Today's Passage: Genesis 16: 11-13 

And the angel of the Lord said to her,

“Behold, you are pregnant

    and shall bear a son.

You shall call his name Ishmael,

    because the Lord has listened to your affliction.

He shall be a wild donkey of a man,

    his hand against everyone

    and everyone's hand against him,

and he shall dwell over against all his kinsmen.”

So she called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, “You are a God of seeing,” for she said, “Truly here I have seen him who looks after me.” 

Today's Prayer: Father we love you. 

We long to for the day we will see you face-to-face, 

But, in the waiting, we rest in knowing that you are the God who sees us in this very moment.

We rest in knowing that you see us in our laughing and in our weeping.

We rest in knowing that you see every longing and every place of brokenness.

We rest in knowing that you see every high and every low.

Throughout this day, attune our hearts and minds to you.

Let our eyes not drift from your glory.

Let us not forget your deep, unwavering love for your children.

When we are tempted to numb the pain through our own strength, Keep our eyes on you.

When we struggle to see the good in your plan for today, Keep our eyes on the promised joy that is to come.

You are the God who sees all that was, all that is, and all that will be.

We trust your good and perfect ways.

For more information about this Advent season, visit our Christmas at Fellowship page. There you can find more resources, as well as information about pursuing Christ and celebrating him this season with our church.