The Beauty of His Presence

By J. Shannell Evans

The Beauty of His Presence is a forty-day devotional geared toward personal reflection, discipleship, and encouragement while celebrating the sovereignty of God and the beauty we experience as His children by being in His presence.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Nov 21, 2011
• ISBN: 9781465395689

J. Shannell Evans

Joan Shannell Evans was born in The Bahamas. She is a diversified writer, having published books in various genres: poetry and drama, inspiration, mystery fiction, and, now, the author of a children's series. She has worked in church ministry since 1983, which has included Children and Teen ministries, beginning as a teenager herself. She has been writing even before that. She was a community activist in her hometown of North Andros in her early years. She is now an accountant by profession, and CFO at her home church in Nassau, The Bahamas.Connect with J. Shannell Evans at www.joanshannellevansbooks.com

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A SEASON OF THANKFULNESS

Glory in the highest, and on earth, peace and

good will toward men.

—Luke 2:14

By tradition, Thanksgiving Day is celebrated in the month of November, but as I reflected on the Christmas season, it occurred to me that Christmas should be the first of a two-part season of the real Thanksgiving; the second part being the Easter season, celebrating Christ’s death and resurrection. Unusual as it may sound, there is a valid reason to support this view, and it involves the very theme of Christmas, the birth of Christ.

Since Christmas is the season we celebrate our Lord’s birth, it should also be a season we give special thanks to God for sending His Son down to us. After all, it is common courtesy when we are given something to say thank you. And this, fellow Christians, was no cheap, ordinary gift. This was God the Son, the messiah, who came into this world that He may give up His life to save us from sin and death (Matthew 1:20-21). No one can hope for a better gift than that, and so at Christmas, the angels in heaven should be made to fold their wings and bow their heads because even they cannot match the songs of praise and thankfulness we as Christians should be sending up to our heavenly Father.

Let us consider for a moment all those that our Lord gave up when He left heaven to come down to earth. First of all, you and I cannot even begin to imagine the splendors of heaven. All of these riches Jesus had at His disposal because He was His Father’s only begotten Son. He did not have to concern Himself about mankind and its lost, sinful condition. He could have simply allowed His Father to destroy the whole world and be done with it. After all, because of our sins we were deserving of death. Romans 3:23 says that all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. But He loved us. Jesus’s love for mankind was so great that He pleaded with His Father to spare us and offered Himself to come down and die in our stead (Titus 2:13-14).

And come down He did. No, He did not come in a blast with trumpets blowing to proclaim His entrance and declare Himself as King. He came as a helpless baby born in a stable in Bethlehem to a young, unwed mother. She did not even have proper clothes to put on His tiny body but had to wrap Him up tightly to keep Him warm (Luke 2:7). There was no earthly palace to house the King of Kings nor did He have a life of comfort. But none of this came as a surprise to our Savior. He knew before He left heaven what His life on earth would be like, but He came anyway so that He could save us from our sins. Does He not deserve our praise? Shoulder we not with one big voice lifted up to glory, shout Thank you Lord Jesus? Yes, it was Jesus’s shed blood that set us free, but if He had not been born, He could not have died. To this I echo the angels on that first Christmas when they announced to the shepherds Jesus’s birth, Glory in the highest, and on earth, peace and good will toward men" (Luke 2:14).

How has this challenged you?

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What points stand out to you?

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What will you take away with you?

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Commitment:

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Create your own Thought for the Day.

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PREPARED FOR HIS COMING

But as the days of Noah were, so shall

also the coming of the Son of man be.

—Matthew 24:37

As a child, it seemed like Christmas came around every two years. As the season was finally approaching, there was always this whirlwind of activities that involved the young and the old. There was the repainting of the house, buying new furniture, which on the family island often entailed a trip to Nassau or Miami or both, new clothes (particularly a dress for the Christmas program), and buying Christmas groceries. Yards were cleaned and covered with sand from the beach and a live Christmas tree cut and hauled from the nearest pine forest and placed in a zinc bucket with more sand from the beach and large rocks to steady it. All of this had to be done by Christmas Eve because that day was set aside for its own set of activities.

Yes, Christmas Eve was when the house was cleaned from top to bottom, new curtains were hung, the turkey was seasoned and the ham was put on to boil, the potato bread and coconut tarts and other cakes were mixed and baked, the Benny cakes were made, the green peas were picked and shelled, the Christmas lights were hung around the house, and the tree were decorated inside. Then when all the pitter-patter of little feet had settled for the night, the throw rugs were put down and gifts were placed under the tree. Notice that I did not say when the little ones were asleep because sleep did not come until late into the night when we were tired of peeking and listening for that elusive Santa Claus to come and bring that gift we waited all year to receive.

By the time Christmas morning dawned, you would think that everyone would be too tired to enjoy the day, especially the adults. That was not the case in our house. Words fail to help me describe what this day was like in our house. Understand that Christmas was the highlight of my parents’ life. Looking back now I think that they were more like children on Christmas day. An absolute joy filled them as we gathered around the Christmas tree. I recall that there was an ongoing competition between Mommy and Daddy as to who got the most gifts. They would each collect all their gifts around them, and then when all was shared, they began to open them. Even now I can recall the expressions of excitement and appreciation by my father as he opened one gift after the other. I remember that he would inspect the gift and then place it back in its box or wrapping, and he would leave them all in that state throughout the year until he was ready to use any of them.

Warm and happy memories they are, ones that even now tug at my heart. Let us look at this experience and liken it to our relationship with the Lord. Christmas symbolizes the time when Jesus came into the world for the first time. We celebrate His birth and seek to relive the joy of that day that His birth brought to mankind. However, while it is good for us to do that, should we not be as busy preparing for His coming again? As wonderful as His first coming was, for the believer, His second coming will be even more glorious. In my mind’s eye, I see a majestic king, His glory like no other, and I am awed to be in His presence. The joy that fills my heart at the sight is again beyond words.

When Christ comes the second time, He will be coming for a ready church, one without a spot or wrinkle. He gave His life that we may be washed in His blood and thereby cleansed from the stain of our sins. The purpose, so that one day known only to Him, He will come and claim us as His bride and present us before the Father.

Matthew 24 talks about how it will be in the days before Christ’s coming. In this chapter, Jesus says that we will be busy with our lives, just as the people were in the days of Noah without any thought of the Lord when the flood came suddenly upon them. He says it will be the same with us at His coming. The scripture has already warned us, and therefore we must be mindful of this fact, that while we prepare for earthly things… as we should, we must do so with Christ in view with a ready heart and mind, careful that at any moment He might come. House cleaned and painted, tree decorated, and drapes all hung, ready for the season. Should Christ make this the time He comes again, will your soul be prepared to see Him?

How has this challenged you?

_________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________

__________________________________________

What points stand out to you?

_________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________

__________________________________________

What will you take away with you?

_________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________

__________________________________________

Commitment:

_________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________

__________________________________________

Create your own Thought for the Day.

_________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________

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A WALK THROUGH THE WORD

If ye abide in me and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye

will and it shall be done unto you.

—John 15:7

Have you ever strolled through a large garden, stopping here and there as a different flower or plant catches your eye each time? The peace you find there is broken only by the crunch of your own footsteps on the gravel pathway or on a dried leaf on the ground. Yet even the occasional song of a bird or swish of the breeze through the branches of the trees. In this garden, fresh air fills your lungs, and a feeling of contentment settles over you. Ahh, the beauty of nature demonstrating peace as only God can give. But there is an even larger garden filled with countless things of beauty. This garden is called the Word of God, and time spent in it can be just as refreshing and rewarding. Why not take a walk with me?

As we begin our stroll, it is appropriate to start out from the book of Genesis, where we can inhale the sweet fragrance of the true fellowship God desires to have with us. In Genesis 2:7-8, we see God making man and forming the Garden of Eden, the place He created for man, His ultimate creation so that He could spend time with him there. Genesis 3:8-9 says that the voice of God walked in the garden in the cool of the