Christmas Devotionals from Worship Together
To kick off Advent Season, we wanted to share Christmas Devotionals from Worship Together centered on the themes of hope, love, joy and peace. We hope they serve you and your teams well this Christmas season!
Day 1 - HOPE
Imagine a gift you’ve wanted for a really long time.
How does it make you feel to have to wait to receive it? Imagine hearing someone promise you the gift for years and years, but not telling you when the gift would come. Would you get tired of waiting? Would you give up hope?
God’s people were given a promise of a Messiah. The Messiah was the person God would send to rescue Israel once and for all. All throughout the Old Testament, God gave His people hope through signs that pointed to One who would save them. God even sent prophets like Isaiah and Micah to tell of the arrival of the Messiah. But God’s people had to wait hundreds of years before the time was right for the promise to be fulfilled. Many of God’s people were tired of waiting. Some gave up hope. But God doesn’t do things in the timeframe that people expect. God does things when the timing is right. On a night in Bethlehem, on that very first Christmas, the time was right.
God chose to send the Hope of the Word—His Son, Jesus at exactly the right time to save the world. So, you can rejoice in knowing that God chose to give Israel their gift at just the right time.
But the gift of Jesus is not just for the nation of Israel, it is for every person who believes in Jesus as Lord and Savior and chooses to follow Him daily. As you prepare for the season of Christmas during Advent, as yourself, “Have I accepted the free gift of Jesus?” If not, don’t let the most important decision you could ever make pass you by. There’s no better time than right now to begin trusting in Jesus. When you do, Christmas becomes so much more than gifts and happy feelings. It becomes all about God’s gift to humanity. His name is Jesus—the Son of God, given for us, to save us and give us eternal life.
He is the greatest gift you could ever receive.
Day 2 - PEACE
If you’ve ever been shopping the week before Christmas, you know it can be chaotic. Crowds and lines, deals and desperation—shopping can feel like anything but peaceful.
We have rules, laws, and police officers to help keep the peace when things get a little out of control. Keeping the peace is important, but there something even more important that we, as Christians, are called to do. Instead of peacekeepers, we are to be peacemakers.
In Matthew 5:9 of the Beatitudes, Jesus teaches that:
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.”
Jesus calls out anyone who tries to cause trouble, make a mess of things, or oppose the things of God. But He also calls out anyone who chooses not to live a life of peace themselves. For instance, Jesus wants you to choose peace in your own heart toward God and others. Choose peace as you interact with people in your home or community.
And the hardest of all: choose peace in your thoughts, words, and actions.
The word “peacemaker” in Matthew 5:9 means “those who love peace or a peaceable person.” Meaning, blessed are those who love being peaceful themselves and, also, love making sure they are helping to make things peaceful around them. But how can you be a peacemaker? Peacemakers are quick to forgive, slow to be angry, and choose to do what is right in the moment. Peacemakers see others as God’s creation and live with respect and love for those around them.
Peacemakers are a tough thing to be!
If we’re honest, everyone could improve their efforts as a peacemaker in the world. But Jesus desires peace from us because He is the very image of peace Himself. In fact, the prophet Isaiah called Jesus the Prince of Peace.
So, peace is incredibly important to God and the Holy Spirit is the ambassador of peace to His people.
If you call yourself Christian, you have already committed to being a peacemaker in your life because the Spirit of God lives inside of you. But that doesn’t mean the Christian life will be easy, or peaceful. It takes a lot of sacrifice and effort.
The good news is, being a peacemaker is always worth it.
Choose to be a peacemaker in every part of your life, not just a peacekeeper when something goes wrong and needs a quick fix. When you do, you will be blessed as a child of God and be used in amazing ways to grow the kingdom where Jesus is already crowned the Prince of Peace.
Day 3 - JOY
In our crazy, busy world, it is often so hard to stop and realize the amazing joy we have in Jesus.
Joy is a word we use so much in church that it can sometimes lose its impact. Joy simply means to have intense feeling of happiness or delight in something. When you think about joy, what first comes to mind?
Maybe excitement about receiving a new gift. Maybe happiness when you spend time with someone you love. Maybe comfort when you are feeling lost or alone and are joined by a friend or family member. Joy is all these things and more! Jesus came to bring us the fullness of joy when we believe in Him. But joy also ushered in His birth. The birth of Jesus caused all of heaven and earth to sing with abundant joy! The angels appeared and shouted praise to God and the stars erupted with explosions of light announcing His arrival.
It’s hard to imagine visible joy like the shepherds experienced on that night in Bethlehem. Can you imagine seeing all those angels and stars bursting with joy in the sky?
For Christians, our joy is rooted in our delight in the story of Jesus and the triumph of what He did for us. And it all begins with the amazing Christmas story about a baby in a manger. Just like heaven and earth were filled with joy the night Jesus was born, we can be filled with joy too. Jesus is that New Gift we can get excited about. Jesus is the One who loves you and longs to spend time with you. Jesus is the Comforter who came to rescue you when you were lost and alone. So, you can join heaven and nature, singing JOY!
Pray, thanking Jesus that He came to bring you joy and worship Him with your whole heart, not just at Christmas but, all year long!
Day 4 - LOVE
Have you ever felt like God’s love was far away? Maybe you’ve prayed to God, but heard nothing. That silence can make you feel alone and ashamed all rolled into one empty feeling.
But silence is not the same thing as distance.
Do not think for one moment that God does not hear your prayers. Did you know that for 400 years before Jesus arrived on the scene, God’s people heard nothing from God? God was silent. No prophets, no miracles, not word from the Lord at all—just deafening silence. Do you think God left them? Do you think God’s people were discouraged or began to give up on God’s faithfulness?
Perhaps they thought all hope was lost.
But then, in the most unexpected way, in the most unlikely place and time, the answer to all their prayers, questions, fears, and hopelessness appeared. In a little town called Bethlehem, the glory of Christmas was born—Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world. In that single act of love, everything became clear. God did hear their prayers. God was not far from His people.
Do you feel like God can’t hear you?
If so, remember that He works in His timing, not yours. When Jesus was born in Bethlehem, He came exactly when He needed to. All of the silence of heaven was not an abandonment from God, but a preparation for God’s greatest gift of love—our Emmanuel, God with us. So, when you have times where you think God is silent, remember the promise of Christmas and thank God for the promise of the miracle to come.
God is always with you and, when you invite Him into your life, He we will never leave or forsake you.
At Christmas, and all throughout the year, worship the One who came to break the silence in your heart and, with all glory and power, forever silence the enemy’s hold on you. That’s the greatest kind of love there is.