November 30 Advent Devotional

Tuesday, November 30

1 Thessalonians 3:9-13

“For what thanksgiving can we return to God for you, for all the joy that we feel for your sake before our God . . .” (1 Thessalonian 3:9)

Elizabeth: Our dog Marley is a black lab who was adopted from an organization called Pawsitive Tails. Marley is now four and enjoys eating peanut butter, running around in the woods behind our house, lying in bed with me, and taking walks around our neighborhood. We have so many fun memories of Marley as a puppy. Around the time of her first Christmas, it started snowing. Marley was so confused! She walked out onto our deck as the snow was coming down, and she would not stop pawing at it. She batted the snowflakes in the air countless times, as if she could swipe them down to the ground. It was so funny to watch her experience snow for the first time. Marley is an amazing dog who brings so much love into our lives! She always cheers me up, and I love snuggling with her.

Jennifer: Dear God, thank you for loving us even more than our dogs love us. (Is that possible?!) These last two years have beat us up a bit, but we’re still here. We are fragile and grumpy and messy sometimes, but we’re still here. We are thankful for the pets AND the people in our lives, even if the people are sometimes trickier to get along with. Infuse our lives with your grace. Remind us to look for small moments of joy. Be the glue that holds us together. Amen.

And love will hold us together

Make us a shelter to weather the storm

And I’ll be my brother’s keeper

So the whole world would know that we’re not alone.

Matt Maher, “Hold Us Together”

Elizabeth and Jennifer Dilts