Christmas is quickly approaching, and I don’t know about you, but I always find it hard to slow down and enjoy each moment of the holidays. One way I have found to make sure we get a little Jesus into our holiday season is to pick out an advent calendar and do it throughout the month. I have long ago given up on the idea that we will do every single day and every single activity it suggests, but even with a missed day here and there it is one of my favorite things to do this time of year.
You may already have your own family traditions and if so, continue to do those. But if you don’t have any or are wanting to switch it up a bit here are our Advent printables for you to use with your family:
Here are some other neat options that I have come across. (The explanation paragraph is taken from each website since they can do a better job of explaining their stuff than me.) Continue reading →
Advent begins this Sunday, and it presents a great opportunity to purposefully guide your children.
As a parent I am teaching my children what to value. By showing them what I think is important, it helps them to decide what they think is important. If I never show them then they will have a hard time knowing! By spending a little time each day for the next month I can emphasize for them what is really valuable. It is the real meaning of Christmas.
Here are the 5 OPL Advent posts with the printables you will need to celebrate this year with your family:
I like the word “Epiphany.” When we suddenly have a good idea pop into our head, we call that an epiphany. When something surprising and very important is suddenly and unexpectedly revealed. An epiphany. That’s what we celebrate when the 4 weeks of Advent are past and the 12 days of Christmas are finished, and we have reached the day of Epiphany – Jesus suddently being revealed as God. Continue reading →
After weeks of anticipation, Christmas Day is finally here!
Today, maybe after the hubbub of Christmas presents is over, take a few minutes as a family to reflect on the true meaning of Christmas. Start out by lighting the 4 candles, and then celebrate Christmas by following the instructions in our printable below:
As we enter the new year, remember that God came down to us, to be with us! What an amazing God we serve.
We would love to hear from you – what has God shown you this Christmas season? How has He given you reassurance that He is with you?
Other Scriptures:
In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Philippians 2:5-11 (NIV)
And now, dear children, remain in fellowship with Christ so that when he returns, you will be full of courage and not shrink back from him in shame. 1 John 2:28 (NLT)
We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in his love. God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them. 1 John 4:16 (NLT)
PS: Today we celebrate His humble beginning as a helpless baby, but that was just the beginning! Over the next 12 days we will learn about the ways that Jesus gradually revealed Himself as God.
We have really enjoyed spending this month preparing for Christmas, and this year we have decided to continue the celebration through the “Twelve Days of Christmas.” We didn’t know anything about it, other than the hearing the song, so were surprised to find out that it is actually celebrated after Christmas. There are 12 days between Christmas Day and Epiphany, which is January 6th this year. We have learned that through the centuries some Christians have taken this time to celebrate the time leading up to the celebration of the Magi visiting Jesus. We will go into more detail about Epiphany or Three Kings Day in a later post. For today we will talk about how we are going to celebrate the 12 Days of Christmas with our children.
It is fun to take a silly song like “The Twelve Days of Christmas” and use it to teach our children about God. Here are some ways that we can take each number and use it to remind us of something from the Bible. Continue reading →
This Sunday, December 22nd, is the fourth week of Advent. Here is some information so that you will be ready.
This Sunday before you begin your Advent Ceremony make sure you light the last two purple candles and one pink candle. You will light the final purple one today.
The fourth candle reminds us of the “gift of love.” The Bible says that “God Is Love,” so the baby in the manger was Love in human form.
Here are some other verses that remind us of this precious gift.
For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Galatians 5:14 (NIV)
But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. Ephesians 2:4-5 (NIV)
I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
Ephesians 3:16-19 (NIV)
The third candle reminds us of the “gift of freedom.” I am so thankful that through Christ we can be free from the bondage of sin. I am thankful that we live in a country that we can still worship how we like and serve God. For some the third week of Advent is the “gift of joy.” We can be joyful for the freedom that we have been given.
Here are some other verses that remind us of this precious gift.
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, and that the time of the Lord’s favor has come. Luke 4: 18-19 (NIV)
Through you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls. 1 Peter 1:8 (NIV)
It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. Galatians 5:1 (NIV)
So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. John 8:36 (NIV)
Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplatethe Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. 2 Corinthians 3:17-18 (NIV)
This Sunday, December 8th is the Second week of Advent. We hope that you were able to celebrate the first week (last Sunday) either at church or at your house. If not, it is not too late to start!
This Sunday before you begin your Avent Ceremony make sure you light last week’s purple candle. You will light a second purple candle this week. Continue reading →
This is a unique year because the first Sunday of Advent happens to share a weekend with Thanksgiving. And although it feels like a quick transition from Thanksgiving to Christmas, it is actually a perfect segue (pronounced seg-way)! Here’s why. We spent the month of November practicing a thankful heart, and now we can focus on being thankful that our God came to earth to be our Savior. Today we will give you information about the first Sunday in Advent so that you have it ready to use with your family on Sunday. We will continue doing this for the next 3 Wednesdays.
History and Meaning
Many of you are familiar with Advent, but here is a quick review. “Advent” is from the Latin word for “coming,” signifying that we are getting ready for Jesus to come. The practice of celebrating Advent began a few hundred years after Christ, as church leaders solidified the habits and practices that the church would follow. It is a beautiful time of reflecting on the monumental event that changed us all forever. Just as John the Baptist prepared the way for Jesus, so also we prepare our hearts for His coming. It is a time of hope, preparation, and excited expectation for what is to come. Continue reading →
