Greetings from North Carolina... this week we light the fourth candle. The fourth week of advent explores the themes of peace.
This week we celebrate Christmas... the time with the Prince of Peace is born unto us. Isaiah 9:6-7 reads: For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.
Jesus was born into a time of great turmoil. Herod, who was threatened by the birth of the child people were calling a king, ordered the murder of all male children in and around Bethlehem aged two and under... there was no peace, only fear.
Although we cannot fully understand what was going on when Jesus was born, we do know about unrest... we've seen our fair share of wars, and living in fear. In these times of unrest, people will turn to just about anything to help eliviate the fear.
The only true peace is found in the Prince of Peace himself, Jesus Christ... we light the fourth candle in a prayer of peace for those living in fear, those who are alone during the holidays and for those who are in need of rest.
Find rest and peace in the Lord this holiday season... He is waiting for you with open arms!
Photo credit: "Adventkranz" by Benjamin Nussbaum, used under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs license
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