Isaiah 26:7-9 New International Version (NIV)
7 The path of the righteous is level;
you, the Upright One, make the way of the righteous smooth. 8 Yes, Lord, walking in the way of your laws,[a]
we wait for you; your name and renown
are the desire of our hearts.
9 My soul yearns for you in the night;
in the morning my spirit longs for you. When your judgments come upon the earth,
the people of the world learn righteousness.
Monday - December 21
A few years ago my dad and I drove a small Uhaul from Lodi, CA to Illinois. We climbed steep roads with sharp curves, but they were smooth and marked well. Someone had made a nice, easy path for us by cutting into the sides of mountains and building bridges across deep valleys. In a similar way, God has made a nice, easy path for us to travel to Himself. When Jesus came down into this world in a manger, died on a cross and rose from the grave he made a way for us to travel to the Father. The cross of Jesus stretches across the impassable valley of death to the loving arms of the Father. Jesus is where we receive forgiveness and a new life as a child of a loving God. Prayer: Heavenly Father, help us to follow the path of faith in Jesus that you have paved for us through the manger, to the cross and through death to the resurrection of your Son, Jesus. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.