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A Cuppa Joy

My friend Andy wasn’t a coffee drinker; he’d never made it part of his daily routine. But this changed over time, and Andy told me how. “I saw people’s expressions upon taking their first morning sip: that deep, satisfying sigh — ‘aah’ — rising up from within and the eyes drifting back in their heads,” he said, “And whatever caused this daily experience, I wanted that.” It wasn’t the coffee that initially drew Andy, but the palpable pleasure it brought about in others.

God draws people to Himself, meeting each of us right where we are in life. Some struggling under the burden of remorse find freedom and release in the forgiveness of God through the sacrifice of Christ. Others searching for the meaning of life finally find their answers in God’s Word. Then there are those drawn to God by the warmth of peace and the aroma of joy wafting out from those born anew in the Spirit — those who, in Christ, have found “the life that is truly life.”1 This was my story: I saw in others an undeniable change for good — deep-down transformation — and whatever it was that caused this experience, I wanted it.

Our allure is both Biblical and spiritual. As Paul taught the Corinthians, so he teaches us today: “God . . . uses us to spread the aroma of the knowledge of [Christ] everywhere. For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ.”2 God is pleased with all who believe in His Son and pleased to attract others through us. Jesus says it is a matter of identity: “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden . . .In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”3

But we don’t always feel peaceful or joyful when we want to, and sometimes we just don’t want to. So what do we do then? Do we put on our best face, a Christian costume of sorts? No, we do much better to steep in the source of our joy: God’s unshakable love for us. Jesus explains: “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.”4

So savor a sip of God’s love for you — ahh! — and share with others a cuppa joy.

Father, You are our joy. Pour out Your Spirit, that we would gladly overflow to others the love and life we’ve found in Christ Jesus, Your Son. In His name we pray. Amen.

1 1 Timothy 6:19 NIV
2 2 Corinthians 4:14-15 NIV
3 Matthew 5:14-16 ESV
4 John 15:9-11 ESV

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Love’s Pure Light

“Tis the season of angels, or so it seems. It was an angel who told a young Mary about the child she would bear, and several times did angels guide her husband, Joseph, as well. To the shepherds on the night-shift appeared an entire host of them, all heralding the Messiah’s birth. What an experience! But did you ever notice people’s oft-fearful responses to angelic encounters throughout the Bible? Daniel was “set trembling on his hands and knees.”1 Soldiers guarding Jesus’ tomb “shook and became like dead men.”2 The shepherds were “terrified”3 that first Noel, and when an angel appeared to Cornelius, the Roman officer “stared at him in fear.”4 Then there’s Gideon, who thought he would die. Literally.5

But these were only ministering angels, celestial servants. God speaks so of them: “He makes his angels winds, and his ministers a flame of fire.”6 Then if the appearance of God’s messengers is so overpowering as to cower the bravest among us, how unimaginably more so must be the presence of our holy God? Even the vision of Him overwhelmed John in the Revelation given to him: “When I saw [Jesus], I fell at his feet as though dead.”7 What a predicament: God’s eyes are “too pure to look on evil,”8 and “man may not see [Him] and live.”9 Not in this world, anyway. God is pure by nature, and by nature we are not.

Yet how did the angels so often reply? “Don’t be afraid.” For God is for us. He will judge, yes, but His desire for us is not condemnation, but purity, restoration, and friendship. Hear Jesus’ heart as He intercedes for us in the eve of his crucifixion: “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world.10 God wants us to be with Him and to see Him in full glory. And John says He has made it possible: “But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.”11 Jesus shed His blood, sacrificed His life, to purify our life, and thus purified, we will see the glory of Christ — “Son of God, love’s pure light.”12 We need not be afraid.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Father, thank You for purifying us through Your Son, Jesus the Messiah. Bring us into Your presence in Your time through Jesus, the way. May we see His glory and rejoice before Him forever. Amen.

1 Daniel 10:10 NIV
2 Matthew 28:4 NIV
3 Luke 2:9 NIV
4 Acts 10:4 NIV
5 Judges 6:22-23
6 Hebrews 1:7 ESV (see also Psalm 104:7)
7 Revelation 1:17 ESV
8 Habakkuk 1:13 NIV
9 Exodus 33:20 NIV
10 John 17:24 NIV
11 1 John 1:7 NIV
12 Joseph Mohr, “Silent Night,” Hymnal.net, accessed: December 23, 2025.

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Hark! The Fourth Verse Now We Sing!

From time to time, I mention Kairos Prison Ministry in this space, for it is hard not to speak of the awesome wonders God works in the lives of incarcerated people. If you’ve heard of Kairos, you are most likely familiar with the semi-annual, four-day Kairos Weekends in which we volunteers share with inmates the love and forgiveness that are found solely in Christ Jesus. Yet we also return to the prison through monthly reunions and weekly Prayer & Share. And for this month’s reunion, I and some others were asked to share an especially meaningful Christmas carol and why we find it so meaningful. So, do you mind if I practice on you this week?

I chose “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing.”1 It is the gospel put to poetry; the good news wrapped in rhyme. Were you to open your hymnal to this enduring favorite, you would probably find three verses. Then would it surprise you to learn Charles Wesley’s composition had ten? The first verse, the familiar one, proclaims a promise kept: a heavenly King who brings us the peace, the reconciliation of God the Creator and us, His created. The second stanza points us to Jesus’ human incarnation: “Offspring of a virgin’s womb” — the Godhead veiled in flesh, “pleased as man with man to dwell.” Flowing on through its third verse, this Christmas classic heralds the Messiah’s heavenly origin: the “Sun of Righteousness,”2 bringing His light and life to us, defeating death and raising us through new birth.

So let’s pick up where our hymnals leave off, for verse four — so powerfully sourced in Scripture — is the cry of the redeemed soul, a prayerful response to God’s faithfulness,. Sing it softly; let it melt into your soul.

Come, Desire of nations, come!3
Fix in us Thy humble home:4
Rise, the woman’s conqu’ring seed,5
Bruise in us the serpent’s head;6
Adam’s likeness now efface,7
Stamp Thine image in its place:8
Final Adam from above,9
Reinstate us in Thy love.10
Hark! The herald angels sing,11
“Glory to the new-born King.”12

Satan is defeated, and in Christ we are new creations13 being transformed into His image.14 Isn’t this what we want? When we behold God’s great promises fulfilled in the most unexpected of ways, don’t our hearts respond in joy, thanksgiving and trust? And in this trust, don’t our spirits cry, “More!”?

Yes, Lord, deliver us from evil, and transform us into unimaginable glory. Grace us with fruitful lives throughout our days here. We see what you’ve done for mankind; do also what you will in each of us. Guide us daily away from our old nature, and transform us into yours. Grow your church on Earth. In Christ we live; in Him we pray. Amen.

1 Charles Wesley, “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing,” Hymnal.net, accessed: December 15, 2025.
2 Malachi 4:2
3 Haggai 2:7
4 John 14:23
5, 6 Genesis 3:15
7, 8 1 Corinthians 15:49
9, 10 Romans 5:19
11, 12 Luke 2:13-14
13 2 Corinthians 5:17
14 2 Corinthians 3:18