She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” – Matthew 1:21

We’ve all sinned. It doesn’t matter how good we are, even the smallest mistake is considered a sin. So regardless of how good we are, we still need a savior. We need someone who could save us from our sins and make us right with God again.

That’s what Jesus did. He made us right with God. He paid the penalty for sin.

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So this Christmas season, we can celebrate the fact that we’ve been made free from sin. So in the busyness of the holidays take some time to really remind yourself of what Jesus did. Take a few minutes and think about how great it is to be made free from sin.

When the angel of the LORD appeared to Gideon, he said, “The LORD is with you, mighty warrior.” – Judges 6:12 (NIV)

In this Bible verse, Gideon was going through a season of his life when his faith was weak. He wasn’t feeling it and probably would have rather given up than continued on. At this moment when he was discouraged, an angel appears to Gideon and tells him that the Lord is with Him.

You’ve probably experienced times in your life when your faith was weak like Gideon’s. Maybe you questioned if you really heard from God about something. Perhaps you feel like so many things are against you in life that you can’t go on.

In times like these, we can take courage in the fact that God is always with us. God doesn’t leave us without help. He said that He would never leave us or forsake us. He has the answer you need for whatever it is that you’re going through.

Like Gideon, he won’t leave you. He sees you in your discouragement and tells you again and again in the Bible that you can make it. So choose to shift your thinking onto what God’s word says. You’re not alone. God is for you and He’s with you each step of the way.

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I will give You thanks with all my heart;
I will sing Your praise before the heavenly beings. – Psalm 138:1

We’ve got so many things to be thankful for. We’ve got a God who loves us, who sent His son to die for us so that He could know us.

That’s something to give thanks about. This Bible verse talks about giving thanks with all our heart. That’s easy to do when you spend time thinking about how good God is. When you focus on all the blessings you have in your life, it’s easy to be able to give God thanks.

Take some time today to think about all the things God has done for you. You’re probably more blessed than you realize!

throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. – Ephesians 4:22 (NLT)

Have you noticed how easy it is to fall into bad habits? I remember how often I’d go down a bad path when I was with friends. I love getting people to laugh and would do or say anything to get my friends to laugh. As you can imagine, often that would cause me to do or say something that wasn’t godly.

Once we’ve accepted Jesus into our hearts, the Bible tells us that we’ve been made new in Christ. Even though we’ve been made new, it’s up to us to act on that new nature. We have to choose to throw off our sinful nature and act out our new nature in Christ.

This isn’t always easy. It’s a choice you have to make to act out of your new nature in Christ and to put off the old habits, desires, and thoughts. So today, challenge yourself to put away those sinful desires and thoughts and live out of your new nature in Christ.

There will be joy and songs of thanksgiving, and I will multiply my people, not diminish them; I will honor them, not despise them. – Jeremiah 30:19 (NLT)

Have you ever had those moments when it felt like everything was going wrong? I recall a time when I had a friend die, my grandmother had been diagnosed with cancer, and some friends were not being nice to me. At the time, it felt like everything that could go wrong was going wrong. I wasn’t sure I could handle anything else bad happening in my life.

In moments where things are going bad and thing after thing seems to be stacked up against you, how do you find the strength and courage to keep moving on? One of the best ways is by being thankful. It might seem crazy, but finding ways to be thankful really helps in tough times.

So if all your friends have abandoned you, be thankful that God said He would never leave you. Be thankful that you’ve got a God who loved you when you didn’t deserve it. Thankfulness is powerful, it changes your outlook. It takes the focus off of our problems and puts it back on God.

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So today, take a moment to practice thankfulness. Even if it does seem like everything around you is going wrong, realize that being thankful is the key to getting through your problems. So sing a worship song that you like, remind yourself of the times in the past God has come through for you. Choose to be thankful regardless of what you see around you.

Rejoice in the Lord always- delight, gladden yourselves in Him: again I say, rejoice! – Philippians 4:4

This Bible verse talks about rejoicing always which means all the time. And in all circumstances. That means rejoicing when you feel like it and when you don’t. Rejoicing when your brother is driving you crazy, and when you get a promotion at your job. Regardless of circumstances, we are encouraged to rejoice in the Lord.

Why are we told to rejoice? It seems really strange. When you’re feeling down, you just want to mope around, stay in bed all day or have a good cry. Yet the Bible tells us to rejoice. Why?

The key to our strength is found in rejoicing. Rejoicing can help change your feelings. When you rejoice it begins to change your sadness into joy. It changes your feelings of hopelessness into hope. There is power in rejoicing in what God has done for you. Take time today to rejoice!

Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. – Galatians 6:9 (NIV)

In high school, each year I went out for tennis. I remember getting up early in the morning to lift weights. I did running drills and lots of hours of practice. It was a lot of work and a lot of free time I was giving up to play this sport. There were times when I wondered if all the early morning weight lifting was worth it.

However, once the season began, I was glad I had put in the effort. When I went to play other teams from other schools I was glad that I had practiced and was conditioned to keep up with them during the meets.

That’s a bit like what today’s Bible verse is telling us. If we keep on doing good, following after God, making the right choices, we will be glad we did. Because at the proper time, when we’re faced with a test or trial, we’ll be glad that we stuck with it and didn’t give up.

So if you’re discouraged, take comfort in the fact that if you keep with it, all the hard work and standing will be worth it in the end. Don’t give up or quit. Stay the course and finish strong!