ADVENT TAKE HOME GUIDE

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Ferdinand Dennis
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1 ADVENT 2016 TAKE HOME GUIDE

2 What is Advent? Advent is the season leading up to Christmas, where we look forward to celebrating the arrival of Jesus, our Savior and King! The tradition of Advent began in the first few centuries of the church as a time for Christians to prepare for the celebration of Jesus birth. The buildup to Christmas was a time of great focus on the miracle of the Incarnation: God Himself coming to Earth. This year can be different. The holiday season can be so stressful and busy. Days and weeks fly by until Christmas is past and we breathe a sigh of relief. Those of us with the best intentions of making it a time to worship Jesus find ourselves falling into the busy-ness trap year after year. We want to help you take some steps to make this year different. It won t be perfect, but you can incorporate a few things into your everyday rhythms to involve Jesus in the holiday season in very meaningful ways for you and your loved ones. Simple ways to add meaning to the season! We have put together a list of resources for you to help make this Advent a season where you connect with Jesus more. On our website you can find suggested devotionals for personal or family use, apps, music, and a few other things. Check out to see them! Week by Week at Home A very simple way for you to celebrate Advent is using an Advent Wreath. With this guide, we ve put together a simple way for you to incorporate worship into your day-today rhythms. It may seem awkward at first, you won t get everything perfect, but by giving this a shot you may find yourself experiencing more of Jesus this year, and helping your loved ones do the same. We encourage you to use this guide to incorporate an Advent Wreath into your home life. We also encourage you to reach out to others who are at a different life stage, and involve them! If you re single, invite some friends to do this with you. If you re married or have children, think about single friends you can invite to join your family a few times this season! We have a great blessing in being a church family and having the love of Jesus let s share that love with each other!

3 Advent Wreath Instructions The Advent Wreath An Advent Wreath is a traditional way Christians have celebrated the season. You can buy one at a store or make one yourself; it is a wreath with four spaces for candles on the perimeter, and one in the middle. (Making this wreath could be a fun craft with kids!) If you search the internet you will find different meanings for each of the four candles; if you follow this Advent Guide we will provide you with Scripture and reflections for a candle each week. Each Sunday marks the beginning of a new week of Advent, beginning with Sunday November 27th. Each Sunday during lunch, dinner, or some other family time, you add a candle to the wreath and light it (the center candle is last). You can keep the wreath as the centerpiece for your table throughout the week, and at some time of the day (such as dinnertime) you can gather around the wreath, light the candle, and pray together. As you pray each day, you can keep that week s theme in mind. The missing candles throughout the month also help drive home the expectancy of Advent, looking forward to God s intervention. The missing candles and empty space remind us that there is more to come. Advent Calendar If you get an Advent Calendar, you can open it as a family each morning and say a brief prayer together for your day. If you have time you can have each person share one thing they re worried about or excited about for the day and pray for that. If time is short, just pray a quick prayer for everyone s day! Don t underestimate the value of little times like this.

4 WEEK 1 / FIRST CANDLE Advent Wreath Have one member of the family light the first Advent candle. This week s candle stands for Hope. After you light the candle, have each family member share something they are hoping or longing for right now. Then pray for one another and ask that you would see God as greater than that thing, or that you would be able to trust God in the midst of that struggle. Each night this week, light the candle and pray for one another to hope in Jesus above all else. Expectant Activity All week, talk to your children about something exciting you re going to do to celebrate Advent. Really build it up for them, and make it something they re going to love but don t tell them what it is. Each day remind them of your promise and give them hints. Let their expectation and excitement grow, and use this as an opportunity to remind them of God s promise to send a Savior, and the anticipation God s people felt as they waited generations for Jesus. That can also mirror our expectation for Jesus return. You can also share with them that what God provides is so much better than even that thing they are so excited to do. You will actually keep this promise next week.

5 WEEK 2 / SECOND CANDLE Advent Wreath Have one member of the family light the second Advent candle. This week s candle stands for Peace. The knowledge that God keeps His promises, which we see with the birth of Jesus, can give us peace. After you light the candle, have each person share an area where they need peace; where they need to trust God more. Then pray for one another. You can share and pray like this each day of the week, and share how God is giving you peace or using you to give peace to others. Keep Your Promise This week, keep the promise you made to your family during last week s activity. Talk about how you fulfilled the hints and clues you gave them. Discuss the experience of waiting. What was it like to wonder when and how the promise would be kept? What was it like to finally experience what you had been waiting and hoping for? Remember together God s faithfulness in keeping His promise to send a Savior. It happened just as He said it would.

6 WEEK 3 / THIRD CANDLE Advent Wreath Have one member of the family light the third Advent candle. This week s candle stands for Joy. When we understand who Jesus is and why He came, our response is joy! After you light the candle, have each person share one way God gives them joy, or one area where they feel they re lacking joy. Then pray for each other. Go Tell It! As a family sit down and think about who needs to hear the good news of the gospel. Make a list, and pray for everyone on that list. Then invite them to Resonate s Christmas Eve service!

7 WEEK 4 / FOURTH CANDLE Advent Wreath Have one member of the family light the fourth Advent candle. This week s candle stands for Love. Jesus came because of God s love for us. He shows us this love by forgiving our sins and freeing us from the power of sin. His love is why He came, and we can only love Him because He first loved us. After you light the candle, share one way God s love has affected you, then together give thanks to God for His love. Throughout the week share this, and also share how you need to feel or experience God s love, and pray for one another through that.

8 CHRISTMAS DAY SUNDAY, We have prepared a way for you to worship at home on Christmas Day. Go to Merry Christmas!

CELEBRATING ADVENT AT HOME Advent Wreath Candle Lighting Prayers

CELEBRATING ADVENT AT HOME Advent Wreath Candle Lighting Prayers Advent is the season leading up to Christmas. It begins four Sundays before December 25 and is our time of preparation for our yearly celebration