Favor with God - A Christmas Bible Bites Devotional

In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, ofo the house of David. And the virgin's name was Mary. And he came to her and said, "Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!" But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God..." -Luke 1:26-30

What a greeting that must have been! Imagine an angel coming to visit you and telling you that God has greatly favored you! How would you react? Would you be afraid, in shock, or maybe a bit of both?

What’s even more amazing is that all of us, as children of God are greatly favored as well! By the perfect sacrifice of Christ we have salvation, reconciliation, redemption, justification and unmerited favor with our Heavenly Father!

This season always promises good cheer and cozy times with family and friends. But all to often the season is swallowed up in the stresses of shopping, decorating, and checking off the items on our long list of things to get done before Christmas! Its too easy to lose the awe, wonder, and forget the real reason for the season. We lose sight of what happened on that first Christmas, and that now, we too are highly favored by God!

Heavenly Father, we thank You for the great gift you gave the world on Christmas, Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, your only begotten Son! Help us to remember the reason for the season, and to let it fill our hearts with awe and wonder at your grace and favor for us. We pray that you fill this season and the year to come with a focus on your presence and grace in our lives. We pray that you bless us with a heart and mind for you, that thanks and praise to you are always in our hearts and on our lips. We thank you for your unmerited favor that we now enjoy through your Son, our Lord, Jesus Christ! In His name we pray. Amen.