here: with truth. With naming and with sacred pause.

“He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.” — Psalm 147:3 (ESV) Psalm 147 is a song of restoration, written after the exiles returned from Babylon. It’s a song of rebuilding what was torn down. Notice how the psalmist says God heals and binds. He doesn’t rush or ignore the wounds. He tends to them with intentional care. And He’s doing the same with you.

You are not weak for still feeling what others forgot. You are not broken for carrying pain you never fully unpacked. You are not alone in this healing. God is not threatened by your grief. He’s present in it. This isn’t the start of your breakdown, but the start of your restoration.

Sacred Step: Take 10–15 minutes today to sit in silence with God and answer this question honestly:

What am I still grieving that I never got to name? Write it down. No filters. No guilt. Just truth. Let your journal become a sanctuary. Let your tears tell the truth.

And then pray this aloud: