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Day 8 | Love

by on December 08, 2019

Love (Matthew 6:11)
by Monica Kirsch

Have you ever received an unexpected gift at just the right moment? Perhaps someone brought you dinner during a marathon workday, wrote you a handwritten card, or surprised you with a bouquet of flowers in the midst of a tough week. Whatever it was, I can guess that it brightened your day.
 

My favorite gifts are the unexpected ones. It brings me so much joy to surprise someone I love with a personalized gift, “just because.” It’s my way of communicating, “I appreciate you, I love you, and I am here to support you even when you don’t have the words to ask.” 
 

Isn’t this how God loves us? In Matthew 6, during his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus says, “…for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.” Even in the moments when we don’t know what we need, God knows, and by His grace and love, He gives good and perfect gifts. (James 1:17)


Before Jesus even enters the scene, Israel is in desperate need of a savior. After cycling through judges and kings who failed to provide the hope and redemption they were searching for, Israel expected their savior to come as a political leader who would bring all the chaos back to order. 
 

But God, in His sovereignty, had a better plan. 
 

Instead, he loved us so much that sent His only son—Jesus—to take on our same humanity. He would grow up to live a faultless life yet die a criminal, because no matter how hard we try, we could never save ourselves. We need someone to pay the price of all our wrongdoing for us, and God knew that. He solved the problem by sending Jesus. No matter where you’re at on this second Sunday of Advent, take heart in knowing that God’s love offers hope and forgiveness and freedom, and it is the best unexpected gift we never could have thought to ask for.

Additional Resources
Listen to Born That We May Have Life
Read God's Greatest Gift: The Christmas Child