Stop and reflect

"...and recovery of sight for the blind"

Luke 4:18

As with the poor and those imprisoned, Jesus is not only concerned with the recovery of sight for the physically blind, but also those who have been spiritually blind all their lives. John Newton sums this up simply and powerfully in his well-loved hymn, 'Amazing Grace' with these words, 'I once was lost, but now I'm found; was blind, but now I see'.

Read Luke 7:21-22 and Luke 18:35-43 for further reflection and meditation on this week's theme.

Love God and His people

Feba's partner, Iraq FM, produces community-focused programmes that are building bridges of understanding among people of different faiths in this fragile, conflict-riven country. The station is seeing many come to faith in Christ as they share the transforming power of the gospel in people's lives.

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Raghad^* is blind and loves listening to Iraq FM using the station's Facebook page and phone app. Recently, she asked the team if they could provide her with an audio Bible. Following this spiritual breakthrough, a female member of the team is now meeting with her and helping her discover spiritual insights through listening to her new audio Bible.

Another female listener shared on air that her eyes had been opened to the gospel through listening to the radio station. She said with complete assurance, "I believe in Jesus. My family know that and they know I am reading the Bible every day. I am challenging the listeners because I have freely decided to follow Jesus. I have put my trust in Jesus and I will stay in that way and live every day with Jesus from now on."

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In this short video, Paul (our regional coordinator) shares a bit more about the work of Iraq FM and how their ministry is helping people to see to glory of the person of Jesus.

Open your heart to God in prayer

• Pray for the team at Iraq FM as they risk their lives each day for the sake of the gospel.
• Pray for those who are blind to God's truth that they will begin to see the light of His love in Jesus in this season of Advent.

Wait on God and walk in His ways

As you think about waiting in hope with the blind, keep in mind that our hopes are always in the future and never seen. Paul writes in Romans 8:24-25, 'For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently'. Hope requires us to be patient and trust in God. Although we don't know when or how our hopes will be fulfilled, we have confidence all will be revealed one day based on God's promises in the Bible and the things Jesus has taught us. Take time this week to meditate on Hebrews 11:1 as you wait patiently, expectantly and confidently for God to bring your hopes for this world and all who you pray for to fruition.

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Weekly reflections through Advent

We will be releasing fresh content each Sunday through Advent - all based around the central theme of 'Waiting in hope'. For an introduction to the series, please click here. You can also just click the following titles to visit each page when they go live (on the dates shown):

Week One: 27th November - 'Waiting in hope with the poor'

Week Two: 4th December - 'Waiting in hope with those in captivity'

Week Three: 11th December - 'Waiting in hope with those who cannot see'

Week Four: 18th December - 'Waiting in hope with those who are oppressed'

Please feel free to share details of this page and Feba's Advent resources with anyone you think might be interested - perhaps family or friends, maybe people from your church. We do still have some printed copies available too - please do contact us if you would like one/some sent in the post.

Thank you for your partnership with us this Advent season.

To make a donation to Feba's 'Waiting in Hope' Advent appeal, please click here. Thank you.