Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus
Come, Thou long expected Jesus, born to set Thy people free;
From our fears and sins release us; let us find our rest in Thee.
Israel's strength and consolation, hope of all the earth Thou art;
Dear Desire of every nation, Joy of every longing heart.
Monday
I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I hope; my soul waits for the Lord more than those who watch for the morning, more than those who watch for the morning. O Israel, hope in the Lord! For with the Lord there is steadfast love, and with him is great power to redeem. It is he who will redeem Israel from all its iniquities.
Have you ever experienced the darkness and loneliness of night and strained toward the first glimpse of morning light? King David experiences this in his waiting to encounter God. And in his waiting, he invites the community of faith to continue to put their hope in the long-expected Jesus, who is coming to bring redemption and freedom.
Where are you sitting in darkness, longing for light?
What do you hear God inviting you to in the darkness?
Is there someone with whom you can share the darkness and together wait for the redemption and freedom of Christ?
Gracious Lord, we have long awaited you and now prepare for your coming once again. Come to us, replace our fear with your love and our anxiety with your consolation. In the dark, be present with us and point us toward your light of hope and freedom, that we might invite others around us to experience your redemptions. Come, Lord Jesus, Amen.
Tuesday
Surely he has borne our infirmities and carried our diseases; yet we accounted him stricken, struck down by God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the punishment that made us whole, and by his bruises we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have all turned to our own way, and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
These are such poignant verses, expressing the reality that we are prone to wander and misunderstand God’s redeeming work, and God’s relentless pursuit of us. As we read these verses, we are humbled by our fragile human state, unable to see clearly yet, but even more than that, grateful for the relentless, loving pursuit of God as he heals and forgives and invites us to rest in him.
What emotions do you feel reading these verses? Gratitude? Guilt? Shame? Vulnerability?
How do these verses invite healing, forgiveness, and rest? What other invitations do you hear?
Where do you find yourself going astray this week? How is God inviting you back?
Gracious Lord, we have long awaited you and now prepare for your coming once again. Come to us, replace our fear with your love and our anxiety with your consolation. In the dark, be present with us and point us toward your light of hope and freedom, that we might invite others around us to experience your redemptions. Come, Lord Jesus, Amen.
Wednesday
A voice cries out: “In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all people shall see it together, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
Wilderness suggests a wildness, a place where finding our way can be a challenge. For many of us this last year, or even these last couple years, we have experienced wilderness in relationships, career, relocation, our health...the list goes on. The prophet breaks into the wilderness, inviting us all to participate in make space in our wilderness for God to dwell, to smooth out some of the rough spots we are experiencing and to reveal His glory to us, in us, and around us.
What have you experienced this past year that has been unexpected?
Where do you need to find God?
Who are the people around you who need to see the glory of God, even in your place of wilderness?
Gracious Lord, we have long awaited you and now prepare for your coming once again. Come to us, replace our fear with your love and our anxiety with your consolation. In the dark, be present with us and point us toward your light of hope and freedom, that we might invite others around us to experience your redemptions. Come, Lord Jesus, Amen.
Thursday
“And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people by the forgiveness of their sins. By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from on high will break upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.”
This is such a beautiful vision for John the Baptist, spoken over him by his father. Zechariah had experienced 9 months of silence, which had allowed him to hear from God in ways that may have been missed. This is the vision for all of us, that we prepare the way so that others can experience the tender mercy of God, his light, his comfort, his peace. Even as we share it with others, may we always remember that we never outgrow our desperate need for God still.
How has God prepared you for where you are right now?
How are you experiencing God’s tender mercy, light, comfort, and peace?
What does it look like to share your experience of God with others in ways that draw them in?
Gracious Lord, we have long awaited you and now prepare for your coming once again. Come to us, replace our fear with your love and our anxiety with your consolation. In the dark, be present with us and point us toward your light of hope and freedom, that we might invite others around us to experience your redemptions. Come, Lord Jesus, Amen.
Friday, Christmas Eve
In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying,
“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors!”
When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.”
If we have been Christians for a while, we are so familiar with the Christmas story that we don’t connect with the beauty and sacredness of these accounts. But here, while the rest of the world was going by, caught up in the politics, social concerns, and daily activities of life, a child was born, the Savior and Restorer of individuals and communities, healer of hearts and systems. The good news of his birth was proclaimed to simple shepherds, people who were isolated, perhaps, by much of the distracting activity and able to hear the startling news of a Savior, and respond by saying, “Let us go and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.”
On this day before Christmas, what is distracting you from hearing and responding to the good news?
How is the Savior’s birth good news to you this year?
What is Jesus making known to you in this season, culminating in this Christmas day?
Gracious Lord, we have long awaited you and now prepare for your coming once again. Come to us, replace our fear with your love and our anxiety with your consolation. In the dark, be present with us and point us toward your light of hope and freedom, that we might invite others around us to experience your redemptions. Come, Lord Jesus, Amen.