Advent Devotionals: Day 6

I know it would be natural to think of this literally, that if we believe in Jesus we will never go hungry or thirsty again. But it goes beyond this.  Jesus can provide for our physical needs but He will also provide for our spiritual and emotional needs. It causes me to remember when my husband Gary came home from The Gulf War. For a period of 5 years he suffered from several undiagnosed symptoms and was unable to work. During that time the Lord provided for our physical needs through the generosity of our family, friends and church family, as well as some government assistance. But we had more than just physical needs. We needed Him to assure us that He was with us, and that He cared. During those years we fed on what it meant to trust God in times of plenty and times of want. We had the indwelling of the Holy Spirit to assure us that we were loved and seen when outwardly it seemed questionable. We had willing ears to listen to our concerns and heartaches and arms of love to give us hugs when we needed them. Those intense times proved to us that Jesus, the Word of God made flesh, would give us “everything we needed for life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3).”

Prayer: Jesus, thank you for the love you have for us. Thank you for coming into this world, God in flesh appearing. Thank you for the peace you give to us as we come to you and believe that you will provide everything we need.

New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation