Matthew 1:22-23 (NIVUK)
22 All this took place to fulfil what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23 ‘The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel’ (which means ‘God with us’).
Advent is a season for preparing to receive Jesus, Immanuel, God-with-us, thinking of both his nativity and his physical return to come. As an adult Christmas seems to come around quickly each year, but as a child December took forever! It’s a season when there always seems to be a lot to do, and not just because I’m a minister. However long it seems to take to come around, and however much we prepare for it, this pales compared to God himself. As Matthew reminds us here, God planned and prepared for this special day for far longer than we might ever do. We might see it as important, but so much more so God himself, as in his Son he came to earth so that we could come to know him once more.
Take a moment to prepare and commit yourself to serving God, reminding yourself how much attention he has dedicated to serving us.
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