What is Advent?
Advent comes from the Latin word Adventus meaning “the coming”, but the coming of what?
It is a preparation for the coming of Christ in three ways:
The remembrance of the Birth of Christ
The anticipation of the 2nd Coming of Christ
The coming of ourselves to Christ
The Advent Wreath
An Advent wreath is a ring of evergreen
holding four candles. The circle symbolizes God’s everlasting love for His
creation, and the evergreens represent Christ’s gift of eternal life. The light
of each candle represents the light that Christ brings to the World. On
Christmas day, a white candle is lit in the center of the wreath to announce
the birth of Christ who is the Light of the World. As you (and your family)
gather daily for prayer, begin by lighting one candle the first week, two
candles the second week, three the third week and so on. Advent is a season of
preparation, and each week has a subtheme to help us prepare:
Week 1: 1st candle: HOPE
Week 2: 2nd candle: LOVE
Week 3: 3rd candle: JOY
Week 4: 4th candle: PEACE
Christmas
Eve: Christ-Candle:
SALVATION
The scripture verses in this Devotional are based on the book by Megan Dunsmore, The Jesse Tree: An Advent Tradition. From Old Testament to New, these readings point the way to the Messiah.
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