INTRODUCTION

Advent is a season for reflection on God’s great love for us in the sending of Emmanuel-God with us and on Christ’s promised return. For some time now, the Historic Black Methodist Churches have used this time to share a daily devotional to serve as a resource for spiritual practice and faith formation during this blessed season. It is a joint labor of love of the Christian Education Departments of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, and the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church.

This year’s themes focus on the enduring beliefs of the Christian faith, with our Holy God and the Holy Scriptures and Grace and Reconciliation. The scripture passages were selected from the Home Daily Bible Readings published by the Committee on Uniform Series (CUS) of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. CUS has promoted an ecumenical approach to the study and teaching of God’s word since 1872.

It has been an honor to serve as this year’s editor. Special thanks to all the meditation contributors and to my colleagues, Rev. Patrick Barrett II, General Secretary-Treasurer for the AMEZ Christian Education Department, Dr. Carmichael D. Crutchfield, General Secretary for the CME Christian Education Department, Dr. Gwendolyn Peters and Dr. Willa Ross, meditation coordinators for the AMEZ and CME contributions, respectively.

In Advent, we are called to reflect and wait for the coming of Christ; however, far too often, it is a time of anxiety and hurriedness due to the societal demands of the season. While there is a cease fire, this season this year still cannot declare peace in the very land where many of our scriptural passages tell of ancient life and promises. We pray that this meditation guide might be a tool to assist us to slow down and focus on our faith in Christ this Advent and Christmastide, resulting in a deepened discipleship that inspires us to respond faithfully to our callings to do greater works of compassion, justice, peace, and witness, particularly now amid a hurting and divided world.

Flowing Rivers, Healing Lands

EZEKIEL 47:1-9, 12
On the banks, on both sides of the river, there will grow all kinds of trees for food. Their leaves will not wither nor their fruit fail, but they will bear fresh fruit every month, because the water for them flows from the sanctuary. Their fruit will be for food and their leaves for healing.”
Ezekiel 47:12

Ezekiel’s vision of the river flowing from the temple offers a moving picture of renewal and healing, a timely word as we enter Advent, a season filled with longing and expectation. The prophet witnesses water starting as a trickle but swelling into a mighty, life-giving river. Wherever it flows, life abounds, wounds heal, and fruit trees blossom, bearing fruit and leaves “for food and for healing.”​

For our communities, African American, African, Caribbean, and the broader African diaspora, this vision speaks directly to long histories of exile, displacement, and struggle. Like God’s people in Ezekiel’s time, we know what it means to be scattered, to yearn for justice, wholeness, and home. Yet, Advent and Christmastide remind us: hope is not lost. Just as fresh water transforms saltwater and barren ground, God’s presence brings forth newness where the world expects only despair.

This healing river invites us to be agents of life and justice, flowing beyond church walls into our neighborhoods and nations, speaking against tyranny, corruption, oppression, and hate, addressing wounds old and new. The river begins humbly, but deepens with every step, much like collective action rooted in the Spirit. Every fruit born, every word of hope, every act of healing testifies to God’s promise: “Everything will live wherever the river goes.”

PRAYER: God of life-giving waters, let your Spirit flow through our communities. Heal ancient wounds, nurture new hopes, and empower us to be vessels of your justice and joy. May your river renew us and all creation, through Christ, the one who has come, still comes, and will come again, AMEN.

Rev. Dr. Garland F. Pierce is executive director of the Department of Christian Education of the AME Church and immediate past chair of the Committee on the Uniform Series of the National Council of Churches, USA.

A Righteous Reward

2 KINGS 22:1-10
Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign; he reigned thirty-one years in Jerusalem.
2 Kings 22:1a

None of us can choose our birth circumstances; yet we can choose how we live. Such was the case with King Josiah, who did not follow the wicked examples of his father, Amon, and grandfather, Manasseh. 2 Kings 22:2 records that King Josiah, “did what was right in the sight of the LORD and walked in all the ways of his father David; he did not turn aside to the right or to the left”. King Josiah initiated religious reform, abolishing idolatry and pagan practices and eventually restored the house of the LORD (2 Chr. 34:1-11).

During the restoration of the LORD’s house, Hilkiah found the book of the Law in the LORD’s house and gave it to Shapan who read it to King Josiah. After hearing what was written, King Josiah tore his clothes because of Judah’s disobedience. He sent a delegation to the prophet Huldah to inquire of the LORD about Judah’s punishment. Through Huldah, the LORD responded that all the disaster spoken of in the book would be fulfilled (2 Kings 22:15-16). Yet, King Josiah because of his penitent heart and humbling himself before the LORD, would not witness the disaster that Judah and its inhabitants would experience (2 Kings 22:18-20). The LORD assured King Josiah that “he would be gathered to his grave in peace; and his eyes would not see all the disaster that the LORD would bring on Judah” (2 Kings 22:20). The LORD rewarded King Josiah. He lived his life righteously, pleasing the Lord. How will you live your life righteously, pleasing the Lord?

PRAYER: Father, we thank you from penitent hearts. Forgive us Lord. We choose to please you through the righteousness that you have afforded us in Jesus. Let our surrendered lives bring you glory and honor. AMEN

Rev. Angela W. Boyd, Chaplain, Christian Education Department of the AME Zion Church and Pastor of the New Mt. Olivet AME Zion Church, Rock Hill, SC.

Enduring Beliefs of the Christian Faith, With Our Holy God and the Holy Scriptures

2 KINGS 22:11-20
When the king heard the words of the book of the law, he tore his clothes.
2 Kings 22:11

When King Josiah heard the words of the Book of the Law, he tore his robes deeply consumed in grief. The newly rediscovered Scriptures exposed the degree of separation between God and a people that had moved away from all that was written there. In that moment, Josiah recognized the holiness of God and the weight of God’s Word. His heart was responsive, humble, and repentant before the Lord.

This passage reminds us that one of the enduring beliefs of the Christian faith is that God is holy, utterly pure, righteous, and unique. God’s holiness demands reverence and obedience. It is not enough to know about God – we must respond to God with brokenness and surrender.

The need to surrender is critical as it is not our will, but that of the Lord God that must be done. Because the king was willing to surrender his own will, the Lord declared that he and his ancestors would be buried in peace and not witness the disaster to come from the Lord to punish the disobedience which had occurred.

Today, God still gives us leaders like King Josiah to expose and show us our waywardness and help us to follow a directed path back to the Lord that we might delight in God’s Way. Not our will, but that of the Lord God be done. Josiah’s remorse and engagement shows that encountering God through God’s Word should stir repentance and renewal in our own lives.

PRAYER: Lord God, open our hearts to you and your way. Let our response be in surrender to your will so that you will be a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. AMEN.

Dr. Victor Taylor is the CFO for the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church. He and his wife Wanda reside in Nashville, Tennessee.

Resurrection Focus

LUKE 24:25-32
“Then he said to them, “Oh, how foolish you are and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared! Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into his glory?” Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures.
Luke 24:25-27

Jesus had just completed a walk down/up the Emmaus Road where two men were discussing their disappointment of the crucifixion and Jesus’ demise, while not realizing to whom they were speaking. Either they did not hear or did not remember that he was to rise again on the third day. They were afraid unnecessarily which Jesus considered as foolish.

Often, we go about our day-to-day agendas worrying about the issues that face us politically and economically and have not focused on Jesus’ purpose for his sacrifice. We have forgotten that he said in John 10:10b, “I came that they may have life and have it abundantly,” as well as in Galatians 6:7, “Do not be deceived; God is not mocked, for you reap whatever you sow.”

Let us read and internalize the Word so that we can be fearless in this world’s outcome.

PRAYER: Eternal God, thank you for your grace and mercy in this season. Thank you for your only begotten Son who has given his life as a ransom for our deliverance from the bondage of sin. Help us to focus on his sacrifice and your omnipotence, omniscience, and omni-presence during these challenging times. Help us to focus on the fact that Christ is the Kings of all kings, even the “wanna be” kings. In Jesus’ name, AMEN.

Rev. A. J. Holman, Sr., a Ph. D. in History candidate at Liberty University, Lynchburg, VA.
Pastor of Bethel AME Church, Chattanooga, TN

Prophecy and Expectation

NEHEMIAH 8:1-8 All the people gathered together into the square before the Water Gate. They told Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses, which the Lord had given to Israel.
Nehemiah 8:1

Here we see all the people gathering for one purpose, to hear the word of God. The people told the scribe Ezra to bring the book of the Law of Moses and start reading. It is interesting that it was the people who made the request for the preacher to bring the word, not the preacher telling the people to come hear a word. This is a very key point of the text. When my people who are called by my name humble themselves and seek my face, and turn…

Ezra shared the word of God for all those who could understand; and, for those who could not comprehend, there were others to help with interpretation. When Ezra opened the book, the people all stood up in reverence to God. When the word of God goes forth, we are to position ourselves to hear and receive. As the prophet Ezra blessed the Lord, the one true God of humankind, all the people began to shout, “Amen, Amen, Amen”. They lifted their hands and bowed their heads and worshiped with their faces to the ground.

When we call upon the preacher to bring the word, position ourselves to hear the word, and then show appreciation in praise and humility, God has a way of showing up. In this Advent season, be ready to hear from God. He has a new message and a new level of opportunity for all his people, in particular for the Church.

PRAYER: Lord God, we thank you for this word and accept it as a charge to move forward with you. In Jesus’ name, I pray, AMEN.

Rev. Darrell J. Williams served as a Presiding Elder in the Western Episcopal District for 20 + years and is currently a General Officer in the AME Zion Church, serving as Executive Director Zion Benefits Services.

Your Witness

JOHN 5:37-47 And the Father who sent me has himself testified on my behalf. You have never heard his voice or seen his form.
John 5:37

In John 5:37-47, Jesus is on trial in the informal court of Jewish religion as to the veracity of his assertion that he is the Son of God and thus equal with the Father. For this reason, Jesus has produced three witnesses on his behalf: John, the works, and the Father. Of these three, Jesus says the Father is the most crucial witness, but he presents all three to the Jews and says, “Your witness.”

The truth of who Jesus is, is irrefutable because the testimonies of the witnesses are undeniable and the witnesses themselves are unimpeachable. Nevertheless, Jesus stipulates that the Jews do not accept the witness of the Father because they have never seen him nor heard him, and his word is not alive in them. Is there any recourse to this dilemma? Yes, there is a fourth witness, the scriptures, which the Jews claim to believe, and which Jesus invites them to cross-examine. They, however, refuse to accept the testimony, the whole truth, of their own witness.

While deception and confusion remain at work in today’s religious world, the Holy Bible remains the unwavering testimony of God of himself, and Jesus is the true embodiment of that testimony. When the Jesus of the Bible does not conform to your will or understanding; when to believe in Jesus requires you to re-search the foundations of your faith and to reform your theology, what do you do?

PRAYER: Jesus, open our eyes and ears to see and hear you in the scriptures, that we may understand and believe your faithful witness, and that we may receive you as our God and Lord. AMEN.

Rev. Ore Spragin is Editor of The Christian Index of the CME Church, pastor of Hines Memorial in Albany, Georgia, and is married to Phyliss Spragin.

It’s Time to Get Ready

JOHN 17:14-19 I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world.
John 17:14

The Apostle John records Jesus’ prayer for the believers. Jesus prays to his Father to protect those who love him and whom he loves from the evil one. Those who do not know him or the believers will hate and seek to destroy. The time will come, so believers must be ready.
John the Baptist proclaimed, “Repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand”. Repentance means to change. John the Baptist reminds us that a change is about to come. December 25 is coming and after the presents have been opened, a change is gonna come. There’s a change a-coming! Curtis Mayfield sang a song:

People get ready there’s a train a-coming. You don’t need no baggage; you just get on board. All you need is faith to hear the diesels humming. You don’t need no ticket; you just thank the Lord. People get ready for the train to Jordan. Picking up passengers from coast to coast. Faith is the key open the doors and board them. There’s room for all among the loved the most. There ain’t no room for the hopeless sinner. Who would hurt all mankind just to save his own. Have pity on those whose chances are thinner, cause there’s no hiding place from the Kingdom’s Throne.

There’s a change a coming! Life is full of changes. We’re seeing change happen all around us, right now! Advent is the season of preparation for Christ’s coming. It is the time to get ready.

PRAYER: Gracious God, you love us so much that you provide us with divine protection and time to ready ourselves for the second coming of Christ! Thank you! AMEN

Rev. Dr. Jai Haithco, Sr. serves as the Sixth Episcopal District Dean of Christian Education and the Presiding Elder of the North Savannah District in the AME Church.