I love this song and this blog. It is an excerpt from my Bible study/ devotional book, The Witness of Our God: Relationship in Every Dimension. (See below)
Enjoy the backstory of this amazing hymn and several renditions of the song.
Then dig into the bible study that amplifies each line of the song with scripture. …
… Year after year, I have meditated in Tim Chester’s magnificent Advent devotional, The One True Light: Daily Readings for Advent from the Gospel of John. And every year, it is fresh and “as if for the first time.”
This year one thought has just “jumped off” the page … and has given me great JOY….
The connection of JOY with singing for week 3 of Advent makes me think of a meditation from our newly published book of meditations, Glory in Disguise: Seeing God in our Every Day (see FREE offer below). Grabbing hold of Him who is the fullness of JOY throughout our day is easier when we “wake up singing.”
Enjoy this meditation with us. And may you be blessed to see there is JOY in the midst of what may be your very hard circumstances when your Source is Jesus, our Emmanuel.
“Don’t be afraid!” he said.
“I bring you good news that will bring great JOY to all people.
The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem,
the city of David! …
Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others
—the armies of heaven—praising God and saying,
My Child...
Fear not...you are never alone for I am with you!
Fear not...you are never left out for you are one with Me !
Fear not...you are never condemned, but always accepted! I not only love you...I like you!
Fear not...you are always adequate with My adequacy...no matter how helpless and inadequate you feel!
Fear not...you are alive with my everlasting, indestructible life, no matter how dead you feel inside! I am your Life!
I AM in your "right here, right now," whether it be suffering in a hospital room or struggling over a wardrobe choice in your closet...and everything in between...I am with you!
Read MoreGrabbing hold of Him who is the fullness of PEACE has been key for me and many others who find ourselves in the midst of anxiety.
May you be blessed to see there is great PEACE in the midst of what may be your very hard circumstances when your Source is your Almighty God, Emmanuel, Prince of PEACE….
O Prince of Peace, this Christmas time and always …
Lord, make me an instrument of your PEACE:
where there is hatred, let me sow love; …
… The government will rest on his shoulders.
And he will be called:
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, PRINCE of PEACE.
His government and its PEACE will never end.
Oh how we long for PEACE — especially as our world is riddled with wars, violence, hatred, racism, suffering of all kinds. And hasn’t it always been so? This is nothing unusual in this fallen world.
Read More… The truths here have been intensely practical for my own life and the lives of many others with whom I’ve shared.
May you be blessed to see there is great HOPE in the midst of what may be your very hard circumstances when your Source is your Almighty God, Emmanuel (God With YOU!)
I’ve always loved Advent. Advent used to call to me, even as a child, that Someone Important was coming … God! Emmanuel, Jesus. And as far back as I can remember, I’ve always loved Jesus.
Read More“Together.” What a significant word.
“Together” was significant in the beginning years of our marriage. We were no longer two single young adults, making decisions on our own, doing our own thing. And together we started building a life and a career and a family and many other aspects of making it on this earth.
Read MoreTherefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him,
having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith,
just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude.
Colossians 2:6-7 NASB
Years ago, I taught writing to adult GED students. Every Wednesday, we would do an exercise together as a class to practice writing a five-paragraph essay. As the end of November approached, I chose the topic of Thanksgiving. I thought that in this age of “entitlement” it might be a double “win” for the students to count their blessings and practice their writing.
Read MorePrint copies available NOW from Barnes & Noble -- free shipping or pick-up at store.https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/book/1144292012...
Read More… "Was that YOU, Lord! Did I do OK?"
Then He immediately said to my heart (no doubt about it!),
"Well done! You're my girl!"
"YOU'RE MY GIRL!"
from the God of the Universe!
from my Abba Father "who is very fond of me!"
…
Great news, dear friends!
We hit the button…PUBLISH. So now Glory in Disguise is available in ebook form at many online outlets. Print book will be available in the next week or so.
Read MoreThe fall is my favorite season. The colors overwhelm my eyes as every tree and bush shouts, “Here I am! Look at me! You didn’t even notice me as an individual all summer long. But now! Look how I stand out from all the other foliage around me, even though my neighbors are just as striking. But pay attention to me! Now you can see the full glory of all that I am!”
But why does all that color exist? What is its purpose? What is the point of all this color? From whence comes its vibrance?
Read MoreGreater is He who is in you than he who is in the world.
1 John 4:4 NASB
… Predictably, we got to see the neighborhood again filled with ghosts and goblins, scarecrows and pumpkins, punctuating yards all around. .
Read More…Moses said to himself. “Why isn’t that bush burning up? I must go see it.” …God called to him from the middle of the bush, “Moses! Moses!” “Here I am!” Moses replied. … the Lord warned. “Take off your sandals, for you are standing on holy ground. Exodus 3:2-5 NLT
There is a “burning bush” in my daughter’s yard in Illinois. And it is ablaze with glory right now! So when three year old William and I came outside yesterday morning, we couldn’t help but notice the changes that seemed to happen overnight.
“It’s RED!”
“Yes, William, and it’s called a Burning Bush. You know what? God spoke to a man named Moses from a Burning Bush. It’s in the Bible.”
Read MoreI'm so thankful for the man that GOD chose to be my earthly father. I wish I had had more time to get to know him as a person. He died young ... just 60! But if he had lived longer, Conrad Renner would have been 100 years old on tomorrow, October 19, 2023.
Read MoreJanet Renner Loyd has been a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ most of her life. Her formal education includes a degree in education from the University of Arizona and also a degree in Bible & Theology from Moody Bible Institute. For more than thirty years, she has been involved in teaching and leading women’s Bible studies, retreats, and meetings…most notably Precept upon Precept and various studies that she has personally developed. Professionally, Jan recently retired from teaching language and writing to GED and adult ESOL students.
About her life, Jan says, “The most important thing about me is my relationship with my Father God through my Lord Jesus Christ. I am forever grateful to Him for His love, mercy, and grace to me and my family and friends...and the world.”
Jan has been happily married to John Loyd for more than forty years. They have two adult, married children and five lively young grandsons.
