Isaiah 61:1-3 + Luke 1:46-55 | God's Redemption in Christmas

May the message of redemption that we find in Jesus
be more than hopeful words to you this Christmas.

May you remember the mode of delivery
by which He brought this message,
coming not in power and fearsome majesty
but walking among His people as a peer.

Let this picture of Jesus as a Redeemer of men among men
be greater than words of nostalgia and warmth.

May you know the reality of redemption offered through Christ
as its eternal significance overshadows
the things of this life that are temporal and fleeting.

May you be shaped by the heart of Jesus our helper,
may you rejoice in the hope He brings,
and may you know the everlasting gladness
found in knowing the Healer of our souls.

May the Lord bless you and keep you.
May the Lord make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you.
May the Lord lift up His countenance to you and give you peace.

Luke 2:8-20 | God's Glory in Christmas

May you find joy in the glory of Christ this Advent season.

May the unique simplicity of this year’s Christmas celebrations
be an opportunity for you to revisit once again
the simplicity of God’s glory that we see
in the story of Jesus’ birth.

May the absence of grandiosity in the gatherings
this season typically brings
allow you to ponder the absence
of pageantry in the arrival of the One
to whom this season’s glory belongs.

May the wonder of God’s glorious declaration
to such an inglorious audience as the shepherds
fill you with gratitude as you remember
that although we certainly don’t deserve it,
the good news of Christ’s arrival is for you as well.

May the Lord bless you and keep you.
May the Lord make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you.
May the Lord lift up His countenance to you and give you peace

Luke 11:14-36 | Overcome Evil with Good

May God our Father, the source of all goodness, be your guide this week.

By His Spirit, may you be emboldened to do good to others,
overcoming evil—even the darkness in your own heart—with good.

May the light of Christ our King
overshadow the reign of evil in this world
as we His servants seek after His heart daily.

May His Kingdom come more and more into view
as we continually turn to Jesus, asking Him to transform us
so that through us His light would shine abundantly.

May our good Maker,
who will one day make all things new,
be seen in our midst in these days
making broken things right.

May the Lord bless you and keep you.
May the Lord make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you.
May the Lord lift up His countenance to you and give you peace.

Luke 11:1-13 | Patterned by Prayer

May our prayerful Savior, Jesus, set the pattern for your engagement with God.

May you know the freedom in following the Son’s leading
to address your Heavenly Father with familiarity
while always maintaining the matchless wonder
that always accompanies a glimpse of His holiness.

May your need for the Kingdom of God to come in your heart
lead you to walk each day in humility
as the King chooses to make His reign known through your life.

May you bring your daily needs before your Father with honesty and trust;
may your heart have a similar posture
when in repentance you accept His grace
and turn to offer such grace to your neighbors as well.

May you be ever aware of the temptations that hinder us so stealthily,
asking your Father for protection and help for when they are near.

May the promise of the Holy Spirit’s presence with you
be an everlasting comfort and guide for you
through every season of this life.

May the Lord bless you and keep you.
May the Lord make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you.
May the Lord lift up His countenance to you and bring you peace.

Luke 8:1-21 | The Fruit of Genuine Faith

May you know the goodness of our God this week,
receiving His words with a glad heart
and allowing Him to produce fruit in your life.

May you look to Christ’s leading,
following Him each day and supporting His cause
so that you would flourish in reflecting
His light into this world.

May you, having received the gift of the gospel,
pursue the things that Jesus desires
allowing the roots of your faith to grow deep,
for although those roots are hidden from the world,
your Father in heaven looks at such matters,
and the fruit that your faith produces will impact others
as He works through your life. 

In the freedom to choose between the one true God
and the many idols that so often lay claim to our attention,
may you seek the light of Christ,
that by it He may guide your life
and in it you may grow into the faith
that He is building in you.

May your relationship with Christ not be
an important thing among many,
but may it be the most important thing to you.

May the Lord bless you and keep you.
May the Lord make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you.
May the Lord lift up His countenance to you and give you peace.

Luke 7:18-35 | Being Kept in Doubt

May the Lord Almighty,
whose presence is constant and unwavering,
be a source of comfort and assurance to you in your isolation.

May your doubts and fears never silence your hope;
may you lay them down before the Lord,
going directly to Him who is sovereign over this world
and is keeping you today and always in His great love and protection.

May your eternal hope
of life in unhindered communion with our God
not be shaken by the doubts of today and the fears of tomorrow,
for you are being kept in Jesus for an age
that will outshine every darkness we endure in this one.

May you go to Christ with your questions and your hurt and your complaints,
and may He give you peace in trusting in Him.

May the Lord bless you and keep you.
May the Lord make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you.
May the Lord lift up His countenance to you and give you peace.

Luke 7:1-17 | The Things that Moved Jesus

May Jesus be more than an authority or prophet of good news in your life.

May the things that moved Jesus stir in your heart
a longing to become more like the heart of God.

As you are molded by His story,
may your life reflect His love
and may His words carry weight
in such a way that your faith in Him
would cause others to marvel.

May you be shaped also by this hope:
that the Lord’s heart is for those who are hurting
and he will one day wipe every tear from our eyes
when He also puts death to death.

May Jesus continue to show you
that He is infinitely greater
than we could ever hope or imagine.

May the Lord bless you and keep you.
May the Lord make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you.
May the Lord lift up His countenance to you and give you peace.

Luke 6:27-49 | Built on the Solid Foundation

May the Lord our God make us into a community that is built upon love, forgiveness, and obedience.

May Christ’s love for His enemies
be a template for us as we pursue Him,
so that when the world sees us
it would be changed as a result
of having come near to the everlasting love of God.

May our freedom from condemnation
create in us an eagerness to offer forgiveness to others.
In doing this, may the world change as a result
of having encountered the life-altering mercy of God.

May our lives be built upon the solid foundation of God’s Word,
so that with our lives shaped by our obedience to Him,
the world would yearn to be shaped
in the same obedience to our perfect and holy King.

May we be the church as the church is meant to be.

May the Lord bless you and keep you.
May the Lord make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you.
May the Lord lift up His countenance to you and give you peace.

Luke 5:33-6:11 | Awake to His Reign

May God your Creator
who clothes you in garments of salvation 
awaken within you a joy that endures
through every sorrow and hardship.

May the same Spirit that raised Christ from the grave
awaken a new-creation-hope within you
that transforms the way you see every season of this life.

May Jesus our Lord make His reign known to you
so that as you work and as you rest
and as you go about the business of your daily life,
you may see the ways the King is using you
to shape His Kingdom.

May Christ our Ruler shape your heart daily
removing patterns of judgement and pride,
and replacing them with grace and truth
and a Sabbath rest that allows you
to live out His call on your life with love.

May the Lord bless you and keep you.
May the Lord make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you.
May the Lord lift up His countenance to you and give you peace.

Luke 5:12-32 | Draw Near to the Great Physician

May the God who alone is able
to satisfy your deepest yearnings
move in your heart this week.

May you draw near to a Him with a tenacity
that matches the importance of His role
as the Ruler over your life.

As you pray boldly and seek after Him,
may you know the authority
of the One to whom you draw near,
repenting of the things that hold you back
and accepting the Spirit’s help for your daily walk.

May our great Physician speak
words of grace and truth to you this week,
diagnosing the issues within your heart
and making known your need for His grace
so that you may recognize the true depths
of the grace that He offers you.

May the faithfulness of the Lord
move you to place your faith in Him.

May the Lord bless you and keep you.
May the Lord make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you.
May the Lord lift up His countenance to you and give you peace.