During the time of advent we are going to be using a devotional written by young adults from the Baltimore Washington Conference of the United Methodist Church.
If you would like to download the whole devotional you can visit here
Sunday, December 22
Fourth Sunday of Advent
Cheryl Cook
BWC Director of Young Adult Ministries
Focus: It’s difficult to be different
Matthew 1: 18-25
Joseph was a righteous and godly man. When he found out that his fiancée Mary was pregnant, and knowing
that the child was not his, one can assume that he was upset, disappointed and heartbroken.
And yet, Joseph did not act in a spiteful or vindictive way. He did not shame Mary. Scripture says that he “…
had in mind to divorce her quietly.” Despite the hurt he felt, Joseph did not want Mary to endure the potential
physical pain of being stoned (a common punishment for adultery) or bring shame and disgrace upon her and
her family. Before he was able to quietly divorce her though, God intervened through a dream and confirmed
that Mary was pregnant through the Holy Spirit and that Joseph should not be afraid to keep Mary as his wife.
And that is exactly what Joseph did.
Can you imagine the reaction from family, friends, and neighbors? How uncomfortable it must have been for
him to continue to be in a relationship with a woman who was not carrying his own child. One can only imagine
that friends and neighbors did not understand why he would continue to stand by Mary’s side and care for her
and this unborn child. Imagine what that would look like today…people whispering and talking behind your
back, judgmental stares from across the aisle in church, and friends who once regularly visited and shared meals
would suddenly be “too busy” to spend time together.
Despite his hurt feelings and the discomfort of being “different” than his friends and neighbors, Joseph
remained true to Mary and to God. As Christians, we should look different and will feel uncomfortable at times
in a world that rejects God and rejoices in sin.
Following Jesus means that we must release ourselves from what the world thinks of us and get comfortable
with being different. It’s difficult to be different, but Jesus calls us to follow him and not the ways of the world.
In this season of Advent, I pray that we can all follow the example of Joseph: to step out of ourselves in faith
and allow ourselves to confidently be different.
Monday December 23: Read Psalm 5
Let’s try and clean up our understanding of what joy is. What is the relationship between joy and righteousness? What about joy and where we take refuge? How does this psalm influence your understanding of what joy is and where joy comes from?
Tuesday December 24: Read Isaiah 35
This chapter was written to the Israelites while they were in captivity in Babylon. With that in mind, what does it have to teach us about the nature of joy? What exactly is joy? Where does joy come from?
Wednesday December 25: Read Isaiah 51
Often we confuse the idea of Joy and happiness. Joy is working to what God has in store for us and there is a contentment in joy. Happiness may be better thought of as chasing the American dream and but the feeling is fleeting. Do you think that is true? Why or why not? What does this passage have to say in regards to that?
Thursday December 26: Read Luke 2
In this passage, the angels tell the shepherds that the message they have is good news and that it will “cause great joy for all the people.” How is the birth of Jesus the cause of great joy for all of the people? Would you say that Jesus truly is the source of your joy? Explain. What are some other things that you look to as the source of your joy?
Friday December 27: Read 2 Corinthians 8
According to this passage, how is joy connected to generosity? How can joy, poverty and generosity all co-exist? How does this challenge some of the common misconceptions we have about joy? Think of a time when you experienced the joy of giving.
Saturday December 28: Read Luke 12:22-34
What is the relationship between our joy and our picture of God? How can a picture of a stingy or tightfisted God lead to a lack of joy? How can a picture of a generous God, like the one that Jesus paints in Luke 12, lead to an abundance of joy? How does all of this relate in our generosity toward others? Spend some time in prayer reflecting on the truth that God looks like Jesus.