Luke 2:4-5Since Joseph belonged to David’s house and family line, he went up from the city of Nazareth in Galilee to David’s city, called Bethlehem, in Judea. He went to be enrolled together with Mary, who was promised to him in marriage and who was pregnant.
When I first read the theme for this year’s Advent devotional book a song started looping in my head. Trisha Yearwood, one of my favorite artists, released The Sweetest Gift, a Christmas album, in 1994, and it includes the song “Take a Walk through Bethlehem.” I love the song in its entirety, but the chorus and part of one verse particularly echo in my brain as I think about the walk to Bethlehem.
Take a walk through Bethlehem
Come and kneel before the lamb
Good news for every man
Walk through Bethlehem
…
‘Cause every heart longs for more than tinsel
Something more than just a holiday
Come and celebrate the baby King
Let’s take a walk
Through our walking we also need to stop and kneel to pray – in praise, confession, supplication and thanksgiving. It’s so easy to become swept up in the manufactured magic of the broader holiday season and miss, forget or downplay the core message of God’s great love for us expressed through the birth of His son.
Prayer: Dear God, we praise you for all you have done and are doing for us. We ask you to lead us on this journey through Advent. Show us again and anew the depth of your love for us and your whole creation. Equip us to share that love in new and exciting ways as we feed people spiritually and physically. Amen.
Mari Walker