Advent Guide & Invitation to Reflect
What is Advent?
ad·vent /ˈadˌvent/
noun
The arrival of a notable person, thing, or event. The first season of the Christian church year, leading up to Christmas and including the four preceding Sundays.
synonyms
arrival, appearance, emergence, materialization, occurrence, dawn, birth, rise, development
Advent comes from the Latin word Adventus which means coming or arrival. It is a season of preparation for Christmas that lasts around four weeks. It is a time to prepare our hearts in celebration of the birth of our Savior, Jesus. It is also a time to look forward in anticipation to our Savior’s promised second coming!
Why Should We Celebrate Advent?
In a season that is busy with shopping, family, meals, decorating, and traveling, we often forget what all the busyness is about; or at least what it should be about. Observing the season of Advent is a way to interrupt the busyness and re-orient our hearts and minds toward the arrival of Jesus. Advent expands the Christmas celebration to include the four weeks prior to it. In doing so, our observance becomes a practice that can help aim our wandering hearts and quiet our busy souls as we reflect on the Christmas story. Advent helps us remember and dwell on what God has done for us in sending Christ. It’s also a way for us to link arms with the generations that have gone before us, and experience their same anticipation as they eagerly awaited the coming Messiah who would take away the sin of the world. Lastly, it helps us to long and pray for the return of Jesus and his establishment of the New Heaven and the New Earth. This will be our eternal dwelling place, filled with peace and light beyond imagination.
Redemption Advent Guide 2019
How to Use the Advent Guide?
Our hope is that this guide will be a tool that helps you carve out some intentional time with God, friends, and family throughout the Christmas season. The guide is broken into four weeks. Each week includes a passage of scripture, a devotional, reflection questions, a prayer, songs, and activities. Before you get too busy, pick a day, time, and place that you can carve out 30 to 60 minutes to engage with the content each week leading up to Christmas. Invite a friend or neighbor to join you and talk through what you are learning. If you have children, consider making this a special weekly activity to build anticipation toward Christmas.
We have also put together additional resources at the end of this guide to aid you in worship during this season. The resources include books, free music downloads, and instructions on how to set up an advent wreath.
This Year’s Theme
John 1:5 says, “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” Many things in life are overwhelmingly dark. But Jesus has overcome the world in his life, death, and resurrection (John 16:33). Not only that, but the Bible also says that we have overcome the world: “For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world — our faith.” When we fully embrace who Jesus is, we find light in the darkness and we trade being overwhelmed by darkness with being overwhelmed by light. This Advent season we want to reflect on what it looks like for our lives to be overcome by the hope, joy, peace, and love found in the person of Christ.
Invitation
Come celebrate the season of Advent with us on Sunday mornings at Cheyenne Middle School, December 1st – December 22nd at 10:30 AM. Bring your family. Bring your friends. Our celebration of the season will culminate in our Candlelight Christmas Eve services on December 24th, 4:30 & 6:30 PM.
Additional Resources
Redemption Church Advent Guide 2019