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We are coming down the homestretch on this series of 24 Advent devotionals on “Thanking Jesus.” My husband and I have welcomed hundreds of people into our home. Some have come for a meal, others have stayed for months. We have noticed, however, that of all our guests, those who are most grateful are often …

Can you believe that we only have one week left in this Advent series on “Thanking Jesus”? In Luke chapter 2, the gospel writer described two special people who were righteous and devout. Both hung out at the Temple on a regular basis and both prayed for the appearance of God’s Savior. Luke did not …

Day 17 Thirty plus years ago, I began preparing Advent devotionals each year for my family. Three decades seems like a long time! Seventy years seems even longer… After 70 years of captivity in Babylon, Ezra led the exiled Jews back to Jerusalem and, on that ruined site, started to rebuild the Temple. Even as …

Lots of new people have been joining us for this Advent series on “Thanking Jesus.” Some may already believe in Jesus, but others may not. Today we look at a man who had no faith in God – indeed, the man demanded that others worship him as a god. Nebuchadnezzar was the ruler of Babylon. …

Ready to thank God again? Here is the next in our Advent series on “Thanking Jesus.” When Daniel was a young man, he lived through some horrific events. His parents were likely killed when King Nebuchadnezzar attacked Jerusalem. Daniel watched his nation go into captivity. He saw the City of David destroyed, including the great …

Are you enjoying this series of Advent devotionals on “Thanking Jesus”? Which message has impacted you most? Isaiah wrote the longest book of prophecy in the Old Testament. Year after year, he passed along messages and visions he received from the Lord. Whenever I think of Isaiah, my dad comes to mind. Both of these …

We are over halfway through through this series of 24 Advent devotionals on “Thanking Jesus.” Thanks for joining us on the journey. Hezekiah was a godly king of Judah. One of his first acts as ruler was to reopen the Temple of the Lord which had been neglected for over a decade. He repaired the …

Advent is quickly passing and here we are on Day 12, halfway through our series on “Thanking Jesus.” Most of us remember the story of Jonah and the whale. This prophet is a melancholic character who seems borderline depressed and even wishes he were dead three out of the four chapters in the book that …

Here we are again for day 11 in our Advent series on “Thanking Jesus.” In the 1920’s, my grandfather had a severe case of tuberculosis. His doctor sent him away from his family and home in Massachusetts across the country to a sanatorium in southern California. He knew no one there. There was no known …

Welcome back to this on-going series of Advent devotionals on the theme of “Thanking Jesus.” Solomon was the wisest ruler of all Israel. He accomplished amazing feats that expanded his nation’s borders and made him wealthy beyond all imagination. One of his greatest accomplishments was to build a Temple to the Lord. God had promised …