Zechariah 1:1-2:21, Revelation 12:1-17, Psalms 140:1-13, Proverbs 30:17
Today is the 22nd day of December. Welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I’m Brian. It is a joy to be here with you on Christmas Eve Eve Eve but we’re or headed right into it. We’re ending another of our weeks together and turning the corner into a new weekend. We’ll be greeted by a shiny, sparkly, brand-new blinking Christmas and I’m looking forward to that and I hope you are too. So, we’ve been reading from the New Living Translation this week and that’s how we will finish our week off. And we’ll read from Zechariah chapter 2 verse 1 through 3 verse 10 today.
Commentary:
Alright. So, we’re only days away from Christmas and, you know, if you’ve got kids then they’re probably counting down the hours at this point. And some of us are preparing to travel and we’re packing and getting ready for that and others are making preparations to receive those who are traveling in and that can be across town, that could be from across the ocean, but we’re preparing to you to be together. This coming back together is the joy…one of the joys of Christmas and it should be. And those that have been around us our whole lives, right, maybe as siblings or parents, uncles, aunts, cousins will be reunited. But even though those childhood days may be gone, we’re adults now, maybe even have families of our own or maybe we’re in another city and we’ve built our own life there. When we all get back together it doesn’t take long to fall back into the role we played when we were younger. So, those young, soft places inside, they start getting touched and maybe old words of teasing or scorn, they start to creep in and then the strangeness between generations and, you know, maybe different people in our family hold different convictions than we do. And, so, all these things start rubbing against each other and then before we know it something volatile gets said, and they’re words that kind of just hang out there just waiting to explode and create a bad day and maybe even a bad holiday experience. So, the book of Psalms today gave us some sage advice for navigating the next few days that we’re heading into. The psalmist says, “take control of what I say oh Lord and guard my lips. Don’t let me drift toward evil or take part in acts of wickedness. Don’t let me share in the delicacies of those who do wrong. Let the godly strike me. It will be a kindness. If they correct me it is soothing medicine. Don’t let me refuse it.” So, we should take that Psalm to heart and let it discipline us in advance so that we don’t find ourselves being the one who says the volatile thing, the thing that’s going to blow everything else up and the dominoes fall and the holiday’s…well…then they get a black mark over them and there are tears and there are apologies and it’s it doesn’t have to happen. So, king David, he’s the one who gave us the words to this prayer but the prayer itself, it forces us to make choices now, right, before the first gift gets unwrapped because in the heat of the moment that’s not the time to start making decisions about how you’re gonna handle your words, right? In the heat of the moment words form and they get spat into the world and they can’t be taken back. So, we have to remember that we were…when we were a kid…you know all these old things start to seep into the family dynamic. That is not who we are. Like, we’re not who we were when we began this journey this year. We spent almost a whole year in the Bible together. We are not the same as we were when we started. And, so, rather than, you know, diving into that haze of conflict that can erupt we can choose to bring light and life and good news where we would have once maybe brought darkness. But if we’re going to do that we have to choose in advance. Like we have to choose now how we’re going to handle ourselves so that in the heat of the moment we can remember, I’ve already made my decision how I’m gonna deal with this. So, let’s remember. I mean, tomorrow is the is the last Sunday of Advent and then it’s Christmas Eve and then it’s Christmas. And this season is the season that reveals that God is not willing to withdraw from our story and its the season that shows us how deeply He’s desiring to be a part of our lives and how intensely He wants to be with us no matter who we are. And that includes those that we find ourselves in conflict with all of the time. So, this is our opportunity to give the joy of Christmas or we can withhold it and see what happens. But whatever we’re gonna do, if we choose in advance we have such a better chance of actually seeing it through.
Prayer:
Father, we pray along with the psalmist. Take control of what I say Lord. Guard my lips. Don’t let me drift toward evil or take part in acts of wickedness during this holiday season when I am observing the fact that You came to rescue me from all of that. Don’t let me share in the delicacies of those who do wrong. Come Holy Spirit and flow through me. Let me be an agent of light and life and good news to my family and my loved ones. I pray in Jesus name. Amen.
Announcements:
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And it’s Christmas time and that’s what’s happening. I went to a Christmas program last night. I go to one tomorrow. So, these kinds of things are happening right? And then Christmas Eve we normally do a candlelight service. And, so, it is certainly Christmas time and I doubt anyone of you are surprised by that. Tomorrow is the last Sunday in the season of Advent. And the Christmas Eve on Monday will be the last day of Advent. And, of course, Advent is a means arrival. So, it’s a season to contemplate the arrival of what God did by sending His Son to earth to become one of us and all that the work of Christ represents, not only in our own hearts, but to humanity. So, try to stay in the rhythm, try to find some time to contemplate that. Just sit with that, enjoy some rest, and some silence, and some quiet.
I’ve talked to you about the family Christmas album that we have. You can listen to that, like, wherever you get your music. Like, if you have Apple music or wherever you stream music or get music, you can get the family Christmas album, just search for my name. It’s kinda made for exactly what we’re talking about. It’s the kind of record that you want turn the Christmas lights on and everything else off and just kind of immerse yourself in the season. So, this is something that we have to fight for the closer that we get to Christmas because it’s so busy and yet we can be so busy that we miss what’s actually happening and what this season represents. And, so, try to find some time one way or the other, even if it’s just a few minutes even if it’s to still than the noise that’s going on and just have some inner serenity as we contemplate that God came for us in person. So, check that out.
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And that’s it for today I’m Brian I love you and I’ll be waiting for you here tomorrow.
Community Prayer and Praise:
Hi, this is a message for the Prodigal. I just wanted to say that your one of the people whose voices I always recognize the moment you start calling. And your calls are always very insightful and always make a real impact on me. And we really don’t want you to go. You’re needed in this community and no matter how you may feel bad about yourself we love you and God loves you and you’re needed. And I’m calling from Australia. You’re making an impact all around the world and we just don’t want you to go. We need you. So, we hope to continue to hear from you. Thank you.
Hi, my name is Wes, and I’m actually a first-time caller here and I just wanted to start out by saying a huge thanks to Brian and Jill for this amazing podcast. I try to listen to it every day when I can and I’m really just calling in for a person called Prodigal. It just sounds like he’s going through really dark times right now and I can’t imagine what that’s like. And I just have a Bible verse for you, it’s Psalm 23:4 and its, “even though I walked through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil for you are with me; your rod and your staff they comfort me.” And this verse has helped me get through dark times as well. And just know that God really loves you and I don’t think he created…I know he didn’t create a single human being with the intention to commit suicide. So, we are all praying for you here at the Daily Audio Bible and we want what’s best for you and hopefully you can reach out to other people like maybe in your area as well and hopefully you guys can talk and stuff like. But we’re praying for you and hope for the best.
Hey DAB family, this is Byron out in Florida calling for John, calls himself the Prodigal. Amen, thanks so much for your call on the 21st. I’m sorry you’ve been going through such a rough time having lost so much. I’m thankful that you did call, I’m thankful as always, your honesty. I just want to encourage you that God isn’t done with you yet, not by a long shot. And I don’t know if you heard it but on the same day the first call that aired was from Walta and her encouragement I think was very important for you. And that fact that you wake up every morning with your eyes open is hard and fast proof that God isn’t finished with you yet and He still is more for you to do. Walta doesn’t call herself the burning bush for no reason. She’s been through it and back again and still going through it. So, for her to find that insight is tremendously encouraging not only for me but for you. God is not done with you. You’re searching the Scriptures to find validation for suicide. Search the Scriptures for validations for reasons still being here, that He who began a good work in you will see it to completion. He’ll give wisdom to anyone who asks for it. And our Lord is the Lord who wept when He saw the pain and loss that His children endured. God knows how you feel He’s not far from you, He’s right beside you. So, wait on Him and He will bring it all back. We’re praying for your brother. I love you. Call in again, even if you don’t know what you’re gonna say, we want to hear from you. Bye.
Hi this is Toni from Germany and this call is specifically for the Prodigal. I am grateful that you listened to the priest and I would like you to go back to him. He asked you to come to us. I ask you to go back to him. And then the other thing is, I’m not gonna tell you to do this though I would love to, go get another dog. Alright? I want to as does everyone else on Daily Audio Bible listening to hear your victory story. So, I thank you for hanging in there, for giving thanks to the Lord even in your suffering. And then let’s watch and see how the Lord will help you come to victory in 2019. I’m looking forward to your victory story and that you will be able to bless many others as a result. God bless you. I’ll be praying.
This is for Prodigal. I was in the dollar store last night and there was a lady and two kids behind me in a long line. There was one big kid and then the smaller kid. The bigger kid had a pack of glow sticks and the toddler was screaming for them. The mom opened the pack and gave him one which stopped the tears. He walked around with it smiling and the bigger boy took it and the toddler started screaming again. Just as the mom was about to do something the older child took bent the glow stick and handed it back to the toddler. As we walked outside the store at the same time the toddler noticed that the stick was now glowing, and his brother said, “I had to break it so that you could get the full effect from it.” I could hear that saying to me, “I had to break you to show you why I created you. You had to go through it so that you can fulfill your purpose.” The precious child was happy just swinging that unbroken glow stick around in the air because he didn’t understand what it was created to do, which was to glow. There’s some people who will be contentious being but some of us that God has chosen, we have to be broken, we have to get sick, we have to lose a job, we have to we go through divorce, we have to burry our spouse, our parents, our best friend and / or our child. In those moments of desperation God is breaking us but when the breaking is done then we’ll be able to see the reason for which we were created. So, when you see us glowing just know that we have been broken but healed by His grace and His mercy. You can keep going the way you’ve been going Prodigal, knowing where that may lead, or you can give yourself a real chance for a better life. The fact that you’re listening to this shows that you want another option. There’s only one real source of hope for a life that possesses meaning, fulfillment and joy and that source is Jesus Christ as you know. Speaking about his followers Jesus said in John 10:10, I have come that they may have life and to have it to the full. Through your personal relationship with Jesus Christ, Prodigal, you can experience overflowing love and forgiveness and peace and joy in your…
Good morning daily audio Bible family, this is Dorothy from Dustin. And I just heard Prodigal call and my heart is breaking for you. Please, please don’t take your life because God gave it to you and he has a purpose for you and a plan for you and He is the great Redeemer, He is the God of second chances. Please don’t do this. I know it’s hard. It’s hard for me it’s hard for so many people at this time of year but your God is a great God and He loves you so very much. He has a plan for you. Don’t take His plan. This time next year will be a faint memory and He’s gonna do something wonderful for you and let that take place. I’m praying for you and I know so many others are. Lord Jesus, we lift Prodigal up to you right now. We thank You for his life. We know how much You love him. Please show him Your love, reveal it to him through people and through situations Lord. At this time of year Lord, we thank You for Your birth, we thank You for coming for us and we thank You for Your son prodigal. Bless him Lord Jesus. Merry Christmas my family. Thank you for this Brian. Thank you for this outreach it’s so precious to me and Sue so many. Merry Christmas.
Hey, my brother Prodigal, I heard you loud and clear today. Man, I balled my eyes out for a second. I am so encouraged that you called. God Almighty is answering your prayers. I too have been there. This is Alex from San Diego, Friday the 21st. My friend, I hope you have ears to hear right now. It’s to all the prodigal’s out there who have had those thoughts, who have not yet been transformed by the renewing of their mind. My answer is a revelation to me where Jesus told me, yes you must die, you must pick up your cross and follow me. We’re gonna go die. Where gonna go die that old man, that old way of thinking. That arrogant, prideful, selfish jerk that I once was had to die, and I needed to be made new and I found my answers in Romans chapter 8. My plan sat there in plain sight. In order to lose my life, I needed to find it. No, I needed to lose my life completely to find it. In the name of Jesus I pray that you hear these words. Romans 8:13 told me finally one day and I got it. It says if you, Alex, if you, Prodigal, if you put to death the deed of the flesh you will live. And I started to get a deeper understanding that I had a job to do. I had to put down that arrogance, I had to put down that anger. I had to stop pointing and picking on things on my computer that I did not need to point and click on. I needed to stop listening to that music that didn’t give me anything but in my old thoughts. I had to transfer my whole way of doing things so that I could find a new life and I pray that this message goes out and that its put on the air and that you hear it my friend, that you stop doing what you’ve been doing and become that born-again spirit, man that can find the abundant life. You cannot have a victory in those old thoughts that you’re thinking right now. They don’t belong. That’s the adversary. He wants to take you out. In God Almighty reaching through these airwaves.