Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “A season of celebration”   Our Bible verse for today: “Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.” Luke 2:13-14 (NIV)   Our thought for today: “Celebrate the Prince of Peace”   I’m so glad the Christmas season is finally here. This is the time of year when people are inclined to put aside their fussing and fighting, their selfishness and bickering, and to be a little more cheerful and a little more considerate of others. Boy, do we need that this year!   In Luke 2:13-14 Luke records that the angels announcing the birth of Jesus declared that He would bring peace on earth to people on whom His favor rests. That was essentially a reiteration of Isaiah’s prophecy in Isaiah 9:6 that Jesus would be “The Prince of Peace”. He brings peace on earth to those upon whom His favor rests.   I sure do want His favor to rest upon me and I’m sure you do too. We all need to experience more of His peace. Often, for the Christian, the peace of Jesus is experienced in times of prayer, or in quiet meditation, or through the words of a song. It’s internal and personal and often occurs when we’re alone with Him. But the primary way the world gets to experience the peace of Jesus is when it flows through His followers and out to the world.   You’ve probably heard the old saying, “Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me.” That saying has appeared in song lyrics, poems, stories, articles, and daily devotionals, and it has been attributed to many different authors. The truth seems to be that it was originally part of a children’s song composed by songwriting team Seymour and Jill Miller in 1955. But whatever the source, the theology is sound. If there is going to be peace on earth, or in our country, or state, or town, or home, it needs to begin with each of us individually. If the peace of Jesus is going to be experienced far and wide this Christmas season (as it needs to be), it will be up to you and me to be the conduits through which it flows to a broken, bleeding, and hurting world.   I encourage you to celebrate the Prince of Peace by being an emissary of His peace. Remind the world of what Christmas is truly about by sharing the peace brought to us by the Christ of Christmas.   God bless, Pastor Jim   (If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2025 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “A season of celebration”   Our Bible verse for today: “Here I am today, eight-five years old. I am still as strong today as I was the day Moses sent me out. My strength for battle and for daily tasks is now as it was then.” Joshua 14:10-11 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Be active. It’s good for you.”   One of the worst things that can happen to your body is to become sedate. The less you move the closer you are to being dead. It’s just a fact. The more active you remain the longer you are likely to stay healthy. Sadly, many people choose to be sedate. They choose the lifestyle of a couch potato, but that’s a prescription for poor health and early death.   We can choose to be active. Even as we age and even if we have limitations because of poor health, we can intentionally engage in as much activity as our body will tolerate. For more than ten years I lived in a community that consisted largely of retired senior citizens. I used to go to the community gym to exercise, and I was amazed to see so many older people swimming, lifting weights, doing aerobics, playing pickleball and tennis, walking on the walking track, and much more. No kidding, there were people pushing walkers around the walking track. Good for them! Today I live in a different community, and I go to a different gym out in town but even there, there are people of all ages and abilities exercising and taking care of themselves.    Even walking around your neighborhood is good exercise. I love to hike and walk. It was instilled in me by my mother at a very young age. She was a walker. She walked everywhere. She walked to get places (our family only had one car, and my father usually had it); but she also walked simply for the pleasure of enjoying the fresh air, seeing people, and getting exercise. We children walked with her and therefore, I’ve always been a walker too. I regularly go for long hikes on mountain trails, and I often go for an after-dinner walk too.  I think it’s in my DNA.   All this month we’re devotionally considering the idea that celebrating is good for us. I’ve called our attention to all the many ways we celebrate big occasions, like Christmas and Easter and birthdays, but I’ve also made the point that we need to be attentive to celebrating the smaller, more routine things in life too like puppy dogs and ice cream and time with friends and family. Even a good walk is a time to smile, give thanks, and enjoy. If you can still move, then you should. If you are able to be active then rejoice in it and enjoy it!   I once read a great quote from the poet and writer Robert Lewis Stevenson. He was a hiker/walker/traveler. In fact, he spent most of his adult life traveling from one location to another and writing about it. He said, “I travel not to go anywhere, but to go. I travel for travel’s sake. The great affair is to move.”   Stevenson simply enjoyed being active because there’s great joy in it. Whether you’re traveling around the world or around the block, I encourage you to “go”. Move your body. Celebrate being active. It’s good for you.   God bless, Pastor Jim   (If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2025 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “A season of celebration”   Our Bible verse for today: “… I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.” Matthew 16:18 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Celebrate the truth that Jesus is winning”   Sometimes it can appear to us as if the church in the United States is on the ropes. Church attendance and the influence of Christianity had already been in decline long before the COVID 19 pandemic. Then during the pandemic, it took a nosedive and hundreds of churches even closed their doors for good. Others never fully recovered to their pre-pandemic numbers. Now, more than three years after the end of the pandemic, the decline in attendance and of the influence of the church on society seems to be continuing. We are becoming what anthropologists and historians would label “a post-Christian society.”   So, we could conclude that things look bleak for the church. But I believe that would be a misreading of the situation. For almost two thousand years Christianity has repeatedly gone through seasons of trial and struggle. Powerful leaders, governments, even entire societies have been aligned against Christianity. Churches have been destroyed; Bibles have been burned; Christians have been persecuted, imprisoned, and executed. There have been times of wars and famines, plagues and natural disasters. But through it all the church of Jesus Christ has survived and thrived and there are more Christians on this planet today than there have ever been at any time in history.   In Matthew 16:18 Jesus declared that He would build His church and the gates of hell – even all the forces of Satan – wouldn’t be able to prevent it from happening. That was two thousand years ago and here we are today, even after having to face all that opposition, and His church is bigger and stronger across the globe than ever.   Despite how discouraging the situation may appear to be in any country or region at any time in history, Jesus is still on the throne, we are still saved, the message of the Gospel is still being shared around the world, people are still coming to faith in Christ, and the church is still growing worldwide. That has always been the case, it is still the case today, and it will continue to be the case until the day that Jesus comes back.    Jesus said He would build His church, and He has, and He still is, and He will continue to. Despite Satan’s best efforts to prevent it, Jesus is winning and we are a part of His victory.   Now that’s something to celebrate!   God bless, Pastor Jim   (If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2025 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “A season of celebration”   Our Bible verse for today: “Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead, I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:13-14 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Celebrate the change”   I have a childhood friend I still keep in touch with. We grew up together and did a lot of crazy stuff. Once, when we were sixteen, we each lied to our parents by saying we were going to spend the weekend with the other one’s family at the beach. Then we hitchhiked down the New Jersey Turnpike all the way to Washington D.C. to participate in some big hippie demonstration. When we got there, we discovered that the National Guard had locked down the city and the demonstrators had been forced off the streets. We ended up spending the weekend in the basement of a church with other demonstrators, and then we hitchhiked back to New Jersey.   Unfortunately, shortly after that my friend became addicted to alcohol and he spent the next twenty years of his life as a barely functional drunk. Finally, he somehow found his way to Alcoholics Anonymous, got sober, and put his life back together. He got married, started a business, joined a church, and became active in the community. He also became a mentor for other alcoholics. Now, every year on the anniversary of the day he became sober, he celebrates another year of sobriety. That’s been more than thirty years now and my friend has stayed sober. He will tell you that he is still a work-in-progress and every day he tries to be a little better than he was the day before.   That’s what the Apostle Paul was writing about in Philippians 3:13-14. He had been a notorious sinner – a mean and cruel man who presided over the persecution, arrest, torture, and execution of Christians. Once he came to faith in Jesus Christ he was transformed and began to change, but for the rest of his life he considered himself to be a work-in-progress. He never “arrived”. He was always in need of continued growth and constant improvement.   The same is true for you and me. Your background might not be as dark as Paul’s or my friend’s, but like the rest of us you have your own skeletons hiding in the closets. And like the rest of us, you too should be in a constant state of growth and improvement. If you are, that’s something to celebrate.   There’s an old saying that goes, “I’m not yet who I should be, but thank God I’m not who I used to be!”   Can I get an “Amen!”? If you’re a little better today than you were yesterday, that’s something to celebrate. If you’re a lot better today than you were twenty years ago, that might deserve a party, or maybe even an annual celebration. Celebrate the good changes God has brought into your life.   God bless, Pastor Jim   (If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2025 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “A season of celebration”   Our Bible verse for today: “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.” Psalm 116:15 (NIV)   Our thought for today: “Even death can be a cause for celebration”   All this month we are devotionally considering the truth that celebrating is good for us. It’s even an essential part of life. The Bible itself is filled from beginning to end with examples of God’s people celebrating. In some cases, such as with the Lord’s Supper, God has commanded us to observe, remember, and celebrate, and He has given us specific instructions for how to do it. In many other passages we’re simply told stories about weddings and feasts and public ceremonies that God’s people participated in.   The other day I performed the memorial service for my friend Dick Bidwell. But we didn’t call it a memorial service, we called it a celebration of life. It was a bittersweet time. On the one hand, it was sad because we all miss him already. But it was also joyful because we celebrated a long life that was lived well.   That experience helped me to remember that not only is celebration an important and essential part of life, but if viewed correctly we realize it can also be part of the death experience too. That’s true for several reasons. First, we make it a point to remember and celebrate the life of the deceased person. Their life was a gift to them and to us, and we celebrate the fact that the person was with us for whatever number of years they were here on earth.   Another reason we celebrate is because of the promise of eternity in heaven. Christians understand that when the person’s mortal body ceases to function, that person didn’t really die. Instead, the spirit simply left the physical body and transitioned from this realm into heaven. All the pain and suffering associated with this world has ended for that person, and they immediately enter a new reality that is glorious beyond anything we can imagine. That too is a reason to celebrate.   And then, as Psalm 116:15 explains, the passing from this life to the next is a precious thing for God. He was waiting patiently for His child to complete his or her journey through this world and arrive at their real home in heaven. The moment that happened was precious to God and it was a cause for rejoicing and celebrating in heaven. A dearly loved child was finally home.   So, the death of a Christian is a bittersweet experience. While it certainly is a time of grieving and mourning with sadness and with tears, for multiple reasons it’s also a time of celebration.   For those who have lost a loved one this year and are now approaching their first Christmas without that person, I encourage you to remember their life and be thankful for it. Then celebrate the fact that the person is now in heaven.   God bless, Pastor Jim   (If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2025 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “A season of celebration”   Our Bible verse for today: “Do not fear; for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are mine. Isaiah 43:1 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Celebrate your purpose in life”   Human beings need a clear purpose in life in order to thrive. It has been said that lack of clear purpose is as harmful and destructive as lack of adequate sleep. We can survive without it, but we can’t thrive without it. The greater sense of clear purpose a person has in his or her life, the richer, fuller, and more satisfying that life will be. I know of Pastors who are still preaching and teaching in their 80s and even 90s. Taking care of God’s people is what they do, it’s what gets them out of bed in the morning and it’s what keeps them going in life.   I once read an account from a humanitarian aid worker in a Bosnian refugee camp about the refugees whose lives had been shattered. They had lost everything they owned – they had no home, no money, no resources, and no prospects for the future. Most of the refugees were depressed and just shuffled through their days with no sense of purpose and with no hope. He said the refugees who seemed to handle it best were the parents and grandparents who had young children to care for. They knew they had to wake up every day and be strong for someone else. It gave them a focus and a sense of purpose.   The issue of purpose and meaning is relatively simple for Christians. Although God may call us to many different endeavors and responsibilities through the course of the different seasons of life, our most basic purpose in life is to know God well, honor Him with how we live, and bless others through acts of service in His name. For many of us we even get to enter a season of life (usually the last season) when the responsibility of jobs, children, and many other things are no longer present, and instead we get to devote ourselves to times of prayer, Bible study, worship, fellowship, and service. Your purpose is clear and you have lots of time for it.   The words of Isaiah 43:1 were spoken to the nation of Israel. God called them by name and redeemed them. They were His and their purpose was to honor Him with their lives. But that’s true of us too. God has called you to Himself – you are His. And although you may have other purposes in your life too, your primary purpose is to know God, honor Him, and spend your life helping to build His kingdom on earth.   I encourage you to spend some time this morning thinking and praying about that clear and primary purpose of your life and the different ways in which you are fulfilling it.   God bless, Pastor Jim   (If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2025 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “A season of celebration”   Our Bible verse for today: “For through me your days will be many, and years will be added to your life.” Proverbs 9:11 (NIV)   Our thought for today: “Celebrate the life not just the number”   One of the most common forms of celebration is a birthday celebration. We celebrate them in our church all the time. One might be for a boy who turns ten and could include a party in the church gymnasium with all the treats kids love, along with a NERF battle complete with NERF guns and swords. Another might be for a man turning fifty. For him family and friends might provide a cake which we all share in the Fellowship Hall after the service.  Both birthdays are special and both are celebrated. (Tomorrow is my wife’s birthday and we have something special planned for her. But don’t tell her, it’s surprise.)   Birthdays are important forms of celebration for several reasons. First, just the simple fact that the person was given another year of life is special. Many people don’t get the privilege of living a long life. Some who were here for their birthday last year are no longer with us today. A birthday party is a celebration of the gift of a life that continues.   Also, when we celebrate a person’s birthday, we aren’t celebrating a number but a life. We’re expressing joy and gratitude for this person. We’re celebrating the fact that this person was brought into the world to begin with and is still here with us today. Birthdays celebrate the gift of life and the uniqueness of this person’s individual life. Every person is special. Every person is a unique and much-loved creation of God. And every person is a reason to celebrate. (Speaking of unique, I once knew a man whose last name was “Christmas” and he was born on Christmas day).   The next time you get to participate in a birthday celebration I encourage you to really think about the person and the life you are helping to celebrate. We’re celebrating a life not just a number.   God bless, Pastor Jim   (If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2025 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “A season of celebration”   Our Bible verse for today: “I am sure of this, that he who started a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 1:6 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Remember and celebrate your mountaintop experiences”   Some years ago I wrote a book with the title, “Bringing it Home: A post-trip devotional guide for international and short-term mission teams”. It’s a fourteen-day devotional guide which is intended to help those who have gone on short-term missions to process the experience and then hold onto the lessons, incorporating them into life back home.   The premise of the book is that short-term mission trips are often thought of as a mountaintop experience because they’re so special. On a short-term mission we’re far removed from the distractions and complications of everyday life. God has our full attention as we focus on doing His work in a different and often remote location. As a result, this is a time when people often experience lifechanging moments. They receive spiritual insights, or an answer to a problem they were struggling with, or perhaps a calling from God in terms of career or ministry.   The object of the book was to help the short-term missionary bring that experience back home, hold onto it, and incorporate it into their lives. A primary way of doing that is to record the experience in a spiritual journal and then go back periodically to review and celebrate it. You can also acquire a memento or souvenir associated with the occasion and keep it in a spot where you will see it often and remember your special time. That’s true not just for experiences on short-term mission trips but anytime we have a special encounter with God. That event, whether it be big or small, needs to be recorded, re-visited, and periodically celebrated.   We need to remember those important God-given times in our lives if they’re going to make a long-term difference. One application of the truth Paul expressed in Philippians 1:6 is that at the time of your mountaintop experience God initiated a change in you, a moment of growth which He intends to carry forward in your life. But for that to happen you will need to hang onto it and remember it.   From time-to-time we all have those personal mountaintop experiences with God. I encourage you to not let them slip away. Celebrate them at the time but remember and celebrate them in the future as well.   God bless, Pastor Jim   (If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2025 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “A season of celebration:   Our Bible verse for today: “The Lord said to Moses, ‘Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘These are my appointed feasts, the appointed feasts to the Lord, which you are to proclaim as sacred assemblies.’” Leviticus 23:1-2 (NIV)   Our thought for today: “Celebration can be an act of worship”   From start to finish, from Genesis to Revelation, the Bible is packed full of examples of God’s people feasting and celebrating as a way of practicing their faith. Feasts, festivals, and celebrations are designed by God to call to our remembrance special occasions or significant events that are markers in the history of His people.   That was the case in Leviticus chapter twenty-three when God instructed Moses to outline for the people seven major “sacred assemblies” that would be a regular part of their annual calendar. It began with the requirement for a weekly Sabbath gathering. It then included the Passover, the Feast of First Fruits, The Feast of Weeks, the Feast of Trumpets, the Day of Atonement, and the Feast of Tabernacles. Each of these sacred assemblies had their own special purpose and were to be observed at their appointed times, and each would bring God’s people into a special time of worship as they remembered and celebrated that occasion.   The Old Testament Jews had nine major and ten minor times of celebration which were included as a regularly scheduled part of their worship throughout the year. That tradition has carried-over into the New Testament as well, and for us it also begins with a weekly gathering for worship. Easter Sunday is the most significant time of remembrance and celebration in the Christian calendar year, but every Sunday is also a celebration of the resurrection. Every Sunday is essentially a mini-Easter Sunday.   The Lord’s Supper is another such time of remembrance and celebration that is regularly included in Christian worship. Additionally, many churches including my own, celebrate Christmas Eve with a Christmas Eve Candlelight service to help us recall and celebrate the birth of Christ. Beyond that, depending on your tradition and denomination, there are multiple other times of feasting, celebrating, and remembrance included as acts of worship.   Not only is celebrating good for us in a general sense, but it’s also an important part of the practice of our faith. I encourage you to participate in that weekly celebration known as the worship service but also be sure you don’t miss those other special times of celebration too.   God bless, Pastor Jim   (If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2025 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “A season of celebration”

Our Bible verse for today: “But the father told his servants, ‘Quick! Bring out the best robe and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Then bring the fattened calf and slaughter it, and let’s celebrate with a feast, because this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found!’ So they began to celebrate.” Luke 15:22-24 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Celebration is a big part of life”

Human beings are naturally inclined to find things to celebrate. It’s just part of our nature. We like to be happy; we like to feel good; and we love it when things turn out well for us. So, we are predisposed to find reasons to celebrate. And that’s a good thing. As we’ve already learned, celebrating is good for us. It helps us to better appreciate life, it helps to relieve stress, it draws people closer together in a festive way, and it leads us to be grateful to God.

Also, celebrations are already more a part of your life than you realize. We already celebrate a slew of major holidays including New Years, Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday, Valentine’s Day, President’s Day, Saint Patrick’s Day, Easter, Cinco de Mayo, Memorial Day, July 4^th, Labor Day, Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.

Then there are all sorts of minor holidays like Columbus Day, Susan B. Anthony Day, Confederate Heroes Day, Ground Hog Day, and so many more. Did you know that every single day of the year has multiple designations as being the national day of something? “National Pickle Day”; “National Donut Day”, ‘National Eat Your Beans Day”; “National Cow Appreciation Day”. There are more than a thousand national days of something.

Then add in all the personal celebrations like family birthdays, graduation ceremonies, job promotions, and a hundred other occasions which call for a celebration big or small. In Luke 15:22-24 we read about a father who put on a big feast to celebrate the fact that his wayward son had come home.

The fact is that we humans like to celebrate. It’s an ingrained part of our nature and it’s good for us. Tomorrow we will consider the fact that God has established a long series of religious celebrations as a regular part of life for His people. But for today, I encourage you to find a reason, big or small, to celebrate. It shouldn’t be hard. You’re already preprogramed to celebrate anyway. God created you that way.

God bless,

Pastor Jim

(If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville