December 16th, 2025 Devotional

LIVING WATER VINEYARD DEVOTION — TUESDAY

The God Who Keeps His Promises 🕯️

Scriptures: Isaiah 9:6; Isaiah 55:8–9; Luke 1:26–38; Hebrews 6:18 (NIV)

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I still remember my first real job.

I was working retail as a store manager at a Western wear store.

It was the Saturday before Christmas—the busiest day of the year. The line was backed up, people were buying Wranglers, boots, belt buckles… everything. The store was loud and rushed, full of holiday energy.

At the counter was a man in his 40s with a much younger, very put-together woman. He was buying her all kinds of fancy silver cowboy jewelry—necklaces, earrings, the works.

Then, out of the corner of my eye, I noticed another woman standing off to the side. She looked worn down. Nothing flashy about her. With her were two kids—a little girl about seven and a boy maybe five.

All of a sudden, those kids broke away and ran straight to the man.

They wrapped their arms around his legs and started crying,

“Daddy, please come home. You promised you’d come home. Please come home to me and Mama.”

The younger woman just stared at them—cold, irritated.

The entire line went silent.

People were crying. I was fighting tears. It felt like a country song playing out in real time.

And the dad… he just kept walking.

Step by step, the kids clung to his legs until they finally had to let go.

I remember standing there thinking, How do you ever get over a broken promise like that?

Those kids trusted their dad.

And sometimes broken promises leave scars that last a lifetime.

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There is a certain kind of quiet that settles into the soul when you’ve been waiting a long time.

It’s the quiet of unanswered prayers.

The quiet of calendars that keep turning.

The quiet of promises that were spoken—but never kept.

Most of us know that quiet.

We’ve trusted words from parents, spouses, leaders, employers:

“I’ll always be there.”

“This won’t last.”

“Just hang on a little longer.”

And when those promises break, something hardens inside us 💔.

So when we hear the word promise, we hesitate—because in human hands, promises often fail.

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WHAT A PROMISE REALLY IS

A promise is only as strong as the character behind it.

Human promises are limited by weakness, fear, changing circumstances, and selfishness.

But God’s promises are backed by His nature.

Scripture says:

“God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie…”

(Hebrews 6:18, NIV)

God doesn’t just keep promises.

He cannot break them.

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A PEOPLE WHO WAITED IN THE DARK

Israel understood waiting.

For hundreds of years, they lived under oppression and silence. Parents told their children stories of a coming King—even when it seemed impossible.

And into that long night, God spoke through Isaiah:

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given…”

(Isaiah 9:6, NIV)

No timeline.

No explanation.

Just a promise.

And then… silence again.

Generations lived and died without seeing it.

Waiting doesn’t mean God isn’t working.

Often, it means He’s working deeper than we can see 🌱.

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MARY — WHEN A PROMISE BECAME PERSONAL

Then one ordinary day, in a small town, God’s ancient promise became personal.

Mary wasn’t powerful or prepared. She simply trusted God’s character.

When the angel told her she would give birth to the Savior, she asked the honest question we all ask:

“How will this be?”

She didn’t get all the answers.

But she did know who God was.

So she responded:

“I am the Lord’s servant… May your word to me be fulfilled.”

(Luke 1:38, NIV)

Mary trusted God even when she didn’t understand the plan.

She would wait through confusion, whispers, fear, labor pains, exile—and eventually, a cross.

Promises don’t always arrive easily.

But they always arrive faithfully.

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GOD’S PROMISES ARE DIFFERENT

God reminds us:

“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways.”

(Isaiah 55:8–9, NIV)

God’s delays are not denials.

God’s silence is not absence.

The manger proves it:

God keeps His promises—even when the waiting wounds us.

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FOR THOSE WITH SCARS ON THE HEART

If you carry disappointment from broken promises, God sees you.

If trusting feels hard, He understands.

Christmas isn’t the story of a quick rescue.

It’s the story of a faithful God who keeps His word—even after long waiting.

Hope isn’t wishful thinking.

Hope is confidence rooted in a God who cannot lie ✨.

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REFLECTION

   •   Where has waiting become painful for you?

   •   What promise of God do you need to trust again—not because people were faithful, but because He is?

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PRAYER 🙏

Faithful God,

You see the scars left by broken promises.

Heal what disappointment has wounded.

Teach us to trust not in timelines, but in Your character.

As we approach Christmas, restore our hope in the God who always keeps His word.

In Jesus’ name, amen.