You found the digital companion to the First Pres Advent Devotional. In addition to reading devotionals, we want to engage with God’s great rescue plan by inviting you to sing it, hear it, see it and retell it as the great rescue unfolds in our lives.  

Advent Devotional

Retell It

This week, there’s two! Journey with us at First Pres as we continue the retelling among us that our hope is in the coming of the Lord. Try lighting two candles and tell it again with us this week. You could gather with a co-worker for coffee before work and tell it again, or break bread at lunch with a neighbor and tell it again, or grab two candles at dinner and tell it again that the Lord is our faith and our life. Here are great words for a simple way to tell it again, especially when told out loud to your own heart.

Leader: May the Lord’s peace be with us all.

ALL: The Lord is our faith and our life.

Leader: May His love shine in our hearts.

ALL: Our hope is in the coming of the Lord.

(Light two purple candles.)

Leader: Let us pray that we may experience fully the peace of Christ. (Any additional prayer as desired.)

ALL: Amen. 

Hear It

Hear the good news of the promised Messiah from the Book of Isaiah. This is the Scripture passage for day eight of our Advent devotional.

Chris Cullins performs Advent Hymn by Christy Nockels. Do not lose heart! As we wait, may this rhythm of rescue help you hear hope in your days. 

Isaiah 11 Advent Hymn

See It

Image inspired by devotional passage from day 8. It’s faith to put hope in a simple green shoot emerging from the stump of a tree. Faith is hope in what we do not see but rescue often leaves a trace—see the trace and see the sure hope of that simple shoot producing fruit. 

Sing It

O Come, O Come Emmanuel will be on our lips this season. We hope you sing this truth through the week as we deliberately practice telling our hearts to rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee. And on Sunday, we’ll join our voices to sing Joy to the World. You can brush up on your joy and lyrics here.