The 12 Days of Christmas - Days 9-10

The 12 Days of Christmas - Day Nine

Eternal Glory

By Mary Fairchild, About.com Guide

Eternal Glory

"There is no improving the future without disturbing the present." - Catherine Booth

"Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." 2 Corinthians 4:16-18(NIV)

Eternal Glory

If our present day situation is disturbing to us, perhaps there's something beyond our natural sight in the works, but not yet accomplished. The trouble we face today may be acheiving an eternal purpose so much better than we can imagine. Remember that what we see right now is only temporary. What is most important, though we may not yet be able to see it, is eternal.

The 12 Days of Christmas - Day Ten

Forgiveness Focuses Forward

By Mary Fairchild, About.com Guide

Forgiveness Focuses Forward

Look not back on yesterday
So full of failure and regret;
Look ahead and seek God's way--
All sin confessed you must forget.
- Dennis DeHaan

"Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."Philippians 3:12-14 (NIV)

"As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us." Psalm 103:12(NIV)

Forgiveness Focuses Forward

As we come to the end of the year, so often we look back with regret on things we did not accomplish, or resolutions long forgotten. But sin is one thing we should never need to look back on with feelings of failure. If we have confessed our sins and asked God's forgiveness we simply need to keep a forward focus toward the goal of pleasing Christ.