Our Joy Complete
Read: John 16:16-24 Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full. (v. 24) Nearly a third of John’s gospel is devoted to “the Farewell Discourse”: Jesus’s final
Ben Van Arragon December 19, 2025
As you prepare for Christmas, do you find it hard to feel the promised hope, love, joy, and peace promised in this season?
Advent is a season of waiting—but also of longing. While the world rushes to decorate, celebrate, and check every box, our souls may feel the quiet ache of deeper questions. What do I hope for? Does God’s love reach even here? Can joy really break through sorrow? Where can I find peace?
During this season, take time to light the candles of Advent. Each week, we’ll light a new candle and focus on a new theme, starting with hope, then love, joy, and peace, culminating in our shared celebration of Christmas. Drawing from the voices of prophets, psalmists, and apostles, each reflection helps you discover how God’s light shines in the very real darkness of our world—and our hearts. From Eden’s first promise to Bethlehem’s quiet miracle, you’ll follow the story of a God who draws near, redeems brokenness, and brings light that cannot be overcome.
Whether you come to this season with weariness, anticipation, or a mix of both, this devotional helps you slow down and open your heart. You’ll find a God who sees your waiting, welcomes your longing, and meets you with faithfulness.
Jesus, the Light of the world, has come—and he will come again. Until then, we wait not with empty hands, but with full hearts. With hope. With love. With joy. With peace.
Let this be a season where you not only remember the light—but walk in it.
This series was written by Ben Van Arragon, an ordained minister in the Christian Reformed Church in North America. After twenty years of congregational ministry, Ben now serves his denomination as a pastor wellbeing consultant in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Read: John 16:16-24 Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full. (v. 24) Nearly a third of John’s gospel is devoted to “the Farewell Discourse”: Jesus’s final
Read: Hebrews 12:1-11 For the joy that was set before him [he] endured the cross. (v. 2) When I was young, my two favorite days of the year were my
Read: Numbers 6:22-27 Thus you shall bless the people. (v. 23) In the novel The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, C. S. Lewis introduces us to Narnia—a cursed world in
Read: Isaiah 9:1-7 Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end. (v. 7) For believers in Jesus, the Christmas season can bring a sense
Read: Luke 1:67-79 He has visited and redeemed his people. (v. 68) Zechariah was an old man when he received the fulfilment of God’s outrageous promise. Zechariah had spent most
Read: Micah 5:1-9 And he shall be their peace. (v. 5) Micah’s prophecy took place in an age of empires. Micah was a prophet in the 700s BC, a time
Read: Luke 2:1-20 Unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior. (v. 11) Merry Christmas! As you read the familiar story of Jesus’s birth today,
Ben Van Arragon is an ordained minister in the Christian Reformed Church in North America. After twenty years of congregational ministry, he now serves his denomination as a pastor wellbeing consultant in Grand Rapids, Michigan.