Prayer:
God of hope, fill us with all joy and all peace as we
continue to trust in You so that our hope may overflow by the power of the Holy
Spirit. Amen.
Read
Romans 15: 4 – 13
Endurance
and Encouragement. Paul prays that the
Romans may be filled with endurance and encouragement so that they may have a
spirit of unity amongst themselves as they follow Christ. Wow.
Endurance and Encouragement. Two very positive words. These
are two words that we so desperately need in our Church and homes this day
too. The journey of being a Christian
is not a short easy journey. It is a
journey that takes endurance. It is a
journey that takes our whole life. When we are baptized and then confirmed, our Christian journey does not end with our
confirmation. Our Christian journey
continues all of our life. It is our
responsibility to continue growing in maturity so that we may have a spirit of
unity and encourage others as together we follow Christ.
Paul
continues on to remind the Romans (and us)
that with one voice we glorify God.
As we come together for worship,
we glorify God. Then Paul says
something that is a wonderful reminder for all of us….. accept one another just as Christ accepted
you in order to praise God. Yup, we must accept one another -- even the people that tick us off and annoy
us. We come together as one people to
worship God. It is through our
endurance and maturity as Christians that we encourage others to grow in
Christ.
Write
down three ways you will encourage others in their faith and worship during
this Advent season:
Prayer: O Come thou Lord of Might and send Your
endurance and encouragement upon us when our spirits fall and our bodies
weaken. We thank You Lord Jesus that
You accept us just as we are. During
this Advent season, remind us that we
are Your voice and Your arms so that we can encourage others in their faith and
worship. O Lord God Almighty, we wait for the birth of Your Son – the time
of the glorious impossible. But with You
all things are possible. Amen.
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