Advent Journal Day VI: The Great Gift Giver

Christmas is a time of giving. Families give gifts to their loved ones, and children eagerly await Christmas morning to tear open the gifts they receive. The Lord is the ultimate Giver of many gifts. I was reading Acts the other day and a word jumped off the page at me—Gave.

And He gave him the covenant of circumcision; and so Abraham became the father of Isaac, and circumcised him on the eighth day; and Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob of the twelve patriarchs (Acts 7:8 NASB).

God is the Giver of many good gifts. James says this of Him:

Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow (1:17 NASB).

God gave circumcision as a gift to Abraham and his descendants who followed; the gift that was the sign of the covenant He made with him. Unlike the Mosaic covenant which was conditional, this was a grant covenant—Abraham did not have to perform for the gift—It was freely given by the Father.

God not only gave the covenant of circumcision, but He also gave the fulfillment of who that covenant promised—the Deliverer.

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life (Jn. 3:16 NASB).

The first covenant was the promise of the Savior of the world, and God gave that promise to Abraham then, and now to all of us because of faith in Jesus, the one in whom we place our hope.

And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to promise (Gal. 3:29 NASB).

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for (Heb. 11:1 NASB).

In this season, remember to hope in the Lord. He is the promise Giver, the gift Giver, the One who fulfills all that He promises. He Gave to demonstrate how much He Loves. There is no greater gift than the gift of Jesus Christ—it will never see its equal.

To read the entire Advent Journal click here: 

 Advent Journal: A Theology of Thanksgiving

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Psalms To See Me Through: Psalm 6—God Hears The Cry Of The Broken

For the choir director; with stringed instruments, upon an eight-string lyre. A Psalm of David.

“Lord, do not rebuke me in Your anger, Nor discipline me in Your wrath. Be gracious to me, Lord, for I am frail; Heal me, Lord, for my bones are horrified. And my soul is greatly horrified; But You, Lord—how long?” {vv. 1-3 NASB}.
When we come to Yahweh like David did, recognizing our sins and repenting before the Lord, Yahweh promises forgiveness. In the midst of our pit, the storm swirling around us as we cling to life in the bow of a sinking ship, it can feel like God is angry and has turned away. Sometimes, the circumstances and grief attempt to set up a stronghold in our mind that causes us to doubt God and leave us to wonder when His anger will be satiated and when He will come to our rescue. The circumstances we face are not to destroy but to strengthen us. We will persevere by the power of Yahweh.

“Return, Lord, rescue my soul; Save me because of Your mercy. For there is no mention of You in death; In Sheol, who will praise You?” {vv.4-5}.

My paraphrase of prayer, echoing David:

Come and rescue me, God, from this turmoil; from those that hate me; save me from those who wish for my demise and plot to destroy me. I know I am not perfect, but I endeavor to live right before you. Come and rescue me from those who will betray me, speak ill against me; those that taunt me. I cry myself to sleep at night and cannot find any comfort—I have cried every tear possible; I am all cried out. I wake with my eyes swollen, red, and tired. God don’t save me because of who I am, but because of who You are.

Have you ever prayed with such anguish? We all have. We can think of our enemies as the circumstances and trials we face. Sometimes we have endured pain and suffering for longer than we thought we could bear.

“I am weary with my sighing; Every night I make my bed swim, I flood my couch with my tears. My eye has wasted away with grief; It has grown old because of all my enemies” {vv. 6-7}.

David poured his heart out to God, and so can we. So should we. We all wrestle with despair like this at one time or another in our lives, and it is right for us to bring our pain to the Lord and pour out our hearts before Him.

“Leave me, all you who practice injustice, For the Lord has heard the sound of my weeping. The Lord has heard my pleading, The Lord receives my prayer. All my enemies will be put to shame and greatly horrified; They shall turn back, they will suddenly be put to shame” {vv. 8-10}.

I have cried unto God, and He has heard me. He hears the cry of the broken. He hears the cry of the broken. Toxic people will poison you. Circumstances will try you. They will drain the life from you. Pray and ask God to bless them, but it is okay to leave them at the foot of the cross and walk away from people or relationships. Soul ties are not easily detached. It is hard to break free from the familiar. God hears the cry of the broken; God hears the cry of the broken.

This Psalm was to be played with stringed instruments, upon an eight-string lyre. This indicates worship, and it is vital to our walk with God. The lyre is like a harp, and many musicians in the Tabernacle of David were said to have prophesied on the lyre. As we truly worship God, in Spirit and Truth, He will move in our lives. We should begin worshiping on bended knees with our Bible open before us.

David serves as our teacher here again to come to the Lord and repent, pour out our hearts to God, and pray in steadfast faith that He hears us and will rescue and deliver His people.

To read all the Psalms in this series, click here: Psalms To See Me Through