With steady fingers, every last gift was carefully wrapped with bright bows gracing the top of each box. Laid beneath the sparkly tree, they are arranged just so with the most extravagant gift hidden at the back to be opened last. Stockings are stuffed nearly overflowing the top, and the preparations for a feast already put into motion. A flurry of activity awaits pregnant with the anticipation of glee and delight, the camera ready to capture every memory for one to look back upon with fondness and nostalgia.

Christmas morning. The artwork of a mother’s heart.

This day is the day we choose to celebrate the birth of our beloved Saviour. This day is the day that the most extravagant gift of all was unwrapped by the hands of God.

The spirit of Christmas. The artwork of the Father’s heart.

In the Old Testament, it was foretold that the Messiah would be born in a town called Bethlehem, the first messianic prophecy being that He would be born unto a woman:

Micah 5:2, But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,
though you are small among the clans of Judah,
out of you will come for me
one who will be ruler over Israel,
whose origins are from of old,
from ancient times.

Genesis 3:15, And I will put enmity
between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and hers;
he will crush your head,
and you will strike his heel.

Jesus fulfilled these promises as recorded in the both the Gospel of Luke and the Epistle to the Galatians, a letter from the Apostle Paul to the early Christians in Galatia:

Luke 2:4-6, So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born.

Galatians 4:4, But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law.

A baby boy was born, the greatest gift bestowed unto a lost and dying world. He came as one of us with flesh upon His bones and a soul that would experience the complexities of humanity. Yet He came as God’s Son, one without sin who would draw God’s people unto Himself so that God would always be among them.

We are forged for our hope so that we may die unto our own flesh and experience the gift of an abundant life in Jesus. We are forged for our hope so that we may take our eyes off of ourselves and place them securely upon the throne of the one true God. And we are forged for our hope so that we may never forget that it doesn’t end here. There is life everlasting beyond what we experience in this world. There are great plans and purposes for us to fulfill so that we may rise into heaven with a crown placed atop our heads and the words of our Saviour embedded deep within our hearts.

May we always remember why we celebrate this day we call Christmas, and why we count down the days called Advent. In anticipation of His extravagance, let us keep our heads held high seeking His presence to descend from the clouds calling His faithful church to His side.

We are forged for our hope so that we may hear, “Well done good and faithful servant.” We are forged for our hope so that our knee will bow and our tongue shall confess that He is Lord. And we are forged for our hope so that the world who watches will witness the power of Christ at work.

We are forged not for us, but for Him.

Father, though the bottom of the tree is full of presents and the table overflows with a bounty of blessing, thank you for your Son Jesus whom you sent as the greatest gift of all. We are forged for Christ and the hope we have in Him for the abundant life that you have promised. In Jesus name, amen.

The post Christmas – The Artwork Of The Heart appeared first on Melissa P. Sharpe.

The rain began to pour from the clouds with a greater fury than moments before, hitting the window pane leaving blurry streaks on the glass. The grass is an unusual shade of green for this time of the year. Blades of bright green grace the ground looking more like Easter is on the horizon than Christmas.

For those of us in colder climates, many of us long for the gentle presence of a white Christmas. Soft, wet, fluffy snow that twirls down from the clouds in the sky like the sparkly flakes inside a snow globe. We love it when the waters freeze so that ice skating may commence, and hot chocolate does its duty warming us from the inside out.

Perhaps it is because the presence of a pure white blanket of snow reminds our soul of the purity held within a clean slate. There lies deep within us a desire for all that is unclean to be washed away and unblemished once again.

Perhaps that is why it was of purity that the Messiah would come into this tarnished world. He would be born of a virgin, His conception one orchestrated by the very hand of the Father, nestled within the womb of one God knew possessed a submitted heart and obedient spirit.

Isaiah 7:14, Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.

Jesus was born unto this virgin, His mother Mary, when she was around the tender age of fifteen. A girl on the brink of womanhood, she was betrothed to Joseph and found herself with child. Joseph was unwilling to bring shame upon Mary deciding to divorce her quietly, but an angel appeared in a dream encouraging him to take Mary as his wife for the child was conceived by the Holy Spirit. Joseph was informed by the angel that the child would be a son and his name would be Jesus. This child was a gift from God to the world to save His people from their sin. Scripture tells us that all this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the prophet Isaiah:

Matthew 1:22-23, All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).

We are forged for our hope when we can allow Christ, through the power of the Holy Spirit, wipe our heart and soul clean of all our sin and unrighteousness making us pure before the Father once again. We cannot allow the mistakes of our past keep us walking in the mucky pits that litter the surface of this world.

And God did not send a Messiah that would simply cover our sins with a blanket of purity but completely remove the impurities themselves. We too may be reborn in purity. But some impurities are imbedded a little deeper than others perhaps causing the forging take a little longer. But no matter how long the forging, no matter how deep our impurities may go, He came with the name Immanuel for He is with us through it all.

Father, create in me a clean heart, wiping away my impurities and unrighteousness for I long to be made holy; set apart for you in this world. In Jesus name, amen.

The post To Be Reborn In Purity appeared first on Melissa P. Sharpe.

The air was warm and heavily saturated with the smells of cloves and molasses. Awkward looking gingerbread men were making their way into the hot oven covered in telltale signs that children’s fingers had been hard at work.

While the cookies were baking and children were busy playing, my friend was attempting to make sense of a situation that was greatly grieving her heart. She shared her view that as a parent, it is most frustrating when you can see in foresight the consequences of your child’s choices, but they just don’t seem to listen to warning that slips from our lips and over our tongues.

That must be how God feels about His very own children- the children that are both you and I- far too often.

In the book of Genesis we find Abraham, the founding father of the Jewish nation of Israel, father to Isaac, and grandfather to Jacob. Abraham was a man of deep faith who walked in obedience to the one true God. In Hebrew his names means “father of a multitude”. Originally his name was Abram but God had renamed him Abraham as a symbol of the covenant that through Abraham a great nation would arise. A nation that God would draw unto Himself calling them his own people. The only requirement placed upon Abraham in this covenant was that he must obey God and do all that God instructed him to do.

Unfortunately, in his sinful humanity, when the waters of his faith were rising testing his obedience, Abraham struggled to fulfill what was required of him. Losing faith in God’s provision and promise of protection, Abraham made foolish decisions and fell into deception against the Pharaoh. He fled in times of crisis, lied, took bribes, and tried to fulfill God’s promise by his own hands.

Oh, how the Lord must have grieved over His child Abraham and the foolish choices he was making not heeding to the warning signs that his sin would cause him suffering. But God made a promise and would not go back on His word honouring the covenant He made with Abraham. God had the foresight to know that His plan was greater than Abraham’s sin.

Genesis 22:18, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.”

The Messiah would come through Abraham’s lineage bringing salvation to all His children, not just the nation of Israel:

Romans 9:5, Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of the Messiah, who is God over all, forever praised! Amen.

We are forged for our hope when we can obey, submitting unto the covenant Christ has made with us. Though we may struggle with the testing of our faith, we cannot give up our hope for His greater plan to prevail. Situations and circumstances in our life may bring us to our knees, luring us with the temptation to flee, lie, or bargain our way out, but God’s provision and protection over a life submitted is greater than any sin.

Let us be mindful not allowing our impatience and fear guide us into making foolish decisions letting go of God’s promises. And may we always remember that there is nothing that can separate us from God’s love.

Father, though I sometimes struggle to stand firm upon the foundation of your promises, steady my legs so that I may never fall. Your provision and protection over my life is all that I truly need. May I heed to your warning, obeying all that you ask of me to do. In Jesus name, amen,

The post When We’re Tempted to Flee appeared first on Melissa P. Sharpe.

While in the midst of a deep discussion over hot coffee, a mentor shared with my husband a sentiment that rooted itself into his soul. He asked if my husband knew when it was the best time to plant a tree. Put on the spot by a riddle, my husband confessed he didn’t have an answer. In a straight forward manner laced with the smirk of a child, he revealed the simplicity of the answer.

Ten years ago.

There is a well-known proverb proclaiming that hindsight is better than foresight. I means that it is always easier for us to evaluate past choices than at the time we have to make the choice. Perhaps Sarah, the wife of Abraham, experienced such a feeling after she laughed at God and His prophecy, and then denied that she did it. Perhaps she should not have wavered in her faith.

But the Lord’s word is never failing and His plans will always prevail. Miracles happen during difficult situations and circumstances because we are often forced to stop standing in the way thinking we can do better than God. Sarah was barren for many, many years and tried to push the miracle along by convincing Abraham to lie with her servant Hagar and impregnate her so God’s promise would come to fruition. A son was born to Hagar and Abraham who was named Ishmael.

Then, at the ripe old age of ninety years old, God told Abraham that Sarah would have a son in fulfillment of His promise that Abraham’s descendants would be a great nation. Sarah was eavesdropping and overheard the Lord and laughed at His proclamation for she was elderly and did not believe she could bear a child. By the next year, when Ishmael was approximately thirteen years of age, Sarah bore a son named Issac who’s name means “he laughs”.

Genesis 17:19, Then God said, “Yes, but your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will call him Isaac.I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him.

The Lord would not go back on His word nor covenant to Abraham and the promise was fulfilled. Again, the Messiah would come from the lineage of Jacob, Issac, and Abraham. Christ fulfilled this prophecy as recorded in the Gospel of Luke:

Luke 3:34, the son of Jacob,
the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham,
the son of Terah, the son of Nahor,

We are forged for our hope when we trust that God can perform miracles beyond our human capacity for understanding. The facts may not add up in our limited vision, but God does not need the facts to push forward His plans and purposes. He will not break His covenant with His people and sent His Son to stand in the gap so that we may come to Him. He has placed dreams and visions within our hearts to be carried out for His great purposes.

There were grave consequences to Sarah standing in the way of God’s miracle and attempting to push it along by her own hands. Let us learn from Sarah’s hindsight that when we are seeking the kingdom, wanting to give all of glory unto the one true King, we can be sure that the forging will test our hearts of our true motives and desires.

All Jesus needs is a heart and soul willing to submit unto Him. Like Sarah, we may be tempted to laugh in innocent ignorance, or stand in disbelief at the facts allowing our faith to waver, but the Lord’s plans will prevail if we can set aside our pride trusting that He will never leave us nor forsake us along the journey.

Father, don’t let me stand in the way of your miracle for I know that I can do nothing good and pure for your kingdom by my own hand. Though sometimes I may waver in my faith, unable to see your plan in foresight, I know that your word can always be trusted. In Jesus name, amen.

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