E is for Emmanuel

"And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth." John 1:14


Christmas Eve Night

Light the four outside Advent candles, reviewing each letter A-D and what it represents.

Talk about the center candle being the Christ candle. It is in the center because it is special. It stands for E - Emmanuel which means God is with us.

Scripture: Matthew 1:23, John 1: 4-5, 9-14, John 3:16

Key Figures: Jesus is Emmanuel, He is God who became a little baby so that He could save us from our sins. He is the light of the world that shines in the darkness.

Other: You can wrap this up nicely by turning out all the lights and letting the candles shine in the darkness. The Christ Candle is in the center because His coming is what Christmas is all about. He is the most precious gift at Christmas. If you are using the "What God Wants For Christmas" tool, it moves easily into a Gospel presentation. What does God want for Christmas? He wants you! He wants to live in your heart, be your closest friend, and shine His light through you so others can know Him too!

Gifts: Christmas pajamas, a special doll, or keepsake item with the date on it.

Activities: We always have a Birthday Cake for Jesus on Christmas Eve with candles and singing. You can let the kids decorate it by themselves. Also, you may want to make your cake like this:

1st layer chocolate - our sin
2nd layer - red - the blood of Christ covers our sin
top layer - green - our growth in him
white icing - we are whiter than snow when His blood cleanse us
candles - He is the light of the world, and we shine for Him when He is in our hearts

Happy Advent!

Looking Forward,
Stacey

D Is For Down On One Knee

Light your 4th Advent Candle.

Scripture: Matthew 2:1-12, Luke 2:19

Key Figures: Wise Men

Activities: Make a star and put it on your Christmas tree

Possible Gifts - Christmas ornament, Wise Men Little People Set,

Other: We like to discuss that the Wise Men arrived to see Jesus when he was older, probably a toddler. But the Star they followed appeared when Christ was born. All who came to the Christ child had the response to bend their knee and worship. These wise men - scholars who came from afar sacrificed a great deal to make their journey. The gifts they brought with them represented their hearts to adore Him and that they knew who He was and where He came from.

Can you believe Christmas is just a few days away? I pray you are finding time to bend your knee to the Savior of the world. Take the time to bring Him your gifts and worship Him this week.

Looking Forward,
Stacey

C is for Choir of Angels Sing

Light your 3rd Advent Candle and review candles 1 & 2

Scripture: Luke 2: 1-20

Key Figures: Angels and Shepherds

Possible Gifts: A new Christmas CD, a musical instrument, a small stuffed sheep, angel Christmas Ornament

Activities: You can sing Christmas songs, go caroling in your neighborhood, or glue cotton balls onto a picture of a sheep, or make hand print angels.

Other: I love to share with my girls that the shepherds were not a likely bunch to be the first to hear about the birth of Christ. In fact, they were hard working loyal men, but considered social outcasts by most and rarely went to town. But, upon hearing the glorious song of the Savior's birth from the heavenly hosts they quickly went to find the Baby. They left their sheep, because they knew that this was something worthy of their devotion.

Looking Forward,
Stacey

B is for Baby Born In Bethlehem

Light Advent candle 1 and Advent candle 2. (I review each letter).

Scripture Reference:
Luke 2: 1-7

Key Figures: Baby Jesus, Bethlehem, unlikely birthplace of the Son of God (the stable).

Possible Gifts: A new Christmas book, stickers, Christmas movie.

Activities: Make a manger scene. We have made a manger out of toilet paper tube and a craft stick for Baby Jesus. Our favorite set was made from small clay pots. You could also cut out the nativity scene from an old Christmas card, glue it to construction paper, and add a star with glitter.

Other: I love nativity sets that kids can make or play with. We have added to our Fisher Price set every year. I put this toy away after Christmas so it is special. Even my oldest daughter who is ten loves to set up the story with this set.

Looking Forward,
Stacey

A is for Announcement

A is for Announcement

Light your first Advent Candle

Scripture Reference: Luke 1:26-38 ; Matthew 1:18-25

Key figures to discuss: Angel Gabriel, Mary, Joseph

Possible small gifts: Small advent calendar with numbered doors to open each day in December, a Christmas t-shirt, or card
making kit.

Activities for the week: Decorate the house, make and send Christmas cards, allow each child to have a small Christmas tree or decoration in their room.

Other: We have shared the Scripture passages in different ways over the years. Recently I discovered a great product called What God Wants For Christmas:

It is produced by FamilyLife, a ministry of Campus Crusade For Christ and includes a nativity set that is broken into 7 small presents, a stable and a read aloud story book. We use the first 3 small boxes for Advent Week 1, and then one box each for the next 4 weeks. One thing my children love is that we hide the boxes and they have to find them. We let one child hide it, one find it, and one open it. The Christmas story is written as a poem and holds the attention of even small children. The neatest box is opened on Christmas Eve....and is the answer to the question, "What does God want for Christmas?" I won't spoil it, but it is a beautiful way to share the true meaning of the coming of the Christ child.

Looking Forward,
Stacey

ABC Advent

Welcome A Soft Place To Land Blog Friends! I am so glad to share this DIY Advent Project with you! I hope you have a very Merry Christmas! I am posting each Wednesday for the next Advent. So be sure to check out the first two weeks that have already posted, and come back for the rest of the celebration!

Seven years ago last month we moved across the country with our then 3 year old daughter. I was expecting our second child 2 days after Christmas which was only 8 weeks away! I knew in my heart that we would not be going 'home for Christmas.' It was now up to us to create family Christmas memories. I began praying that God would give me a unique idea for our family to celebrate Christmas. My husband and I had talked many times about how we wanted Christmas to be more than just a one day present fest! We wanted to build the excitement and celebrate the entire month. We wanted to make memories that would last far beyond their growing up years.

I came across a great article in a Better Homes and Garden magazine about the celebration of Advent. I loved the idea of gathering our little ones each of the 4 Sunday's between Thanksgiving and Christmas to anticipate the 'coming' of the baby Jesus. But, our children were very young and I was not sure they would understand the more traditional version of Advent.

One sleepless night, God gave me the simplest idea that we have now celebrated for 7 years at our home. We call it ABC Advent. I would love to share it with you and hopefully inspire you to begin a tradition yourself. I have shared this with a few other mom's and they have also started to celebrate it as well. Please feel free to use this during your celebration this year!

1st Sunday after Thanksgiving: A - Announcement
2nd Sunday - B - Baby Born in Bethlehem
3rd Sunday - C - Choirs of Angels Sing
4th Sunday - D - Down on one knee
Christmas Eve - E - Emanuel - God is with us

I made a very simple Advent Wreath with 4 candles on the outside of the the circle and placed one white large candle in the center. The center candle is called the Christ Candle. Each week we light one outside candle along with the candles from the previous weeks. On Christmas Eve we light the Christ candle and all the candles. I have used the same Christ Candle for each of the past 7 years. In addition to sharing the scripture passage surrounding each "letter" we give our children a small present.

I will be posting each week in December about each 'letter' and few other ideas that I have incorporated along the way throughout our years of celebrating Advent. For now, I wanted to give you a head's up if you wanted to gather a few things and join us this year for ABC Advent.

All you need is:

1. A wreath
2. 4 - candles ( I use red taper candles)
3. 1 - large white pillar candle
4. A nativity set is helpful
5. A Bible

Looking Forward,
Stacey

P.S. I am connecting to A Soft Place To Land DIY Day!