by Communications | Dec 25, 2019 | Blog |
Wednesday, December 25Christmas DayHymn: “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” (ELW, No. 257, refrain)Christmas Day is a hard one for many folks. People remember loved ones no longer with them or times in their lives when holidays were so much more magical, fun, or peaceful. But...
by Communications | Dec 24, 2019 | Blog |
Tuesday, December 24Luke 2:1–20Thank goodness for the shepherds—this little crew who were most likely all men, who were not educated or connected to anyone important.They probably could not read, and they would not necessarily have been trained in the Jewish...
by Communications | Dec 23, 2019 | Blog |
Monday, December 23Isaiah 9:2–7This psalm of the prophet Isaiah is quite a contrast to Psalm 80 (see December 17 devotion), where Israel cries to God and accuses God of giving them only tears to eat as bread. Now they are not so worried about who was plundered, for...
by Communications | Dec 22, 2019 | Blog |
Sunday, December 22Hymn: “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” (ELW, No. 257, st. 5)For certain, Joseph was miserable as he fretted about what to do about Mary. Mary, too, must have been miserable, especially as she rode that donkey into Bethlehem at eight or nine months...
by Communications | Dec 21, 2019 | Blog |
Saturday, December 21Hymn: “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” (ELW, No. 257, st. 5)We may never know what Joseph was thinking when he decided to wed Mary. But clearly, Joseph was a Jew from the house of David. He would have known all the stories about a Messiah and would have...
by Communications | Dec 20, 2019 | Blog |
Friday, December 20Matthew 1:18–25Undoubtedly, Mary’s pregnancy was not easy on the fledgling relationship between her and Joseph. The social consequences for Mary would have been shame and ostracism; was he worried she was trying to save herself from disgrace? Joseph...
