Lectionary readings: Isaiah 7: 10-16, Psalm 80:1-7, Romans 1: 1-7, and Matthew 1: 18-2.
Isaiah is most well known for his prediction of the coming of the Messiah, who would redeem his people from their sins. To him God is salvation. He is the prophet of judgement and hope. Psalm 80: 1-7 expresses our longing for God’s face to turn towards us rather than away and to shine upon us with the light of grace. Matthew is stressing to his Jewish audience that Jesus is the heir of David, rightful King of the Jews.
But the reading of Romans touched my story. My daughter said to tell a story in writing the devotionals for Christmas. It reminded me of my medical plights over the last year or two .There was the pandemic of COVID in which I felt so alone: not being with my family except to accept my groceries, eating with the open windows, not sitting at the table with meals brought to my house on my birthday. Not feeling well with serious tests scheduled to get answers, all alone, I thought! I am sure that many of you felt the same way. It was extremely difficult for me. Only seeing my family and friends in Zoom on my computer was something very foreign to me.
Then came the more serious medical problems after the COVID pandemic subsided. Being told that you need by-pass surgery. Facing the possibility of death. I remember telling my daughter that I was ok with that. I had recently surveyed my life. But had I? In reading the scripture of Romans in preparation to write this devotional, I found a statement that was the answer for me. “By confessing with our mouths that Jesus Christ is Lord and by believing this in our hearts, we are saved—nothing more, nothing less. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you are confessed and saved.”
The past was my nemesis. I had to forgive. With that act, I felt calmness in my soul. Romans 10 helped me understand that the Lord was forgiving me all along, only I had not been as forgiving as He was.
Carol Brown
But the reading of Romans touched my story. My daughter said to tell a story in writing the devotionals for Christmas. It reminded me of my medical plights over the last year or two .There was the pandemic of COVID in which I felt so alone: not being with my family except to accept my groceries, eating with the open windows, not sitting at the table with meals brought to my house on my birthday. Not feeling well with serious tests scheduled to get answers, all alone, I thought! I am sure that many of you felt the same way. It was extremely difficult for me. Only seeing my family and friends in Zoom on my computer was something very foreign to me.
Then came the more serious medical problems after the COVID pandemic subsided. Being told that you need by-pass surgery. Facing the possibility of death. I remember telling my daughter that I was ok with that. I had recently surveyed my life. But had I? In reading the scripture of Romans in preparation to write this devotional, I found a statement that was the answer for me. “By confessing with our mouths that Jesus Christ is Lord and by believing this in our hearts, we are saved—nothing more, nothing less. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you are confessed and saved.”
The past was my nemesis. I had to forgive. With that act, I felt calmness in my soul. Romans 10 helped me understand that the Lord was forgiving me all along, only I had not been as forgiving as He was.
Carol Brown
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