2020 ADVENT BCC HOPE
Sunday, November 29, 2020 First Sunday in Advent: HOPE
Luke 1:37
37 For nothing will be impossible with God. NRSV Hope begins with understanding our source of promises, provision, protection, and blessings. It is our Almighty God who has freely given us access to unbelievable hope. By our status as the crown jewel of creation, we have been given all we need to have abundant life. To make sure we knew that nothing with our God would be impossible, God sent God’s only Son to clearly reveal the source to each of us.
There are no exclusionary clauses, no qualifying verbiage, and no only if you believe wording to determine what might impede God because Nothing is just that nothing. Therefore, in the midst of the state of our lives, and our world, not based on history nor even the future will never change the fact that there are no impossibilities with God, so we can have hope.
Song: Nothing is Impossible – https://youtu.be/nuBA5YSsWUI
Prayer: Oh Lord thank you for hope. Help me Lord to ever look to you when I feel that hope is slipping away by the circumstances that surround me. As I prepare for the celebration of your Son let me look forward with hope And strive to be the light that points other to the same hope. Amen.
Monday, November 30, 2020 ADVENT HOPE
Hebrews 6:17-18
17 In the same way, when God wanted to confirm His promise as true and unchangeable, He swore an oath to the heirs of that promise.
18 So God has given us two unchanging things: His promise and His oath. These prove that it is impossible for God to lie. As a result, we who come to God for refuge might be encouraged to seize that hope that is set before us. The Voice
There is hope available to each of us. What is so exciting is our Awesome and Amazing God wanted it to be so clear that hoping in God is not like pitching pennies into a wishing well that God swore by God self that the promise and oath of God are not changeable
Therefore, embrace the hope and move forward in confidence. Embrace the hope and stand up against any and all injustice. Embrace hope and choose love at all times. Hope anchored in our God will never be a lie. God’s only Son came to remind us that Hope is alive and well in our one true and living God.
Song: Hope is Built on Nothing Else aka Solid Rock – African American Heritage Hymnal, 2001
Prayer: We praise you Lord for the amazing gift of Hope. Because of hope I can stand in any storm. Because of hope even when I am disappointed with myself Lord, I can find refuge and hope in you.Lord strengthen my resolve to be ever hopeful walking by faith and not by sight or sound. Amen.
Tuesday, December 1, 2020 ADVENT HOPE. WORLD AIDS DAY
Hebrews 11:1
1 Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. NIV
Only a perfect God would give a gift of Hope so that we can live in confidence and assurance. We are bombarded daily with images, memes, speeches and statistics that are meant to undermine our confidence, assurance and hope.
Hallelujah to the Lamb of God that we have been freed from doubt by the living presence of our Savior. We do not have to succumb to negative influence. We do not have to restrict our possibilities to our own finite understanding. Therefore, we celebrate God’s Son as our beacon of light at all times. So go ahead exercise your hope.
Song: My Hope – Jonathan Nelson
Prayer: My Lord you have not left me without assurance and confidence. I can have hope at all times. My Lord I do not have to be afraid because of the hope you freely give to me. Help me remember your hope in my dark places of stress, anxiety, disappointment, and depression. Remind me to keep my eyes on Jesus at all times the source of Hope. Amen
Wednesday, December 2, 2020 ADVENT HOPE
Romans 4:17-18
17 as it is written, “I have made you the father of many nations”)—in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist.
18 Hoping against hope, he believed that he would become “the father of many nations,” according to what was said, “So numerous shall your descendants be.” NRSV
We have phenomenal hope. We must never refuse to take the leap into what seems impossible. A young hand maiden did not blink at the hope presented to her to be the mother of God’s only Son. Abraham did not blink at the dead part of his body in order to be known as the Father of many nations.
The Word of God can manifest in our lives. Our hopes and dreams along with the visions can actually happen when we we hope against hope. When we believe what we cannot even fathom or imagine.
The celebration this season is meant to revise our youthful wide-eyed hopes and dreams that are often stymied by the circumstances we encounter. Therefore let us seize the opportunity to activate the Hope in our lives and the lives of others.
Song: Called to Be – Johnathan Nelson
Prayer: Hallelujah Lord, you are worthy of praise, worship, and all honor. Thank you for the miraculous gift of Hope. Thank you for presenting us with new possibilities that surpass what we think will be possible. Lord help us to share our hope, confidence, and assurance with others as we point them back to you. Amen.
Thursday, December 3, 2020 ADVENT BCC HOPE
Isaiah 40:31
31 but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. NIV
There are lots of conflicts swilling around us at this time. Unemployment, climate change, health inequity, racial injustice, wars and rumors of war, COVID and hunger. No different than centuries past when even Jacob/Israel complained that God was not paying attention to the suffering of God’s people. Our challenges have different names but still challenges.
Yet in the midst of our difficulties and trauma we can anticipate a change if we have Hope. We can expect to soar to higher heights. We can rise above our circumstances. In fact, the promise is strength renewal when we have hope in the Lord. The promise extends our abilities to overcome even weary. In this season of Advent it is time to Rekindle Hope In our lives and the life of our community, country, and the world. Our God gives us hope to keep us fueled for the journey. Let us seek to rise together.
Song: Eagle’s Wings – Beverly Griffin Keller – https://youtu.be/rzqn1kf_YPc
Prayer: Gracious Lord, we are thankful for hope that renews and restores. Thank you Lord that though we grumble and complain we still can have access to hope. Lord please allow our hope in you to ignite the hope in all those around us: family, friends, colleagues, and strangers for your glory and our restoration. Amen.
Friday, December 4, 2020 ADVENT BCC HOPE
Hebrews 10:23
23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. NIV
There always seem to be so many choices and roads to take. With every dilemma, issue or decision we have to make in a daily bases it is often easy to find ourselves in a quandary. Sometimes rather than take our time, we can rush to making decisions and find ourselves abruptly changing lanes.
It is exactly at that this time that we need to rely on our unswerving hope in God. Can we filter our comments, decisions through the faithful lens of our God? Is it possible to hold onto the Word of God, pray to our Lord, and respond as God would have us to respond.? The answer is a resounding yes, but we must be totally committed to our non deviating hope in God. In other words we must believe and trust what God says is true and possible are just that. Elizabeth did, and John the Baptist was the forerunner for Jesus. Mary did and she was the mother of Jesus. Joseph did and he honored his commitment to Mary and cared for our Savior.
Song: Hold to God’s Unchanging Hand – African American Heritage Hymnal, 2001
Prayer: Lord, please help us maintain our unswerving hope in you so that we do not deviate from your plan or disregard your commands. Forgive us when we miss the mark. We desire to glorify you in all that we do. Amen.
Saturday, December 5, 2020 ADVENT BCC HOPE
Hebrews 6:19
19 This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. It leads us through the curtain into God’s inner sanctuary. NLT
19 That hope is real and true, an anchor to steady our restless souls, a hope that leads us back behind the curtain to where God is. THE VOICE
We are familiar with the concept of an anchor. Large ships drop anchor in ports of call or specific locations to help prevent movement and straying away from that particular area.
Our hope in our God serves as that Anchor for each of us. The Hope keeps us in very close proximity of Our Awesome and Amazing God. In my vision, we are anchored right at the very bosom or heart of God. Able to be comforted by God’s heart beat much like a baby in the womb of its mother. We are also able to sense when we are moving a little too far away or getting blown into another direction.
It is this anchoring hope that will keep us on track when we are faced with evil, hatred, and injustice. It is this anchor of hope that will allow us to stand boldly against oppression, captivity, blindness to injustice, and the deafness of others who refuse to hear the cries of the poor, downtrodden, and mistreated of God’s creation.
Let us embody this hope in our God so that we never find ourselves to far away from the heart of God, confident, assured, and steadfast in hope in every situation.
Song: My Soul is Anchored in The Lord – Doug Miller
Prayer: My God, My God to be assured of hope and to have that hope serve as an anchor in choppy times is an incredible gift. Lord help me cling to my hope no matter what surrounds me. Show me how to live a hopeful, nothing impossible life. And Lord, allow the glory Of my victories in hope to continue to flow to you. Amen.