Tuesday With Teri

Devotions from lessons I'm learning from God

Jose’ December 20, 2025

Filed under: devotionals — tlmiller82 @ 4:19 pm
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(Not an actual photo of Jose’)

This 4th week of Advent we consider JOY.  It is always one of my favorite themes on which to focus.  Every year, I am reminded of the difference between joy and happiness.   Happiness is rooted in circumstances, and circumstances are constantly changing.  I love to be happy, but happiness is not always my companion; sometimes I am decidedly unhappy.  But JOY, the joy of the Lord, bubbles up from within us, not due to circumstances, but through the understanding that God is with us, fulfilling His promises. Joy is the knowing that while things may not always seem okay, our God has and will continue to bring us through.

When the angels appeared to the shepherds that night, they did not say “we are about to make you happy, instead they proclaimed “ …behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people, for unto you is born this day in the city of David a savior, which is Christ the Lord.”   The world could let out a collective breath that they may not have even known was being held. The Advent of Jesus Christ would mean reconciliation with God, atonement for our sin, grace, and peace in our hearts.  This is truly joyous news!  Daily, I find myself forgetful of this great gift.  I struggle in my flesh, seek happiness only, angrily shake my fist at the world, or wring my hands in despair…But our God said, “I got this” long before we faced our difficult days.   He is worthy of so much joy-filled praise for His great love for us.  Last Sunday, I saw this in action.

His name is Jose’.  I only know this because of a brief “turn and say hello to your neighbor” aspect in the church’s order of service.  He was kind and earnest, his warm smile pushed up his greying mustache, the ends of which nearly met the laugh-lined outer creases of his bright eyes.  The service began.  On the first musical note of the holiday hymn Jose’ sprang to life.  His face turned upward, his arms flowing along with the tune, his gestures punctuating each word of the song.  It was as if he were directing the music.  That morning, as hymns, praise songs, and scriptures were sung, Jose’ seemed unaware of anyone around him.  It was as if he could not help himself…buoyantly reaching up and out as if trying to touch the literal hem of the garment of God.  At one point, I wondered if I was going to need to reach out to grasp his shoes if he levitated off the ground.  He was filled with Joy and it flowed forth in the most beautiful and quiet way.   The image of Jose’ has stayed with me this week…Oh to be reaching out, looking up and overflowing with the understanding of this great JOY… the Joy He gives us through the redemption we find in Christ Jesus. 

In the quiet of the morning, as I sat with my coffee by our Christmas tree, I couldn’t help but think of Jose’….in my prayers, in my life, may I always be reaching out, looking up and seeking God, with a longing to worship God from an overflow of JOY.

Friends,

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in faith so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Romans 15:13

 

Rager in the Manger December 13, 2025

Filed under: advent,Christianity,Christmas,devotionals — tlmiller82 @ 10:00 am
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Following our granddaughters’ last visit, our manger scene was a bit of a mess.  The aftermath of them spending time with the figurines resulted in what appears to be a rather rough morning after a crazy party.  I was tempted to rearrange the scene, righting it from this chaos to a more aesthetically pleasing nativity scene…but I stopped myself.

 

      Every morning, I look at what I now call the “Rager in the Manger” and smile.  I am reminded of the little hands that held those figurines and the interesting conversations I overheard. 

 

      The display’s inhabitants varied quite a bit…in addition to the regulars, a nesting doll set, a ballerina, and a reindeer made an appearance.  I tried to keep up with the soap opera unfolding before me as they played.  At one point, every figurine was placed in the stable and given names, “this one is grandma Boyles, this is grandpa, this one is Nana and this is Papa…”    Eventually, an unusual storyline emerged from their imaginations…Brooklyn, the youngest, was the ballerina.  She proclaimed she was the mommy and kept having her ballerina lovingly kiss baby Jesus.  Parker, the middle child, pushed back at this idea.  Showing Brooklyn a picture of the nativity scene on a nearby music box, she pointed out that Mary was not a ballerina.  Brooklyn explained that the picture was before she was a ballerina.  Parker’s imaginative mind wrestled this concept into time travel.  Asking if she came back in time.  Then, out of nowhere, Brooklyn proclaimed, “Baby Jesus is going to die”.    Cue dramatic pause…Parker once again tries to make it make sense, “so you came back to sped time with him?”   

 

       “Baby Jesus is going to die.” This blunt statement felt unsettling in the midst of ramping up for the Christmas season, and yet, she was not wrong. 

      This next week of Advent, we await the celebration of the birth of Jesus while contemplating  His LOVE for us.  Births are hope-filled and worthy of celebration each year with candles, presents, and cake.   But, what makes this particular birth different can be found in those startling words uttered by my granddaughter: “Baby Jesus is going to die”.   

       God sent His son, Jesus Christ, to our world on that night long ago…the Word becoming flesh, a savior born to take on the sin of the world, a fulfillment of God’s promise to us all.   His life would continually point the way to His Father.  In every step He took, every action and word, He was leading us to the cross. Yes, baby Jesus would die, but the story only begins there…Christ’s death and resurrection made a way for you and I to be reconciled with God.  Once separated from God by our sin, we can seek forgiveness and know grace because Christ was born, lived, died, and rose again.  

“By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the porpotiation(atonement) for our sins.” 1 John 4:10

 

We are loved. You are loved. It is not an earned love. It is a gift, waiting to be accepted, given to us in the birth of Christ.  This week, in every nativity I see, in my head I will hear Brooklyn’s sweet voice: “Baby Jesus is going to die”  and I will thank God for this most precious gift and remember how loved we are.

 

Mom December 8, 2025

Filed under: devotionals — tlmiller82 @ 4:32 pm
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Today is my mom’s birthday; she would’ve been 88.  I miss her.  I miss sending her boxes of Christmas candy for her birthday, especially the ribbon candy she loved.  I miss the birthday phone call, where she would tell me how much she liked the candy, and laugh about sharing it with others in the house.  

I miss sending her funny/meaningful/ugly ornaments.  Last month my sister and I had time to go through mom’s ornaments…each of us getting back those we had given her over the years. I am certain mom is snickering a bit in heaven, knowing those monstrosities I once sent her now adorn my tree.   It is just one more example of my mom’s humor and admirable long-game influence. 

This year, as we brought out our Christmas décor, we unearthed a few forgotten boxes.  In one, was a pair of raggedy tennis shoes. More evidence of my mom’s long-game influence.  You see, when I was in high school, I had a favorite pair of tennis shoes.  I wore them daily for years and wore them out.  We are talking toes hanging out the side, threadbare, and in general an unsightly mess level of worn out.  She hated those shoes.  I refused to give them up.  So, before getting married, I wrapped them and presented them to her with fanfare in a nod of thanks for her long-suffering of the fashion indignity.  It was funny.  She appreciated the gesture, and I thought that was the end of the story…but not my mom.  That crazy lady tucked the shoes away for another season.  Cue the day my own son was in middle school, and I was picking him from a church event…yep, there was my boy proudly wearing my raggedy tennis shoes, plopping step by step for all the world to see!  Apparently, she had snuck them to him when they last visited her and paid him to wear them.  My mom’s long game was strong then and now…while often in funny ways like the ornaments and the shoes…it is also strong in other ways.

When mom passed, I received her study Bible.  I leafed through it briefly at the time, then set it on a shelf, intending to go through it another day…today was that day.  I laughed and cried a bit as I unzipped the binder holding it together.  The pages flopped open easily, revealing heavily highlighted text and copious hand-scrawled notes.  I could hear her voice as I read her words.  My own study Bible was nearby…As I unzipped the binder, the pages flopped open, revealing heavily highlighted text and copious hand-scrawled notes.  Yep, in perhaps the best long game ever, my mom’s influence emerged from those pages.  I turned to Phil. 4:6&7 in both.  This was a verse she quoted to me often and one I had just covered in this week’s Advent blog post.  My heart filled as I wiped away tears…there we were…mother and daughter.  My mom’s long-game influence radiated from the pages.  I had no idea how similar our Bibles had become.  Our highlight colors of choice were different(neon green and yellow for me, pink for her), but the verses we marked were almost identical throughout the pages.  My mom’s penmanship was normally much neater than mine, but in her notes, like me, she was less careful…perhaps like me, her notes were never intended for anyone but herself, written in haste to capture a thought before it was lost. I especially love the notes she made below verse 7, “Life is good!” Smiley face…and further down on the page “Be positive toward people…(pray)about everything, about thinking, a
simple approach to life”.  This is the mom I miss.  

This month we wrap up our year of  “firsts” without her…but each of these days are made sweeter in knowing she played a long game of influence and left us all with powerful memories of laughter and faithfulness.  

 

A 6/7 kind of Peace December 7, 2025

Filed under: devotionals — tlmiller82 @ 3:05 pm
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I know, I know…these two numbers, frequently and enthusiastically uttered by youngsters everywhere these days, may trigger adults to roll their eyes like teenagers and wail at the absurdity of it all.  But for me, this combination of digits evokes a remembrance of PEACE, God’s peace, the peace we pause and contemplate this second week of Advent.

I can’t stop the echo of my granddaughters giggling as they chanted these numbers at any opportunity during their last visit here. Stay with me on this, I promise not to use those numbers again, at least for a little bit, but trust me, I think you will eventually agree these frustrating digits are very important at Christmas!

This week, as we look forward to the coming celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ, we consider the promise of peace in His birth, life, death, and resurrection.  It may feel as if this “peace” is in hiding some days.  Life in general, personally/locally/nationally/worldwide, can often feel decidedly unpeaceful.  Often, we have the wrong expectation of peace.

Peace is not always a lack of striving; it is not always the absence of chaos, and it may not always be found in silence.

In John 14:27, Jesus shares His peace is much more than these things…

”Peace I leave you; My peace I give to you. I do not give you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” 

A peace which enables us not to be troubled even in troubling times is difficult to grasp…it is the calmness in your heart when calamity rules the world around you.  It is the assurance one feels knowing Who is in control when you feel most out of control.  It is the deep anchoring of your soul when your surroundings press against you.  At times it is hard to explain this seemingly unjustified peace, it can be beyond our comprehension….and here we are…brace yourself.

  You see, when we feel most unpeaceful, anxious, downtrodden, discouraged, there is a verse that speaks to this….

“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your request be made known to God, and the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”

Philippians 4:6&7

6&7…that battle waging in our heart…God says, “I’ve got this”.  6&7…unsettled uncertainty in things you can’t control…God says,”Bring it to Me.”  6&7…that war of worry weighing down your thoughts and robbing your joy…He offers a peace that will guard our hearts and minds.

Friends, may this week be filled with 6/7 reminders of God’s peace, gifted to us through the birth of Jesus Christ, whose life, death, and resurrection would allow us forgiveness and a peace that surpasses comprehension.

 “I have said these things, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” John 16:33