Be motivated by genuine love for others (1Jn 3:20). #ServeOutOfLove
MORNING WATCH NOTES:
Guilt, condemnation, are not virtues of the Christian faith. This is NOT WHY Jesus came. Conviction, on the other hand, is a tool of the Holy Spirit to get our attention.
Perhaps we are “feeling“ guilt over not having done something right or enough in our love for others. God is greater than those feelings.
Perhaps we did something, but our motivation was off the mark (we were self-serving, seeking attention). Conviction, will notify us of our need to confess. God is then faithful to forgive and restore (1Jn 1:9). This IS WHY Jesus came. Lord, may we serve from a heart of genuine love and not duty.
Exercise wisdom and humility in relationships (2Ki 24:12–16; Isa 39:1–7). #ActionsEqualConsequences #ThinkFirst
MORNING WATCH NOTES:
Two prophecies are in play in these passages concerning the captivity of Jerusalem by Babylon. One is found in Isaiah 39:1–7. Jehoiachin’s great great great grandfather, King Hezakiah, had revealed all his treasures to the then prince of Babylon, 100 years earlier. The prophet Isaiah warned Hezekiah not to trust Babylon – “One day she would rise against Jerusalem and strip her of all her wealth and take captive all her sons“.
Hezekiah was one of Israel’s more faithful kings. But his pride in that moment with the prince of Babylon indirectly contributed to the Babylonian rise to power 100 years later. Our actions have long-term consequences. Lord, give me wisdom and humility throughout my days that I might be a blessing to my friends and family and not a curse.
9Behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was. 10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. 11 And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh” – Mat 2:9-11 (NKJV)
Plenty of places light a star atop their tree for the holidays. This is Alaska, and Anchorage does it a little bigger. The holiday tree lighting takes place in Town Square on the day after Thanksgiving, but the star everyone looks for is 14 miles away. You can’t miss it. The star is on the side of a mountain and stretches 300 feet across the slopes of the Chugach.
U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman James Richardson
The star comes on every year in late November right about the day of Anchorage’s own tree lighting. Its 350 bulbs stay lighted [from late November] until the final musher [dog sled races] are finished. This is a widely observed tradition for many Alaskans when it comes to decorating for the holidays. [The star is also lit on September 11.] The lights that form the star are maintained by work crews of the Joint Air Force Base Elmendorf Richardson, which controls Mount Gordon Lyon and the land surrounding the star.
The tradition began in 1958 when an Army captain at the nearby missile site placed a modest, 15-foot wide star atop the guardhouse for Christmas. The missile site was decommissioned in the late 1970s. The star however, has been redesigned, relocated and enlarged through the years. Once just a single point of light in the mountains, the outline of the star near Arctic Valley is now clearly visible from downtown Anchorage, almost 14 miles away.
[In an article attributed to Staff Sgt. Mike Campbell, 477th Fighter Group, Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, it was noted in the ‘Anchorage Daily News’,that U.S. Army Captain, Douglas Evert, Commander of B Battery, Fourth Missile Battalion, 43rd Artillery, had his men construct the star at the end of the Cold War. It originally rested on the roof of the gatehouse of Site Summit, the location of the Nike Hercules missile battery.]
The five-pointed star is a beacon all winter long in Anchorage, one of the brightest of many Anchorage winter traditions. [Some say it can be seen from Google Earth.]
“When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy“
One final lesson learned from Isaiah’s Shebna/Eliakim prophecy. The office of Prophet often used real life situations to mimic future events (note Hosea and Gomer, Jeremiah and the Potter). God will always reveal to us what he expects and what will happen if we obey or not. The point? God honors his word. He keeps his promises.
God has been clear about man’s sin and the Messiah. He would come [has come] to take away all the sin of the world. Those who accept God‘s forgiveness will receive eternal life. Those who do not, choose for themselves eternal death and hell. The prophets have all spoken. Jesus, the Messiah, son of God, has come. He paid the price for sin on the cross. Yes, “the Lord, has spoken.”
Today if you hear God’s voice do not ignore him (Hebrews 3:15). Lord, I believe what you say is truth.
…that your baby boy will give sight to a blind man? Mary did you know that your baby boy will calm a storm with his hand?
Did you know that your baby boy has walked where angels trod? When you kiss your little baby, YOU KISS THE FACE OF GOD…
[Child of God, do you know that you too, “kiss the face of God?” Every time you feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, are kind to a stranger, clothe the naked, care for the sick and visit the prisoner, you too KISS THE FACE OF GOD – Because when you do these things with the last, the least, the lost and the lonely, you are doing it unto the Man-child, Jesus – Mat 25:40]
The Prayer Sentry 