Advent Devotion

Every year Hollywood United Methodist Church does an advent booklet (or advent readings online as they are this year). Today was my day:

Isaiah 40:6-8 
“The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.”

Life can seem very lonely, especially life in Los Angeles. ‘Let’s get coffee’ is a phrase often tossed around but seldom played out. Friends come and go, work changes, holidays pass without an invitation or a second thought. So many of us, so far from our childhood homes and families, whether separated by miles or minds, can feel lost. Afraid. Scared. Alone.

And yet? God reminds us that He is with us. Not just today, not just tomorrow, not just on December 25^th but always. “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever” (Isaiah 40:8).

Christmas in particular can be seen as a time of loneliness. Or as a time to remember that we are never alone. Every carol we hear in the stores, every light we see twinkling in the windows, every silly commercial we see on TV, all of it is a reminder that in reality, we are so far from alone.

We are loved. We are thought about. We are cared for. Not just by the people in our lives but by our Creator. He sent His son to remind us of that. A baby sent to serve as a symbol to the entire world – you and me included – that He loves us. It’s something I’ll try to remember every day of the year.

Prayer for today: 

Lord, thank you for loving us no matter what, from before we were born until we dance with you in heaven. Please help us to remember we are not alone, and never will be, because you promise to love us, to be with us, forever. 
Amen.