Immanuel (God With Us)

“Behold, the virgin shall be with Child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which translated means, “God with us.” Greetings Brethren! I am overjoyed at this moment to be able to share with you the many ways God continues to surprise us. It is God’s joy to give and His full delight to bring surprises to our lives. How many of us, like Joseph, have worried about how to handle difficult situations? Have you found yourself in a spot where you couldn’t confide in anyone; where you knew for certain, any decision you made was going to affect someone or many others negatively? I have; we all have at one time or another, faced situations beyond our control. It’s in these moments that we often fail to remember that God knows about it. Sometimes, as in Joseph’s case, God is even the reason for the miss-understood dilemma. This is an important concept we must all be aware of! “God is with us!” It is imperative we remember God is sovereign. If He has brought testing to your life, be certain that He will have an answer for your success in that test. We need to learn to depend on God completely and acknowledge that testing our allegiance is something God does continually. The only way Joseph was going to understand his circumstance with Mary was going to have to come from God. Think about this! Not one person in the whole wide world was going to be able to explain this situation and give Joseph counsel and direction in this matter other than God. God always has the answers for us; we just need to learn to listen to Him and only Him. The last thing Joseph expected to receive from this nightmare was JOY! As he racked his brain and thought hard about what to do to keep Mary safe, God intervened. God didn’t provide a solution for Joseph’s assumed crisis, God only pointed out to Joseph that a crisis didn’t exist. In fact, it was a blessing in which Joseph was to be included in. Amazing isn’t it! Certain gloom and doom from our perspective was turned into joy and a promise from God’s perspective, (Immanuel)! God is with us! I pray this advent season, especially if you’re going through a difficult time that you open up your heart and give God a chance to reveal the joy he has prepared for you. It is his delight to present you with joy and surprises! O, come; O, come Immanuel! Amen. Pastor Bringman