It was an exciting Christmas in our house. I hope you have had a wonderful Christmas as well. Merry Christmas from Lutheran Grilled Cheese. I hope you have a wonderful Christmas and a Fantastic New Year!
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Tag Archive - Christmas
Christmas Eve {Advent Devotions}
Read Luke 2:1-7
Now that Joseph and Mary were together as husband and wife only one detail of prophecy remained to be fulfilled. Do you remember our shelter and manger waiting patiently for Mary, Joseph, and Jesus down in Bethlehem? Mary and Joseph are 70 miles away and have no plans for a trip south! The shelter and manger will remain empty and Micah’s prophecy unfulfilled-unless God steps into human history once again.
While they were there the time came for Mary to give birth. And since there was no room in the inn, so she laid her baby in a manger inside that lowly shelter.
So many people come out to church on this night. Often they’re people who have not been here since last Christmas Eve. And sometimes they’re people who will not set foot in church again until next Christmas Eve. Like the crowds of Bethlehem, they turn Jesus away from their hearts and make Him remain outside in the cold. He faced that kind of rejection all through His earthly life-all the way to His death. But He suffered it all to save us. No matter who we are or what we have done, Jesus has won our place in paradise by His perfect life and innocent suffering and death as our Substitute.
Are you home for the holidays this Christmas Eve? As you prepare to gather together with family and friends, come out to St. Mark’s Lutheran Church. Don’t leave Jesus in that manger as though He never grew up to save you. Join us as we follow Him through His childhood. Join us as He takes on His life’s work, and goes to the cross to save us all through His suffering, death, and glorious resurrection.
God grant you a joyous Christmas gathering together with your family and friends at home, in church, and in eternity in His heavenly home.
THE PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank You for moving Augustus to issue a decree so that Your Son would be born in the place You chose. Prepare me to celebrate our Savior’s birth this night, that He might be born in my heart again, and that forgiven of all my sins for His sake, I may rejoice in Your presence now and always. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.
Advent Devotions: Cookies
Read James 5:7-9
I loved making cookies as a kid. Once we started making cookies (shortly after Thanksgiving) I knew that Christmas was coming pretty soon. We would gather around the dining room table with all the ingredients and start mixing them together. It was SO much fun….until….we had to put them into the oven. It seemed like they were in the oven FOREVER!! I was excited again once I heard the timer beep, “THE COOKIES ARE DONE!” I would yell. But alas I could not have a cookie yet, I had to wait until they “cooled down some.”
As a child, impatience seemed to go hand in hand with Christmas. It seemed like that great, wonderful, magical day would never, ever come.
There is a far greater day coming, however. It’s that ultimate Christmas when Jesus Christ will return to this world with all His angels. Jesus will remove every source of evil, pain, and suffering as He renews His creation. and makes it perfect. Then we will enjoy perfect health, perfect relationships, and a perfect life forever.
How can we wait for that wonderful day? In this week’s Epistle Lesson James tells us to estab¬lish our hearts. He means for us to strengthen our hearts with the certainty of Jesus coming just as He promised. When our hearts are established the problems of this life simply don’t loom as large because we can clearly see our God is bigger and stronger than anything we face.
How do you establish your heart? Take time to worship. There you will be reminded of Christ’s promises. There your Baptism will be renewed as you confess your sins and as the Holy Spirit reassures you through the pastor that those sins are forgiven. There you will receive the very body and blood that Jesus sacrificed for us on the cross. And there the Spirit of God will establish your faith and keep you until that final day. Then you will know a peace and confidence as all your problems shrink back to their true size, easily managed by our God and Savior.
THE PRAYER: Lord Jesus, You have promised to return to this world to make all things right and perfect forever. Establish my heart in Your promise so that none of the problems I face will shake my trust and confidence in You. Amen.
Advent Devotions: Meekness
Read Matthew 21:1-7
Our Advent journey continues and, no, we’re not there yet!
I have taken many trips in my life. It did not matter if I was traveling from Vermont to Pennsylvania as a kid to visit family, or From Iowa to Vermont during college. It did not matter if I was traveling in my 89 Toyota Corolla or by jet plane when I traveled I could never get to my destination fast enough.
Thousands of years ago Jesus also traveled. He travelled with crowds making their way up to Jerusalem. Jesus traveled in a very special way, and with the most humble of servants. He was by far the greatest to ever walk those roads. But in the Gospel for this first week in Advent, Jesus took His rightful place at the center of the throne. He rode with praises into Jerusalem for the final festival where He would go to battle for us, laying down His life that we might have eternal life.
At Jesus’ command two of the disciples borrowed an animal on which He would ride into Jerusalem. But He did not choose a towering, powerful, warhorse. No, He rode on a young donkey, a lowly beast of burden.
That is the mark of our King. At Christmas He comes as a tiny baby, humble and lowly, born in a manger. In meekness He came to lay down His life as a sacrifice to save us from our sins.
Today He also comes among us in humility. He chooses lowly water and joins His Word to it to transform lost sinners into children of God.
Even as we continue our journey toward Jerusalem, our King comes right alongside us in great gentleness and humility. Since He is humble, we too are moved to meekness toward each other, knowing He has made our future certain in our eternal home.
THE PRAYER: Lord Jesus, our Savior, thank You for coming to us in such humility. You have saved us and now You ride with us to keep us and protect us. Reassure us by Your presence and guide us safely to our home. Amen.
First Sunday in Advent Devotions
Read Psalm 122
Did you receive a Thanksgiving invitation this year? I guess all of us who regularly have the chance to gather with family and friends for the holidays take it for granted. The wonderful smells of the holiday meals, the laughter filling the house, and everybody catching up with events in each other’s lives make the holidays so special.
But today Thanksgiving weekend comes to an end and all those happy get- togethers must break up. Roads are packed with travelers scattering their separate ways. Of course in a few short weeks, we’ll hear a new invitation: “Come on up for Christmas!”
The church is sending out its own invitation this Advent. In the next few weeks people in churches all over will be decorating, learning parts for the Christmas pageant, and practicing anthems for Christmas Eve. We are doing all of this because we want to invite you to come on up for Christmas as together we will celebrate our Savior’s coming.
This invitation is unlike any other that you will receive. You will not have to worry about getting stuck at the kids table or not having enough mashed potatoes. There is room for all and your cup will overflow with wonder and amazement.
That’s what Advent is all about, and that’s what these Advent devotions are all about. We will recall why the Lord Jesus came down from heaven so long ago. We will recall that the only way we can call heaven our home was because Jesus took our guilt and sin upon Himself and suffered and died in our place. Then, putting our faith in Christ, we will join our brothers and sister in Jesus Christ in joyful expectation as we journey on together. So light the first Advent candle, and accept our invitation. Prepare the way of the Lord.
THE PRAYER: Gracious and Loving God, thank you for the opportunity to gather with family and friends. Thank you also for always being there for us even when we might not see you there. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
Don't Worry
I found this story while doing research for my sermon on Sunday:
There’s a story of a woman who was Christmas shopping with her two children. After many hours of looking at row after row of toys and hearing both her children asking for everything they saw on those many shelves and other things in the store, she finally made it to the elevator with her two kids.
She was feeling what so many of us feel during the holiday season time of the year: overwhelming pressure to go to every party, every housewarming, taste all the holiday food and treats, getting that perfect gift for every single person on our shopping list, making sure we don’t forget anyone on our card list, and the pressure of making sure we respond to everyone who sent us a card.
Finally the elevator doors opened and there was already a crowd in the car. She pushed her way into the car and dragged her two kids in with her and all her purchases. When the doors closed, she couldn’t take it anymore and stated, “Whoever started this whole Christmas thing should be found, strung up and shot.”
From the back of the car everyone heard a quiet calm voice respond, “Don’t worry, we already crucified him.” For the rest of the trip down the elevator it was so quiet you could have heard a pin drop.
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