Jesus, the Light of the World! (Praying the Scriptures through Advent)

During the month of December I am taking a journey through Advent with my sweet friend, Candace Crabtree over at His Mercy is New using her Advent devotional Jesus: Light of the World Praying the Scriptures through Advent. Starting today, I'll be posting here every Tuesday and sharing with you about my time in the Scriptures that focus on light as I seek to keep my eyes focused on the True Light of the world - Jesus - during this Christmas season.

In Genesis 1:1-3 we read about the creation...specifically the creation of Light.

The definition of light (noun) is: the natural agent that stimulates sight and makes things visible.

The creation of light in Genesis points to a greater spiritual truth of Jesus as the Light of the world. We are told in 2 Corinthians 4:6:

For God, Who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

It's our understanding of Who Jesus is that invades our dark, sinful hearts with the light of salvation that comes through Jesus Christ alone. The light of Jesus makes the darkness of sin in our lives visible to us so that we can repent of it. Once the light of His saving grace penetrates our hearts and brings us to repentance, we come face-to-face with His love and His mercy in the forgiveness of our sins.


***Chime In***

How has the light of Jesus penetrated your heart?

Is there an area of your heart that you've tried to keep hidden? Surrender it to the Light of Jesus today dear friend and receive His forgiveness!

Walking in His Grace, 

Laurie

Advent: The Candle of Hope

Today I'm guest posting for Rosilind Jukic from A Little R & R. I hope you'll join me there today as I talk about the Hope we have as Christians. While you are there, please take a moment to look around. Rosilind created A Little R & R as a place for encouragement where women can gather and journey together as we embrace our God-given roles - knowing that we are who God has created us to be. She truly shares my heart about the grace of God. I blog about that same grace here at Grace-Filled-Moments - the grace that empowers me to be who God has created me to be and to do what He has called me to do. Walking in the power of God's grace is one of the many hopes we have as daughters of the King. Please join me now at A Little R & R as I share more about the Hope we have during this Advent season.

May God's Grace Abound in You,

Laurie

Celebrate Jesus Light of the World: An Advent Journey for Families Review and Giveaway!

Are you looking for an Advent guide for your family to begin using this Sunday for your journey into Advent? Look no further, friends, for I have the most wonderful resource to share with you today that is brought to us by Amy Blevins. Amy is a military wife and homeschooling moma of six children who blogs from California. You can find Amy at her websites, Bow of Bronze and Homeschool Encouragement. She has other wonderful resources that she has written in addition to what I am sharing about today, so please be sure to stop by either of her websites for more details about all she has to offer to homeschooling families. Now, let's take a look at this beautiful resource for celebrating Jesus this Advent season that is perfect for any family!

{This post contains affiliate links.}

Celebrate Jesus Light of the World: An Advent Journey for Families is an 81-page ebook that has everything you'll need to begin your Advent journey. Amy and her family have used all the ideas in this ebook at some point over the past 10 years as they have sought new ways of celebrating Jesus during Advent. As new ideas are thought of and used, they are added to this wonderful resource. I was given a copy of this beautiful ebook to review and I'm excited to share it with you today. My family will begin using the wonderful ideas inside this ebook tomorrow. This is first time we are taking an Advent journey with so much meaning as this one has tucked inside its pages. I'm really excited about starting this tradition in my home!

What's Included?

• Instructions for beginning the Advent journey
• Scriptures
• Crafts and activities
• Treats that are simple to make
• Simple Christmas tradition suggestions you can add into your celebration of Advent
• A master list that tells you exactly what you need on the date you need it
• Daily Schedule
• Family Christmas Recipes
• Christmas copywork pages (24 pages total; available in KJV or ESV)

Daily Schedule

• Scripture reading
• Bible study preparation for mom and older teens
• At the table together (Lighting of the candle, prayer, scripture reading and song)
• Activity  (simple craft or easy recipe)

Amy has thought of everything and has been gracious enough to include it all - right down to her Family Christmas Recipes (a couple of the recipes are gluten-free)! Also included are some blank recipe cards to fill in with your own family's favorite Christmas recipes. See, I told you she thought of everything! What I really love about Celebrate Jesus Light of the World: An Advent Journey for Families is that it is not overwhelming at all, yet very meaningful as we place our focus on the anticipated return of Jesus while celebrating His birth.

My family and I are looking forward to using Celebrate Jesus Light of the World: An Advent Journey for Families beginning this Sunday, December 1. You can begin your own Advent journey as well using this lovely guide. Get your ebook today for only $4.99.


Do you and your family celebrate Advent? Please leave me a comment below if you are planning to use Amy's ebook this year. My first comment will receive a FREE copy of Celebrate Jesus so be sure to leave your email address where you want the ebook sent!