Isaiah 9:1, 2

Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those who were in distress. In the past he humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the future he will honor Galilee of the nations, by the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan—

The people walking in darkness
have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of deep darkness
a light has dawned ~ Isaiah 9:1, 2

The regions of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali had been overrun by those who invaded her lands, and had been shamed in that experience. The Jews in the lower regions felt they were purer than those who lived in these areas, yet it is to this shamed place where the Son of God first began his ministry. These places were of mixed blood, a shame not only of their heritage, but of the accounts of conquest which had taken place within her borders. Yet, Galilee is where most of Jesus disciples were from, and these unlearned men in the end were brave and courageous, filled with the Holy Spirit and preached the message of Christ to the world. The foretelling is of a better day, a day when those who lived under the darkness of oppression would see the light, when those who were looked upon with shame would say the Messiah began his ministry here. For those who feel you are under that darkness, and that there is nothing to look forward to, see what the prophet of old saw - hope in the future. A hope found in the light. For light sheds its rays into the corners of our hearts and fills it with truth. Truth of God's promises of love, and hope and redemption. A Saviour is born and he will bring God's Light into a dark and empty world, and into a dark and empty soul.
Devotion by Pastor Julia

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