Immanuel

Isaiah 7:14 -> "Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel."

Okay, I started my word search on this, knowing the definition I'd always been taught was "God with us." The word search confirms this, but it's set up a little strange - here and here for anyone interested in seeing it – and I'm not sure why the two Hebrew words, 'el and Immanuw'el, are listed seperately the way they are. So I'm waiting to hear back from someone on why they're listed that way, and then I'll finish that part of it.

In the meantime, the standard definition is pretty good all by itself, don't you think? It's so easy to get caught up in the habit of being a Christian and not really focus on the Truth or reality of it, which is awe-inspiring to say the least.

God with us.

God, in His infinite power, glory and majesty, with us.

God with us, even in our wretchedness and our sinfulness.

God with us.

I remember laying in bed once when I was in highschool, and all of the sudden I started meditating on God's desire to have a relationship with me. GOD desired ME! It got to the point where I was just marveling at the idea of GOD. Nothing else, just GOD.

If we truly understood that concept – GOD with us – would we continue to live our lives the way we do now?

Let me just personalize that for myself...If I truly understood the concept of GOD, in all of His infinite power, glory and majesty, with ME, in all of my wretchedness and sinfulness, would I continue to live the same life I'm living now?

Absolutely not.

I would not let one day go by without spending focused time with Him. I would not let one moment go by without telling my daughters about His desire for them. I would not let one single person walk by without tell them about Jesus' sacrifice on the cross. That's the truth...if I truly got it, my life would be drastically different. The fact that I don't do those things is a sad testimony to the fact that I don't get it.

Lord Jesus, I pray that this Christmas season and into 2007 that you would reveal Yourself to me in all of Your power and glory and majesty...or as much as my human mind can comprehend. Lord, please forgive me for not recognizing the awesomeness of Your name and Your presence on a daily basis. Please forgive me for not sharing the hope that is found in You with strangers that I meet on the street. Please, please forgive me for making other things a higher priority than spending time with You. Lord, I pray that today would mark a day of change in my life, that from this day forward, my life would reflect Your glory, that I would bring glory and honor to Your name and that people would be drawn to You because of me.

Lord, I pray as always that You would draw my girls to You. I pray that they would love and serve You each day of their lives with a childlike faith and a fervor and a zeal that makes other people want to know You as well. I pray that they would live lives of purity – not just physically, but in their thoughts and words and hearts. I pray that You would give them a love for Your Word, that they would love to praise and worship You and that You would give them a boldness and confidence in You to share the Gospel.

In Jesus' name, Amen.