Summary: The Christmas season is upon us, and like so many in our culture, these weeks leading up to Christmas can come with a frantic pace, and if we're not careful allow the affections of our heart to drift away from Christ and onto lesser things. Historically speaking, the church has sought to redeem these weeks leading up to Christmas by viewing them through a lens of Advent – a term that means "coming" or "arrival." In this message we'll learn how it is we can view the First Advent of Christ, when He came as a baby to save, in such a way that will also help us prepare our hearts as we await the Second Advent of Christ, when He'll come as a King to reign. Resources ARTICLE: Why Celebrate Advent (Timothy Paul Jones) BOOK: Song of the Stars (Sally Lloyd Jones) BOOK: The Donkey Who Carried a King (RC Sproul) BOOK: The Christmas Promise (Allison Mitchell) BOOK: The First Days of Jesus (Andreas Kostenberger) DEVOTIONAL: Prepare Him Room (Marty Machowski) DEVOTIONAL: Unwrapping the Greatest Gift (Ann Voskamp) DEVOTIONAL: Advent Guide (The Village Church - 2015) DEVOTIONAL: The Dawning of Indestructible Joy (John Piper) DEVOTIONAL: Good News of Great Joy (John Piper) DEVOTIONAL: God Is in the Manger (Dietrich Bonhoeffer) DEVOTIONAL: Advent and Christmas Wisdom (Various Theologians) DEVOTIONAL: Advent and Christmas Wisdom (G.K. Chesterton) DEVOTIONAL: Watch for the Light (Various Theologians) DEVOTIONAL: Come Thou Long-Expected Jesus (Nancy Guthrie) DEVOTIONAL: Counting the Days, Lighting the Candles (Elyse Fitzpatrick) [Video File] [Audio File]
