Tag: Advent
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Finding Joy
Luke 1:47 GW: “My spirit finds its joy in God, my Savior.” This third week of Advent is Joy, symbolized by a rose-colored candle. It seems intentionally out of place, breaking up the deep purples of waiting and quietly challenging the long ache leading to Christmas. The origins of the Advent wreath and candles go…
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Finding Peace
Luke 2:14 NIV “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” This is the second week of Advent, when we light the candle of peace. This isn’t peace as in ending every war or resolving every conflict—spoken or unspoken. It is the inner peace of…
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O Little Town
Micah 5:2 NIV: But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times. Just when I thought I knew everything about the Christmas story, another layer of symbolism was…
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Reality vs Ideal
John 16:33 NIV “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” Let’s be truly honest: Christmas isn’t only a time of joyful togetherness, ideal gifts, engaging conversations, and warm snuggles by the fireside. In fact, despite all our best efforts, the reality is holidays are messy. Anytime we…
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Light of the World
John 8:12 NIV: When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” One of the traditions of Christmas that I love is the lighting of the Advent candles. We do this at church,…