2025 Advent Devotion: Day 23

Tuesday, December 23

2 Samuel 7:18, 23-29; Galatians 3:6-14

When David sat before the Lord in 2 Samuel 7, his prayer was full of humility and awe. “Who am I, O Lord God,” he asks, “and what is my house, that you have brought me thus far?” Looking back over his life, on Israel’s redemption, and on God’s promises, David realized something profound: God’s blessings were never the result of his strength, achievements, or worthiness. Instead, they were rooted entirely in God’s knowledge of who David was and what David would be capable of, even when David could not see it.

And yet, in that moment, God revealed to David something greater still: that his “house” would be established forever. This promise, far bigger than David could have imagined, awakened in him both a longing and the courage to pray: “And now, O Lord God . . .may it please you to bless the house of your servant so that it may continue forever before you.”

Here is the truth: most of us never pray the prayer entrusted to us. Instead, like David, we turn quickly to all the reasons we are not worthy of the vision or task the Divine has placed in our hearts. Fear, inadequacy, and unworthiness silence our deepest desires. To move forward, we must learn instead to lean into the vision, to lean into the task, and to lean into the relationship. Courage is born in the heart that dares to pursue what God has revealed.

The very word “courage” comes from the Latin cor, meaning “heart.” To live with courage is to speak, act, and pray from the heart, aligned with God’s will, even when the path is uncertain. To pray boldly, as David did, is to risk exposure. It is to voice aloud what we most long for, trusting God with both the promise and the outcome. That kind of prayer makes us vulnerable and uncomfortable. Yet, it is the place where God meets us.

On a recent work trip, I joined nearly 300 executives and professionals as we gathered to hear from individuals changing the world. The president of the Rockefeller Foundation shared his vision of bringing electricity to one billion people who live without reliable light. The scope of this dream was staggering, yet he pursues it diligently, because he believes it can be done. God-given visions often ripple outward far beyond us. They may not always be as sweeping as bringing light to a billion people, but the desire pulsing from the epicenter of our hearts is just as expansive, and its ripple effects will flow far and wide.

In Galatians 3, Paul reminds us that God’s promises extend beyond David and Israel. Just as Abraham believed God and was counted righteous, so too are all who believe in Christ brought into the household of blessing. Through faith, not works of the law, we are made heirs of God’s promises.

David didn’t just hold God’s promise silently, he voiced it back to God. He dared to be vulnerable, asking God to do what He had already spoken. Courage is not only believing God’s promises, but choosing to lean into them, to live, and to pray as if they are true.



Mary Renfer
School of Divinity Graduate