Hidden Heroes in the Christmas Story: Anna, The Prophetess
Release Date: 12/20/2024
8 Great Ways to Honor Your Wife: Encourage Her Gifts
A Moment of Hope
by David Chadwick I want to see biblical manhood reflected in the church. I want husbands to know how to honor their wives, creating strong marriages. I want to see strong, healthy families who love the Lord with all their hearts, souls, minds, and strength. I believe a strong family starts with a strong marriage. And a strong marriage starts with humble men who know how to honor their wives. We are looking at 8 great ways for husbands to develop a culture of honor with their wives. Here is the next tool: encourage her gifts! Your wife has a call from God that he has given her to accomplish...
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8 Great Ways to Honor Your Wife: Be a Man of God
A Moment of Hope
by David Chadwick A toolbox packed full of different tools gives someone the confidence to step into a variety of situations and bring a solution. If you only have a “hammer” and you find a situation that needs a “screwdriver,” you will not get very far. Over the next two weeks, we are exploring 8 Great Ways to Honor Your Wife. I want to give you, husbands, tools to strengthen your marriage. My prayer is that God strengthens your marriage as you put these “8 Greats” into practice in your home. Today’s tool: be a man of God! This is an absolute must for all husbands. You are to be...
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8 Great Ways to Honor Your Wife: Trust Her Gut
A Moment of Hope
by David Chadwick I want to teach you principles for developing biblical love and honor within a marriage. I love pithy statements that help to easily remember things. Marilynn and I have found the term “8 Great” to be a very easy way to remember Godly principles for different areas of life. Over the next two weeks, I want to share 8 Great Ways to Honor Your Wife. Each day, I am going to give you, husbands, a new tool that you can put in your tool belt. Different situations require different tools and my prayer is that you will become more equipped to lead and love your wife with HONOR....
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8 Great Ways to Honor Your Wife: What is Honor?
A Moment of Hope
Honor. Such a powerful word. To honor is defined as this: “to regard with great respect, to prize, to admire, to give special recognition, to demonstrate high respect or great esteem for someone." In historical biblical culture, the word “honor” carried tremendous weight. Even today, there are cultures around the world that place a high value on honor. In God’s original intent, honor is a tool to bestow on one another, to bless, to prefer someone else over ourselves. Unfortunately, in the modern American Christian culture, people seem to gravitate to one of two extremes regarding...
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Descriptions of a Faithful Friend: “Your Minister to My Needs”
A Moment of Hope
Faithful friends are hard to come by and the ones you find are worth keeping. Paul had a faithful friend named Epaphroditus who he describes in detail in Philippians 2:25. I pray that Paul’s description helps to show you what characteristics to look for in your friendships. Epaphroditus was a brother, a fellow worker, a fellow soldier, and a messenger. And today we will look at the fifth and final characteristic where Paul calls Epaphroditus “your minister to my needs” (verse 25). Epaphroditus was a minister of the church at Philippi, sent to Paul in a Roman prison to meet his needs....
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Descriptions of a Faithful Friend: “Your Messenger”
A Moment of Hope
Faithful. This word is defined as “steadfast in affection or allegiance, loyal, constant, devoted.” Paul describes his faithful friend Epaphroditus in Philippians 2:25. He uses five terms to describe him. A brother. A fellow worker. A fellow soldier. And today’s description: your messenger! Paul calls Epaphroditus in these verses “your messenger” (verse 25). The Philippian church sent him to encourage Paul with a gift. We don’t know what the gift actually was but their message must have helped Paul feel encouraged in his prison trial. How do you strengthen a friendship? Become a...
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Descriptions of a Faithful Friend: "My Fellow Soldier"
A Moment of Hope
Proverbs 18:24 says, “A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” Do you know what I have found to create the deepest of bonds between faithful friends? Even more than being a brother or a fellow worker? Someone who is a fellow soldier! It is the third term Paul uses to describe Epaphroditus in Philippians 2:25. A faithful friend who is a fellow soldier understands that we are at war. There is a battle raging for souls until Jesus returns. A fellow soldier counts the cost of what is happening and sees the eternal victory. A fellow...
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Descriptions of a Faithful Friend: "My Fellow Worker"
A Moment of Hope
Faithful friends are hard to come by! They are the rare ones who weep when you weep and rejoice when you rejoice (Romans 12:15). They bear your burdens (Galatians 6:2). They challenge you to grow out of your sin and move into righteousness (Proverbs 27:6). Paul had a faithful friend named Epaphroditus. He described him very intentionally in Philippians 2:25. First, as a brother. And secondly as “my fellow worker.” What does this mean? As a fellow worker, both Paul and Ephaphroditus both shared in the common labor of loving and serving Christ. They worked together first in Philippi and then...
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Descriptions of a Faithful Friend: “My Brother”
A Moment of Hope
How many of you have a faithful friend? Someone who loves you, champions you, and desires God’s best for your life. Or maybe you are blessed enough to have two, three, or even more! Faithful friends are hard to come by and can only be proven through seasons of both trials and victories. The apostle Paul had a friend like this. His name was Epaphroditus and you’ll find their story in Philippians 2:25-30. Paul described him in verse 25 as his “brother and fellow worker and fellow soldier, and your messenger and minister to my need.” Epaphroditus came from Philippi to bring Paul a gift of...
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Bad Guys of the Bible: Zimri and Cozbi
A Moment of Hope
This week we are sharing some of your favorite Moments of Hope from 2024. Thank you for taking a moment of your day to grow in your discipleship journey with us. To explore additional resources from Moments of Hope Church, please by David Chadwick We have looked at some hidden heroes from the Bible this week. People who are probably not as known, but had a significant impact on the storyline of the Bible. But I want to wrap up this week with another couple of bad guys. These are two individuals who tried to thwart all of the good in God’s story. Yet, in spite of...
info_outlineby David Chadwick
Anna the prophetess is today’s hidden hero. She is one of my favorite heroes in the Christmas story. Like Simeon, Anna’s story is also found in Luke 2, starting in verse 36. I love that God chose to give such a significant role of prophetess to a woman like Anna.
She is another devout character in the Christmas story who heard from the Lord and spoke truth in the temple area. Anna was the daughter of Phanuel. He must have been a Godly man to produce such a wonderful woman like Anna.
The Bible describes her as being “advanced in years.” She married as a virgin and lived with her husband for seven years until he died. She then spent the rest of her life as a widow until the age of 84. After her husband died, Anna spent all of her time in the temple, “worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day” (Luke 2:37).
Anna was in the temple when Simeon blessed Jesus. Upon hearing of the Messiah’s birth, Anna "began to give thanks to God and to speak of him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem” (Luke 2:38). She, like Simeon, began to give thanks to God. Anna must have known in her spirit that the Messiah had arrived!
Anna was thrilled to speak about Jesus to all who would listen to her that this baby Jesus was the one who would bring redemption to Jerusalem.
The hidden heroes of the Christmas story make the story come more alive for me. None of them knew what a significant role they would play in the coming of Jesus. They weren’t seeking the spotlight. In fact, some of them, like Adam, really messed up. But the grace of God’s story is evident in them all. None of these characters were perfect, but they made themselves available to God to be used by him.
As for Anna, she was humble and servant-hearted. Kind and gentle. And God used her mightily to advance his kingdom. Like all of these hidden heroes, God used each of them so powerfully to help tell the greatest story ever told.
A story we all get to be a part of even today!