23

Listen to God

Heavenly Father, Your Word is powerful and true. Help us to listen and believe all You say. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Joy To The WorldDavid S. Winkler / George Frederick Handel / Isaac Watts

Verse 1Joy to the world the Lord is comeLet earth receive her KingLet every heart prepare Him roomAnd heav’n and nature singAnd heav’n and nature singAnd heav’n and heav’n and nature sing Verse 2 Joy to the earth the Savior reignsLet fields and floods rock hills and plainsRepeat the sounding joyRepeat the sounding joyRepeat repeat the sounding joy

Verse 3No more let sins and sorrows growNor thorns infest the groundHe comes to make His blessings flowFar as the curse is foundFar as the curse is foundFar as far as the curse is found Verse 4 He rules the world with truth and graceAnd makes the nations proveThe glories of His righteousnessAnd wonders of His loveAnd wonders of His loveAnd wonders wonders of His love

24

Mary was caught in the middle: scared, excited and confused. The angel’s visit changes everything! It was no dream and she knew it! All of this was extremely unusual—an angel appeared and brought a message from God. The angel Gabriel announced, “Mary, you will be with child, and give birth to a son, and you are to give Him the name Jesus. Mary, the Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the most high will overshadow you. For nothing is impossible with God!” This would be the greatest Christmas Miracle!

Who would believe her pregnancy was through the Holy Spirit? Her heart pounded as she pondered her parents, friends, and Joseph. How would they react? What would Joseph’s response be? What would he do? Yes, this changes everything. Mary’s devotion to God was strong and she could only say to the angel, “May it be to me as you have said.” Mary was obedient.

God broke into Mary’s life that day through a dramatic appearance. Sometimes He enters our lives in stunning brilliance, but it seems He most often moves quietly and softly, but decisively. We see this with the prophet Elijah when he was told to watch for the Lord. “Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. The Lord came to Elijah in a gentle whisper.

Take some time before reading the next section of the Christmas story to talk about how God has shown up in your lives. Where do you see God working? How has He drawn you to Himself?

When God miraculously stepped into Mary’s life and called her to action, it was right and wise for her to change her plans. She needed to obey.

In a mere moment, her dreams, decisions, and direction would

all change.

Let’s read the story...

25

In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to the Galilean village of Nazareth to a virgin engaged to be married to a man descended from David. His name was Joseph, and the virgin’s name, Mary. Upon entering Gabriel greeted her: Good Morning! You’re beautiful with God’s beauty. Beautiful inside and out! God be with you. She was thoroughly shaken and wondered what was behind a greeting like that. But the angel assured her, “Mary, you have nothing to fear. God has a surprise for you: You will become pregnant and give birth to a son and call his name Jesus. He will be great, be called ‘The Son of the Highest’. The Lord will give him the throne of his father David; He will rule Jacob’s house forever—no end to his kingdom.” Mary said to the angel, “But how? I’ve never slept with a man.”The angel answered, The Holy Spirit will come upon you, the power of the Highest hover over you; Therefore, the child you bring to birth will be called Holy, Son of God. “And did you know that your cousin Elizabeth conceived a son, old as she is? Everyone called her barren, and here she is six months pregnant! Nothing, you see, is impossible with God.”And Mary said, “Yes, I see it all now: I’m the Lord’s maid, ready to serve. Let it be with me just as you say.”Then the angel left her.After talking with her cousin Elizabeth, Mary said “I’m bursting with God-news; I’m dancing the song of my Savior God. God took one good look at me, and look what happened—I’m the most fortunate woman on earth! What has God done for me will never be forgotten, the whose very name is holy, set apart from all others. His mercy flows in wave after wave on those who are in awe before him. He bared his arm and showed his strength, scattered the bluffing braggarts. He knocked tyrants off their high horses, pulled victims out of the mud. The starving poor sat down to a banquet; the callous rich were left out in the cold. He embraced his chosen child, Israel; he remembered and piled on the mercies, piled them high. It’s exactly what he promised, beginning with Abraham and right up to now.” Luke 1:26-38; 46-55 (The Message)

26

1. In all likelihood, Mary was in her teens, and since she was engaged, she would probably be married within the year. Yet new information enters her life concerning the baby she would conceive by the Holy Spirit. Mary’s response is bold and courageous—“Yes, I see it all now: I’m the Lord’s maid, ready to serve. Let it be with me just as you say.” Why do you think Mary could so quickly say, “yes” to God?

2. This is a miracle story! The angel Gabriel said, “Nothing is impossible with God.” What is one thing you sense God wants to do in your life this year?

3. How could you help others in your family say “yes” to God?

Note: This is a time to reflect on our responses to God over

the past year. God calls us to do many difficult things, yet at the

same time He enables us to carry them out. God’s “mercy flows in wave after wave on those who

are in awe before him.”

27

Heavenly Father, we stand in awe of how You use ordinary people to fulfill Your plan. We believe that Jesus was born of Mary and that He is fully God and fully man. This mystery is great and beyond our understanding. Help us to be faithful like Mary to all You ask of us. We know that it is by Your grace that we can live out Your plan for our lives. Help us God to be the people You want us to be. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

Record your own prayers.

Suggestion: Angel Bell or Angel Puppet on 59. More activities are listed 58-63 or continue

to work on the previous one.

28

Monday: Luke 1:39-45

At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. In a loud voice she exclaimed:

“Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!”

How was Elizabeth’s pregnancy a confirmation of the truth of Mary’s announcement?

“Blessed” means well-being or happy. The person who believes the Lord is blessed. How have you been blessed as you believed God?

Tuesday: Matthew 1:18-20

This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly. But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.

29

Joseph is described as a righteous man. He is not perfect, but he seeks to consistently obey God as the Mosaic Law required. How would you describe yourself?

What area of your life do you have the most difficulty in trusting the Lord?

Wednesday: Matthew 1:21-23

She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”--which means, “God with us.”

Take some time to confess your sins to God. Then claim the promise of 1 John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” Thank God for forgiving you of your sins.

Write a prayer to God.

30

Thursday: Matthew 1:24-25

Then Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. But he had no union with her until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.

Note Joseph’s obedience. Why is immediate obedience so important?

Jesus is the Greek name for the Old Testament name of Joshua that means “God Saves.” Take time to praise God for saving you from your sin.

Friday: Galatians 4:4-7

But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons. Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” So you are no longer a slave, but a son; and since you are a son, God has made you also an heir.

God sent Jesus to redeem people. Pray about a person with whom you could tell your story of how God redeemed you and made you a child of his.

31

How has the change from slave to child made a difference in your relationship with God?

Saturday: Galatians 5:13-18

You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. The entire law is summed up in a single command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other. So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law.

The Christmas season is a time of love or to “serve one another in love.” Who could you show love to today?

Is there anyone with whom you must make amends? Do it today so that you can “love your neighbor as yourself.”

32