Joy | Advent Week 3
This devotional comes from our Advent 2025 booklet, In Quiet Expectation.
If you weren't able to pick up a copy, don't worry! We're sharing our devotionals here to help you reflect on the meaning of the season—the arrival of Jesus Christ, whose very birth began to minister to those who encountered Him.
Join us in celebrating Advent by lighting the third candle of Joy.
If you weren't able to pick up a copy, don't worry! We're sharing our devotionals here to help you reflect on the meaning of the season—the arrival of Jesus Christ, whose very birth began to minister to those who encountered Him.
Join us in celebrating Advent by lighting the third candle of Joy.
Read: Psalm 51
“Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit” (v. 12, ESV). This verse embodies the joy that I have always found in Jesus Christ since I became a believer.
But despite that joy and my heartfelt desire to serve the Lord, I still find it difficult at times to have a willing spirit to do all that I am called to do. How crazy is that, when I know with all my heart that if I am obedient to His will, my life will be so much better lived?
In Psalm 51, we find David longing for the “joy of salvation,” but that joy finds its ultimate fulfillment in Jesus. Through Christ’s birth, life, and resurrection, salvation is not just a hope—it’s a living reality. Jesus said this Himself: “I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete” (John 15:11).
David also prayed, “grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me” (v. 12, NIV). When Jesus came to earth, He not only brought salvation but promised the Holy Spirit to dwell in believers, empowering us to live with renewed hearts and willing spirits.
That’s the ongoing gift of Christmas—God’s Spirit sustaining us with joy and obedience. At Christmas, we celebrate that joy entering the world—not a fleeting happiness, but the deep, restoring joy of God dwelling with us, Emmanuel.
But despite that joy and my heartfelt desire to serve the Lord, I still find it difficult at times to have a willing spirit to do all that I am called to do. How crazy is that, when I know with all my heart that if I am obedient to His will, my life will be so much better lived?
In Psalm 51, we find David longing for the “joy of salvation,” but that joy finds its ultimate fulfillment in Jesus. Through Christ’s birth, life, and resurrection, salvation is not just a hope—it’s a living reality. Jesus said this Himself: “I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete” (John 15:11).
David also prayed, “grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me” (v. 12, NIV). When Jesus came to earth, He not only brought salvation but promised the Holy Spirit to dwell in believers, empowering us to live with renewed hearts and willing spirits.
That’s the ongoing gift of Christmas—God’s Spirit sustaining us with joy and obedience. At Christmas, we celebrate that joy entering the world—not a fleeting happiness, but the deep, restoring joy of God dwelling with us, Emmanuel.
Written by
Corrie Prentice, Wake Forest Campus Next Steps Director
Reflect:
How does remembering that your joy comes from the salvation and strength of Jesus—not your circumstances—change the way you approach challenges and daily life?
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