Immanuel
by Lindsey Hanekom
As we approach this time of Christmas we hear ‘Immanuel’ spoken of more frequently than during the rest of the year. Yet, do we truly understand the beauty and depth that this name of God brings to us and to our daily lives or does it merely get jumbled into the usual melee of Christmas?
A few years ago I found myself considering ‘Immanuel’as a name and found my mind being drawn to the wondrous acts of God throughout the Bible. To me it was like looking at the stars, the more you look the more you see, and as I progressed I found myself remembering more and more of these amazing stories. Just sitting and thinking through this started to bring a deeper level of faith and hope to my heart.
And then I came to the expression ‘Immanuel, God with Us’. This God that performed all of these mighty and wonderful acts in the Bible is exactly the same God that we love and serve today. He hasn’t changed. I had to ask myself, “Do I really live like I am serving that God? Or am I serving a form of God that I can understand, that I have personal experience of, or that I have limited to make myself feel safe?”
Do I really believe that God could provide for me just as He so wonderfully did for the Israelites? Do I really believe that God could protect me just as He did Daniel in the lion’s den? The list is endless but it reveals a depth and a beauty of the name Immanuel.
As we enjoy the celebrations of the birth of our Saviour my hope and prayer is that you will have a revelation of the God of the Bible and Immanuel… for God IS with us and He hasn’t changed, nor will He change.
Prayer: Immanuel, You are with us and You are the same God that I read about in Scripture. I pray that You will bless me with a deeper revelation of Yourself so that I may be strengthened in my walk with You. Amen.
Lindsey Hanekom Lindsey has worked at all of our UK centres over the years and has settled at Ellel Scotland with her husband, Johann and their two young children, Kyle and Zoe. As part of the Leadership Team at Ellel Scotland, Lindsey has a heart for the deeply broken as she oversees the prayer ministry and is an established and passionate teacher with Ellel. In her spare time, Lindsey enjoys the natural world, particularly the ocean, and is trained as a specialist medic to assist stranded and injured marine mammals.
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