Read:
(This can also be sung to the melody “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel”!
“O come, Thou Root of Jesse’s tree, An ensign of Thy people be;
Before Thee rulers silent fall;
All peoples on Thy mercy call.”
This antiphon stresses the historical roots of the Gospel in and among the Jewish people, whom God chose long ago to be the root, the vine, and eventually the very cradle of His saving love for all the nations.
The Lord promises the people a great ruler, one who will come from the house of David, Israel’s beloved king. In Isaiah 11, Isaiah tells us that this kingdom of David son of Jesse would be destroyed. The people of God will be scattered for their disobedience and sin. As the darkness grows, as the people turn further away from God, the sounds of destruction and war grow louder, the people are scattered among the nations of the world.
Even after destruction, a root remains. From this root grows the tree of our salvation. But roots are sometimes small and unnoticed. Hidden in the earth, the life, the promise waits in the roots for spring. Christ, the Root of Jesse, does not come as we expect. He comes hidden in Mary’s womb, not as the conquering king we might have hoped for. But we also know that no matter how messy our lives become, no matter how tossed about we are by the ways of the world, we can cling to this sure and deep root. This tender shoot is an ensign, a rallying flag for all peoples that becomes the mighty tree of a great kingdom open to all.
Reflect
1. What must be cut out of my life to make way for Christ?
2. What am I hoping for this Advent?
(Adapted from devotional by All Saints’ United Methodist Church)
(This can also be sung to the melody “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel”!
“O come, Thou Root of Jesse’s tree, An ensign of Thy people be;
Before Thee rulers silent fall;
All peoples on Thy mercy call.”
This antiphon stresses the historical roots of the Gospel in and among the Jewish people, whom God chose long ago to be the root, the vine, and eventually the very cradle of His saving love for all the nations.
The Lord promises the people a great ruler, one who will come from the house of David, Israel’s beloved king. In Isaiah 11, Isaiah tells us that this kingdom of David son of Jesse would be destroyed. The people of God will be scattered for their disobedience and sin. As the darkness grows, as the people turn further away from God, the sounds of destruction and war grow louder, the people are scattered among the nations of the world.
Even after destruction, a root remains. From this root grows the tree of our salvation. But roots are sometimes small and unnoticed. Hidden in the earth, the life, the promise waits in the roots for spring. Christ, the Root of Jesse, does not come as we expect. He comes hidden in Mary’s womb, not as the conquering king we might have hoped for. But we also know that no matter how messy our lives become, no matter how tossed about we are by the ways of the world, we can cling to this sure and deep root. This tender shoot is an ensign, a rallying flag for all peoples that becomes the mighty tree of a great kingdom open to all.
Reflect
1. What must be cut out of my life to make way for Christ?
2. What am I hoping for this Advent?
(Adapted from devotional by All Saints’ United Methodist Church)
❤🔥1
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Just 5 days to Christmas! ☺️ Today’s antiphon is “O Clavis David (O Key of David)”.
Read:
(This can also be sung to the melody “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel”!
“O come, Thou Key of David, come,
And open wide our heavenly home;
Make safe the way that leads on high,
And close the path to misery”
Keys are the things which open doors and shut them. Jesus is the Key of creation, of new life and new possibility. He can open our prisons and free us. He can also lock the city gates for our safety. What He opens, none may close, and what He locks away, none may open.
In Christ, God entered our history. He entered our lives, unlocking them in the ways only he can. To His church he gave the keys of the kingdom, to bind and to loosen.
So today we praise the authority of the Messiah with the symbol of a key, as we ask Him to unlock the prisons of darkness and the chains of sin and death that still bind us. We ask Him to free us from our boredom, from our selfishness, from our power to harm others, and from our bent toward sin. We ask Him to bind the evil powers of the world, to lock them up and cast them into the outer darkness. And what He frees, none may bind up again. For He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. He is the holy one, the true one, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, who shuts and no one opens.
Reflect
1. What can Christ free me from that is keeping me from loving Him and loving my neighbour more freely?
(Adapted from devotional by All Saints’ United Methodist Church)
(This can also be sung to the melody “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel”!
“O come, Thou Key of David, come,
And open wide our heavenly home;
Make safe the way that leads on high,
And close the path to misery”
Keys are the things which open doors and shut them. Jesus is the Key of creation, of new life and new possibility. He can open our prisons and free us. He can also lock the city gates for our safety. What He opens, none may close, and what He locks away, none may open.
In Christ, God entered our history. He entered our lives, unlocking them in the ways only he can. To His church he gave the keys of the kingdom, to bind and to loosen.
So today we praise the authority of the Messiah with the symbol of a key, as we ask Him to unlock the prisons of darkness and the chains of sin and death that still bind us. We ask Him to free us from our boredom, from our selfishness, from our power to harm others, and from our bent toward sin. We ask Him to bind the evil powers of the world, to lock them up and cast them into the outer darkness. And what He frees, none may bind up again. For He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. He is the holy one, the true one, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, who shuts and no one opens.
Reflect
1. What can Christ free me from that is keeping me from loving Him and loving my neighbour more freely?
(Adapted from devotional by All Saints’ United Methodist Church)
❤🔥1
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4 days left to Christmas ☺️☃️🎄 Today’s antiphon is O Oriens (O Dayspring).
Read:
(This can also be sung to the melody “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel”!
“O come, Thou Dayspring, come and cheer Our spirits by Thine advent here;
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night,
And death’s dark shadows put to flight.”
In the beginning God spoke a word and the light sprang into being. The light fills all of creation with warmth, just as the sun warms the earth grown cold during the long night.
All of creation, our lives included is the daily and ever present act of the Son who fills all things with the light of life. He is the Dayspring from on high. He came into the world to bring light to those who sit in darkness. How often do we live in the shadow of death? How often do we think we can hide from God and from one another in the shadows of our own thoughts and actions? He sheds a cleansing, powerful light on all things.
Nothing escapes his power and presence, like the glorious light of the dawning sun that chases away darkness, disease, and doubt. He chases away the chill of our selfishness and desire. Instead, he fills out lives with warmth and life abundant.
Reflect
1. Where do I need Christ’s light most in my life?
2. Where and when am I trying to hide in the shadows?
(Adapted from devotional by All Saints’ United Methodist Church)
(This can also be sung to the melody “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel”!
“O come, Thou Dayspring, come and cheer Our spirits by Thine advent here;
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night,
And death’s dark shadows put to flight.”
In the beginning God spoke a word and the light sprang into being. The light fills all of creation with warmth, just as the sun warms the earth grown cold during the long night.
All of creation, our lives included is the daily and ever present act of the Son who fills all things with the light of life. He is the Dayspring from on high. He came into the world to bring light to those who sit in darkness. How often do we live in the shadow of death? How often do we think we can hide from God and from one another in the shadows of our own thoughts and actions? He sheds a cleansing, powerful light on all things.
Nothing escapes his power and presence, like the glorious light of the dawning sun that chases away darkness, disease, and doubt. He chases away the chill of our selfishness and desire. Instead, he fills out lives with warmth and life abundant.
Reflect
1. Where do I need Christ’s light most in my life?
2. Where and when am I trying to hide in the shadows?
(Adapted from devotional by All Saints’ United Methodist Church)
❤🔥1
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Just 3 more days to Christmas!! 😱😱🎄🎄☺️ Today’s antiphon is “O Rex Gentium (O King of the Nations)”
Read:
(This can also be sung to the melody “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel”!
“O come, Desire of nations, bind
In one the hearts of all mankind; Bid Thou our sad divisions cease, And be Thyself our King of Peace.”
Through Jesus, we are given space to become God’s people. We often forget that the promise of a Messiah came to Israel, God’s chosen people among the nations. And we were Gentiles, outsiders, unclean and apart. We were not Israel.
But in Jesus, all the nations, all the peoples of the world find their one true king. In him we are bound together with all other people. No longer are we separated from one another, for we are made one in his body. There are no longer Jew nor Gentile, slave nor free. All are one in him.
This is not just a nice idea. This is a powerful, sometimes painful unity. When our brothers or sisters suffer, we suffer. When our brothers or sisters rejoice, we rejoice. Look around you, at the people closest to you. In this King who comes, we become one. Though we are many, we are made one as we share in the body of the King of Peace.
Reflect
1. How do I separate myself from others?
2. How am I breaking the body of Christ with hate, with evil words and actions?
(Adapted from devotional by All Saints’ United Methodist Church)
(This can also be sung to the melody “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel”!
“O come, Desire of nations, bind
In one the hearts of all mankind; Bid Thou our sad divisions cease, And be Thyself our King of Peace.”
Through Jesus, we are given space to become God’s people. We often forget that the promise of a Messiah came to Israel, God’s chosen people among the nations. And we were Gentiles, outsiders, unclean and apart. We were not Israel.
But in Jesus, all the nations, all the peoples of the world find their one true king. In him we are bound together with all other people. No longer are we separated from one another, for we are made one in his body. There are no longer Jew nor Gentile, slave nor free. All are one in him.
This is not just a nice idea. This is a powerful, sometimes painful unity. When our brothers or sisters suffer, we suffer. When our brothers or sisters rejoice, we rejoice. Look around you, at the people closest to you. In this King who comes, we become one. Though we are many, we are made one as we share in the body of the King of Peace.
Reflect
1. How do I separate myself from others?
2. How am I breaking the body of Christ with hate, with evil words and actions?
(Adapted from devotional by All Saints’ United Methodist Church)
❤🔥1
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2 more days to Christmas!! 🎄🎄☺️ Today’s antiphon is “O Emmanuel (God With Us)”
Read:
(This can also be sung to the melody “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel”!
“O come, O come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear.”
Never in a million years could we imagine that God would want to be this close to us. In fact, we would often prefer God would stay away. We like thinking that God might be watching occasionally, but we don’t care for the idea that God would come so close to us as to be born among us, walking with us in our flesh.
But this is the great scandal of our faith: God wants to be with us so much that God would come in the flesh. The one who made all things and without whom not one thing came into being has come among us to save us.
We could have never made this up on our own. We could not imagine this good news by ourselves: “Look, the young woman is with child and shall bear a son, and shall name him ‘Emmanuel.’”, which means “God with us” This is the good news of Christmas, the name of our salvation, our lives, our wholeness, our perfection.
John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, remembered this great truth again in the last minutes of his life: “Best of all, God is with us.”
Reflect
1. Am I ready to receive Christ?
2. What is keeping me from receiving him and the life He brings?
(Adapted from devotional by All Saints’ United Methodist Church)
(This can also be sung to the melody “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel”!
“O come, O come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear.”
Never in a million years could we imagine that God would want to be this close to us. In fact, we would often prefer God would stay away. We like thinking that God might be watching occasionally, but we don’t care for the idea that God would come so close to us as to be born among us, walking with us in our flesh.
But this is the great scandal of our faith: God wants to be with us so much that God would come in the flesh. The one who made all things and without whom not one thing came into being has come among us to save us.
We could have never made this up on our own. We could not imagine this good news by ourselves: “Look, the young woman is with child and shall bear a son, and shall name him ‘Emmanuel.’”, which means “God with us” This is the good news of Christmas, the name of our salvation, our lives, our wholeness, our perfection.
John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, remembered this great truth again in the last minutes of his life: “Best of all, God is with us.”
Reflect
1. Am I ready to receive Christ?
2. What is keeping me from receiving him and the life He brings?
(Adapted from devotional by All Saints’ United Methodist Church)
❤🔥1
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It’s finally Christmas Eve ☺️🎄 Wishing everyone a blessed Christmas time very soon! Thank you for joining us on this countdown. We hope the devotionals have blessed you and helped you prepare your heart for the King of Kings. ❤️ Here’s a special prayer we would like to pray over you and your families this Christmas time:
Lord, We worship You during this Christmas season. You are our wonderful Counselor, mighty God, everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6). We choose to put You at the center of our family life as we celebrate Your birth. Keep us from distractions and help us to invite You into all our family activities.
Teach us to pray and help us to glorify and worship You in our family during this busy time of year. Give us a spirit of wisdom and revelation that we might know You better (Ephesians 1:17). Thank you for being Immanuel, “God with us.” Open our eyes to realize this each day as we interact with others. Help us to be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving one another, just as You forgave us (Ephesians 4:32).
Show us creative ways to love and care for those outside our home. Fill us to overflowing with Your love for the lost. Teach us to do acts of kindness to those who are in need at this time of year.
We thank you for your everlasting love shown through the birth of Jesus. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
(Prayer adapted from Crosswalk)
Teach us to pray and help us to glorify and worship You in our family during this busy time of year. Give us a spirit of wisdom and revelation that we might know You better (Ephesians 1:17). Thank you for being Immanuel, “God with us.” Open our eyes to realize this each day as we interact with others. Help us to be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving one another, just as You forgave us (Ephesians 4:32).
Show us creative ways to love and care for those outside our home. Fill us to overflowing with Your love for the lost. Teach us to do acts of kindness to those who are in need at this time of year.
We thank you for your everlasting love shown through the birth of Jesus. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
(Prayer adapted from Crosswalk)
❤🔥1
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Blessed Christmas to all from the TCCo team! May your day be filled with joy and cheer, and your heart be filled with the love and peace of God. ☺️🎄💒
❤🔥1
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“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 4:6-7 NIV
Happy Monday! The start of a new week can be daunting for many, but take heart - God has given you access to a peace that surpasses all understanding. Praying these verses over your life today! 🔥💪
Philippians 4:6-7 NIV
Happy Monday! The start of a new week can be daunting for many, but take heart - God has given you access to a peace that surpasses all understanding. Praying these verses over your life today! 🔥💪
❤🔥1
Our prayers hold weight in the spiritual battle that is also being fought in the land of Ukraine. May we not belittle the impact of our prayers, but instead, stand united as one body of Christ as we intercede for our brothers and sisters in Ukraine. You may use the prayer pointers in the images as a guide.
As an act of love, let us commit to weaving in these prayer pointers into our daily prayer routines – be it during our Quiet Time or even when we say grace before meals! 🙏❤️
As an act of love, let us commit to weaving in these prayer pointers into our daily prayer routines – be it during our Quiet Time or even when we say grace before meals! 🙏❤️
❤🔥1❤1
What’s so good about Good Friday?
Thousands of years ago, Jesus was flogged brutally with a whip made out of lead hooks and pieces of bone that tore into His skin. Thereafter, He was made to carry a life-sized cross made of heavy wood up to a hill where He would be crucified. His hands and feet were nailed mercilessly to the cross and He was left there to die a painful death while being jeered at and mocked by a crowd.
Why did the Son of God do all this? Simply because He loves us.
The price of our sins is death. But Jesus steps forward in our place to take on the punishment and eternal death that we deserve. By the stripes left on His back by the whip, we are healed and forgiven. Jesus takes on every broken part of our lives and heals our hearts and our souls.
Know this today – there is nothing more God can do to prove His love for you. He has died for you. On this day, we remember the gift of salvation that God has given to us.
And so, if anyone asks, that is why Good Friday is so, so good.
Thousands of years ago, Jesus was flogged brutally with a whip made out of lead hooks and pieces of bone that tore into His skin. Thereafter, He was made to carry a life-sized cross made of heavy wood up to a hill where He would be crucified. His hands and feet were nailed mercilessly to the cross and He was left there to die a painful death while being jeered at and mocked by a crowd.
Why did the Son of God do all this? Simply because He loves us.
The price of our sins is death. But Jesus steps forward in our place to take on the punishment and eternal death that we deserve. By the stripes left on His back by the whip, we are healed and forgiven. Jesus takes on every broken part of our lives and heals our hearts and our souls.
Know this today – there is nothing more God can do to prove His love for you. He has died for you. On this day, we remember the gift of salvation that God has given to us.
And so, if anyone asks, that is why Good Friday is so, so good.
❤🔥1