Weekly Devotion

True North is a reference to the direction of the North Pole from any given point. I find that I use this phrase often to describe my situation or when I check to see if I’m on the right course and right direction. I caught up with a working colleague and friend (J) to learn more about how God is working through his life.

There was a light unlike anything ever seen at the announcement of Jesus’ birth. The shepherds didn’t know what to make of this. I’ve always imagined God’s glory to be the brightest light ever, significantly brighter than any other specific thing. Kind of like being outside on a sunny day when you shield your eyes because of the sunshine, only to catch a reflection shimmering on the water that’s even brighter. That’s when you realize true brightness.

From the prophesies of Malachi in 430 BC until the appearance of John the Baptist in 1st Century Judea, there were no recorded words or writings in either Testaments in the Bible. RC Sproul labeled this dark era, “Dust to Glory.” The intertestamental period is also known by some as the “400 years of silence.”

Sometimes the Christmas season brings despair and loneliness instead of the happiness that is expected of the holiday. There’s a lot of pressure to be happy, to be dazzled, and to act like everything is great — even when it’s not. I’ve heard people tell me that Christmas can bring out the worst in people. We have ourselves to blame for this, it’s not a spiritual problem, it’s a societal problem. While the notion that there are more suicides during the holiday season is scary, according to the CDC, it’s a myth.

For many, the Christmas season is attributed to kindness and peace which is why it’s so appealing to the world. Everyone loves the festivities, joyful songs, blinking lights, and giving. What about the peace? As a believer I think it’s important to consider what kind of peace God had in mind with Jesus’ birth?

Sometimes the Christmas season brings despair and loneliness instead of the happiness that is expected of the holiday. There’s a lot of pressure to be happy, to be dazzled, and to act like everything is great — even when it’s not. I’ve heard people tell me that Christmas can bring out the worst in people. We have ourselves to blame for this, it’s not a spiritual problem, it’s a societal problem. While the notion that there are more suicides during the holiday season is scary, according to the CDC, it’s a myth.

This Sunday marks the second Sunday of Advent, a season of preparation for the birth of Jesus Christ. Advent, from the Latin word Adventus, means “coming”. Many churches recognize Advent as the 4 Sundays leading to Christmas. They use this as a period of preparation not only for the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ but also as a time of preparation for His Second Coming.

Alfred Lord Tennyson’s famous poem, “In Memoriam,” affirmed that “It is better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.” It also reflected his journey of faith after the death of close friend Arthur Hallam. Despite the tragic sorrow dragging him down, the experience challenged him, and ultimately Tennyson became an even stronger Christian believer adopting the faith that someday he would be reunited with his friend.

This got me thinking. It’s funny that people who don’t run assume that running is easy for daily runners. I next concluded that the same principle can apply to people who face daily struggles. While some folks display scars on their sleeves, where we know every bump in the road they’ve faced, other folks have such mature, deep faith that their joy in God shines brighter than the darkness of their valleys.

It’s so important to be “fed” by our church leaders. If we’re not, we might look in the wrong places. “Our Pastor portrayed downtrodden people in such a negative light, (P) exclaimed. “There was someone laying on the ground outside the church and he had no compassion for him.” We talked about the Samaritan in the Bible. The Pastor’s teaching didn’t reflect what I knew from my Bible reading. It didn’t reflect the Jesus I was getting to know.”