Jolly Faith

Editor’s note: Be of Good Cheer is a new Christmas devotional book that you and your family with love to read throughout the Advent season. About a month ago, we shared a devotion from Be of Good Cheer which you can read here. Then, enjoy this excerpt and pick up your copy today!

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Jolly

Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth. Worship the LORD with gladness; come before Him with joyful songs. — Psalm 100:1–2

You’ve probably sung along to the old Christmas song “Holly Jolly Christmas” by Johnny Marks, with its sing-song proclamations that this is the best time of the year.

As Christmas morning approaches, you’ll have numerous opportunities to find your inner jolliness, but let’s be honest — things don’t always go the way you plan! So much of life is outside of your control. But you push through with a smile because this is the holly-jolly month, right?

If you want to find genuine jolliness, the first step is to remove the pressure to always be happy.

• Once you learn to respect the full range of your emotions, good and bad, you’ll be able to tend more deeply to the good ones. 

Where does jolliness come from? Well, did you especially enjoy that cappuccino you drank before heading out to finish shopping? Savor it. Did the soloist at the Christmas pageant move you? Replay it in your mind. Were you delighted to get an old friend’s holiday card in the mail? Celebrate it.

Being jolly is most often about embracing the small things that delight you. 

Take time to slow down and enjoy them. Linger over the sweet moments this season. There may be more than you think.

Lord, help me see all the good reasons I have to be cheerful — even jolly. Teach me to slow down and savor the things I enjoy.

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Faith 

Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ. — Romans 10:17

Before Jesus’ birth, some people had been anticipating His coming. The Old Testament prophets had said Jesus, the Savior, would be born (Isaiah 9:6), and God’s faithful people believed those words were true. While they didn’t have any tangible proof that these promises would be fulfilled, they still had faith they would happen.

Simply put, faith can be defined as believing Jesus’ claims about Himself and that He will keep His promises.

Maybe this holiday season, you find yourself wishing you had more faith. If that’s true, you are in good company. Even Jesus’ disciples wished for more faith, and they went as far as to ask for more of it. The Gospel writer Luke wrote, 

The apostles said to the Lord, ‘Increase our faith!’ — Luke 17:5

Faith is a gift that God delights in giving — so go ahead and ask Him for more of it! Another way to grow in faith is to think about all the ways God has come through for you in the past.

Recalling how God has cared for you in previous situations builds faith that He will continue to do so in the future. Jesus came in the form of a baby to be the Savior of the world — and those who follow Him walk by faith. This Christmas season is the perfect time to celebrate that Jesus is who He says He is and that He does keep His promises.

Lord, increase my faith. In every situation, help me believe that You are who You say You are and will keep Your promises.

Excerpted with permission from Be of Good Cheer by Susan Hill, copyright Zondervan. 

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Your Turn

Maybe jolly doesn’t sound like a word that fits with your life right now. But, as believers, we can rejoice and be filled with joy even during really hard seasons, so take delight! Celebrate that Jesus is who He says He is and that He does keep His promises! ~ Devotionals Daily