In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration when Quirinius was governor of Syria. And all went to be registered, each to his own town. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. Luke
2:1-5
This morning, my focus is DesiringGod.com's Solid Joys daily devotion, where John Piper seeks for believers to prepare our hearts for Christmas. Today's Solid Joys daily devotion marks day 4 of Advent, and today John Piper looks at how God's providence over all of the universe impacts all of us, regardless of how insignificant and far away from God we may feel. The bottom line from Piper is that God is a big God - orchestrating big things (i.e. creation of the world, putting in place earthly authorities, etc.) but He is also involved in every detail of every life - all of humanity (see Psalm 139:13-16). Piper writes that God "is a big God for little people." Given we are in the Advent season, Piper refers us to Luke 2 where we see how Joseph and Mary go from Nazareth (where the baby Jesus was born) to Bethlehem - following Caesar Augustus' decree for a census. We are encouraged to see how this travel was orchestrated by God to fulfill prophecy from Micah 5:2. Piper writes: "[h]ave you ever thought what an amazing thing it is that God ordained beforehand that the Messiah be born in Bethlehem...; and that he so ordained things that when the time came, the Messiah’s mother and legal father were living not in Bethlehem but in Nazareth; and that in order to fulfill his word and bring two unheard-of, insignificant, little people to Bethlehem that first Christmas, God put it in the heart of Caesar Augustus that all the Roman world should be enrolled each in his own town? A decree for the entire world in order to move two people seventy miles!" Piper then moves towards connecting God's providence to all believers. He does not want us to miss how any adversity in our lives is not because God's hand "is shortened" towards us. Piper uses Proverbs 21:1 as he shares that "[i]t is not our prosperity or our fame but our holiness that he seeks with all his heart." God is always turning His will "for his saving and sanctifying and eternal purposes among his people." Piper ends today's devotion by exhorting us to respond to rejoice in because God directs all of the details in the universe, big and small, so that "we, the children, might be conformed to the image of his Son, Jesus Christ — and then enter his eternal glory."
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My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are a big God, for me and for all of humanity - thank You Jesus for Your providence in my life. I am not deserving of how Your hand works in my life. My sin is great and it is daily. Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You. Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me. Help me grow in my faith. Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength. Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo. Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior. Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin. Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others. Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.
