Weekly Devotional: Gems From Pastor Jim 12/30/2019

by Jim Hughes

Matt. 1:23 “Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and he will be called Immanuel (meaning, God is with us).”

God is with us, GOD is with us. God is WITH us. God is with US. No matter how you say it, this is the grandest news man has ever heard!

GOD is with us. The designer, creator, and sustainer of all that is, is with us. The beginning and end of all things is with us. The giver of all life and the hope of all ages is with us. He who knows all things knows us for He became one of us. He who cannot be contained for all heaven is His footstool, became flesh and dwelt for awhile amongst us.

God IS with us. No matter how distant God may at times seem to be, He IS with us. How can we know for sure it is true? He said it is so. He has declared that He is with us, that He will never leave or forsake us, even unto the end of the earth.

God is WITH us. God did not create us and leave us to fend for ourselves. He does not reside in heaven and leave us alone. God is with us. He is with us in whatever we go through in life. He is with us to help us when we lose our way. He is with us when we are confused and frustrated in the times of life. He is with us all the days of our lives, both now and forever.

God is with US. God is with us, His children. God is with all who come to Him for the forgiveness of their sins and choose to live under His authority over their lives. He has chosen US to be His children and live holy lives. Do not fear what comes your way, God is with US.

Immanuel, God with us, is the Christmas story.

About the Author:

Spending his formative years in Ft. Wayne, IN, Jim followed the love of his life to southeast Iowa where they married and have spent the majority of their lives. Jim has pastored several churches throughout his life and has worked many years in local factories to help support his family. The father of two married adult children and one son still at home, Jim is a first-time author.

C Through Marriage came into being through many years of pastoral and life experiences. The book first took on a life of its own over 20 years ago when I sought to address the much publicized moral failures of prominent leaders in the church. In the chapter on Chasity, I include the guideliness that I developed then to protect one's self from such failures.

I am a firm believer in order to make sense out of life you have to use much common sense. We need to get back to the basics of what has worked for many, many generations. If is isn't broke, why try to fix it? I strive to return to the basics of what really works in all my writings.