Lauren Sparks

The Sparks Notes

Praying Glory to God in the Highest #4

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gloryToday we are praying Glory to God in the highest with extra gusto.  The time of Jesus’ arrival is near!  But tomorrow is National Christmas Movie Marathon Day.  My favorite is Elf, and I love White Christmas and Holiday Inn (although that one is pretty problematic).  And I’ll watch almost any of the Hallmark Christmas movies.  I know the formula and that there will be a very chaste kiss in the last 5 minutes, but I don’t care about the predictability.  I find comfort AND joy in them.

 

In my opinion, there is only one better way to spend a day than with Christmas movies- in prayer.

 

Christmas is only 3 days away.  My personal prayer for you is that you are able to easily wrap up anything still hanging over your head so you can focus on Him.

“For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.”  Luke 2:11 KJV

 

I don’t usually prefer the King James Version, but the familiarity of this verse in these exact words makes me feel warm and fuzzy.  I can almost hear Linus reciting it in A Charlie Brown Christmas right now.  (Oh, that’s a good one to add to the marathon!)  And as Linus wished to focus on the true meaning of Christmas, let’s ask for help to turn our attention to the same person.

 

 

 

Let’s flood this space with praise this week, for Christmas is finally here.

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Praying for you in this, and Merry Christmas!

Lauren

Living Between Two Advents

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adventAdvent – the arrival of a notable person, thing or event.  In its original language, advent means “to come”.  So advent is about waiting.  Today, we buy advent calendars to denote the days until Christmas.  Over two thousand years ago, the Jewish people waited for the Messiah.  And today, we wait for Him again.

 

Jesus came, was born as a baby in order to die in our place – a substitutionary death to pay for our sins.  This is the “coming” that we celebrate at Christmas time.

Much of the world dedicates an entire month to advent – whether they understand why or not.  And it is a joyous celebration of an amazing gift.  But there is an advent still to come.

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By coming to earth and following God’s plan, Jesus made a way for us to be forgiven and have relationship with God.  But He has not yet taken his rightful place as ruler of this world.  We live in the time between the rejection of the king and His second coming.  We as believers wait.

 

There is tension in this waiting.  We celebrate His coming.  We know the joy of forgiveness and the hope of our future with Him forever.  And yet we feel the pain of the havoc rained down on us by the prince of this world.  That’s why we can thank God for sending our Savior into the world and also ask Him to come back quickly for His people.

 

As believers, we hold both joy and pain.  Contentment and longing.  But we aren’t left to deal with it alone.

 

Jesus Came

The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. We observed his glory, the glory as the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.  John 1:14 

 

Jesus Left the Holy Spirit for Us

 

These things I have spoken to you while being present with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.  John 14:25-26 

 

In This Time We Are

 

Waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ,  Titus 2:13

Jesus Will Come Again

 

So Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin [He already did this with His death on the cross] but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.  Hebrews 9:28

 

May we praise God this Christmas for what He has done, His presence here with us now, and all that He promises will come.

 

And now for this week’s featured post from the link up!

 

 

Although it’s not a Christmassy post, the topic is timely nonetheless.  Does Tolerance Always = Loving Others? by Donna Reidland should be required reading for every believer.  The deceiver has been working overtime in this area and we need to be reminded of the truth of God’s Word.  It will always be the most loving thing.

1. Share 1 or 2 of your most recent CHRISTIAN LIVING posts. (No DIY, crafts, recipes, or inappropriate articles.) All links are randomly sorted.

2. Comment on 1 or 2 other links. Grace & Truth linkup encourages community.

3. Every host features one entry from the previous week. To be featured, include this button or link back here on your post (mandatory to be featured, but not to participate).

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We encourage you to follow our hosts on their blogs or social media.

MAREE DEE – Embracing the Unexpected
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LISA BURGESS – Lisa notes
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TAMMY KENNINGTON – Restoring hope. Pursuing peace.
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