Ben Van Arragon

Read: Zephaniah 3:14-20 He will rejoice over you with gladness. (v. 17) For much of my life, I was self-conscious about my musical ability and my singing voice. Then my

Read: Isaiah 35:1-10 Everlasting joy shall be upon their heads. (v. 10) You are reading these words about halfway through Advent. If like me, you live in the Northern Hemisphere,

Read: 1 Samuel 2:1-10 I rejoice in your salvation. (v. 1) What makes joy so important that we celebrate it all week during Advent? It’s easy to confuse joy for

Read: 1 John 4:7-21 We love because he first loved us. (v. 19) When my wife and I got married, I thought my love was complete. Nearly ten years later,

Read: John 3:16-21 God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son . . . (v. 16) John 3:16 is perhaps the most famous verse of the entire

Read: Luke 1:26-38 Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you! (v. 28) Mary was an unmarried teenager when the angel Gabriel appeared. I once heard a preacher observe

Read: Psalm 103 Great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him. (v. 11) My favorite Christmas movie is It’s a Wonderful Life. It’s a film about a man

Read: Isaiah 54:1-10 Your Maker is your husband. (v. 5) For many, Christmas is a season of profound loneliness. In any given community, there are people who have few friends,

Read: Jeremiah 2:1-13 I remember the devotion of your youth. (v. 2) I once counseled a woman who was heartbroken over her daughter. The daughter, a young adult with self-destructive