Weekly Greeting - December 6, 2024
Greetings friends,
Here we are in the season of Advent! The word “advent” itself simply refers to the arrival of a notable person, thing, or event. In Christian theology, “advent” refers to the coming or second coming of Christ. The Season of Advent in the Christian calendar refers to the four weeks leading up to Christmas.
The church has come to regard the Season of Advent as an opportunity to recognize the significance of Jesus’ coming into our world and to prepare our hearts and minds for his arrival.
Here are three lessons we can learn from the coming of Jesus into our world:
1. God really, really loves us.
In Luke 2:10-11 an angel of the Lord came to the shepherds and said, “I bring you good news of great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born who is the Messiah, the Lord.”
Out of God’s great love for us, Jesus came to earth to bring us life, hope, joy, and peace.
2. Prepare room in our lives for Jesus.
Mary and Joseph found no room for them in the inn. They had to seek out a place for Jesus to be born. We too, have to be intentional about making a place for Jesus in our holidays, or the next few weeks will pass, and Christmas will be gone.
3. Celebrate and share the gift of Jesus’ presence in our lives.
When the shepherds heard of Jesus’ arrival they made their way to Bethlehem to see the baby. They began to praise God and spread the good news of the birth of Jesus. Advent is a wonderful time for us all to invite our family and friends to join us as we journey to Bethlehem to see the baby!
Blessings,
Craig __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
We are continuing our Advent series “Almost Christmas” this week. Our text is Luke 1:46-55 as we celebrate the hope we have through the coming of Jesus into our world. In our text for this week, Mary, the mother of Jesus is so excited about the news the angel brought to her that she “magnified the Lord” with a beautiful song. How can we join Mary in singing God’s praises during this special time of the year?