The Light of the World 2019 ADVENT BOOK LAKESIDE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH All Scripture English Standard Version Advent Advent is a season of anticipation and hope. The season is a celebration of the birth of Jesus. Advent reflects the spiritual journey of individuals as they confirm that Christ has come and is in their lives. Every Christian has something to say about his faith. The thoughts in this book come from the hearts of each writer. The Advent Wreath The use of the Advent wreath in homes and churches originated during the Renaissance (14th to 16th century). The circle is the symbol of eternity and the evergreen the symbol of eternal life. The purple candles are a symbol of humility and penitence. The rose-colored candle signifies joy and happiness and is a symbol of hope, love and the gifts of God’s love. The white candle symbolizes the Christ Child. Red candles symbolize great joy. Our faith is not in symbols, but the symbols serve to remind us of the gifts given to us through the miracle of God’s love and the birth of His Son. Be Still and Know Sunday, December 1, 2019 First Sunday of Advent “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.” I usually don’t find these qualities difficult. Except one. Patience. I don’t like to be still. I don’t like to rely on others for things. And I certainly don’t like to sit and wait. I like to be on the go, and I want others to be right there, ready to go with me. If you Google “Bible verses about patience,” you get over eleven million results: “29 Timeless Bible Verses About Patience,” “25 Important Bible Verses About Patience (Must- Read Today),” and so on. I’m not even patient enough to sit and read all of them. But I do know this one from Psalms 46:10 “Be still, and know that I am God.” That’s a tough one for me. It means I need to stop everything and trust that God knows. I may not need to know right now what happens next week or next year (even if I think I do), but God does. And God has used His people throughout history to illustrate patience. One of these people is Mary. One day, out of nowhere, an angel appears. He tells Mary that she has been blessed by God and will carry His Son. And then he just leaves. Mary gets one quick question in before he goes, but I can’t believe that she didn’t have a million more running through her head. The Bible doesn’t tell us much about Mary’s pregnancy, but if I had to guess, she had to be really patient. She had to deal with whispers about her virtue, questions about the birth and what would come next, and a journey to an unfamiliar town. If that didn’t take patience, I don’t know what would. But she said that she was the Lord’s servant and would do as He commanded. If we all had that attitude, I think our world would be a much more pleasant place. So this Christmas season, amidst all of the hustle and bustle, take some time to be patient. Listen to God and His will. Be patient with family, friends, and the insanity of Christmas shopping. And above all, be still and know that He is God. Kaye Stucky 17 Years at Lakeside Joy Monday, December 2, 2019 “When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.” Matthew 2:10-11 Joy, noun - 1. a feeling of great pleasure and happiness. I have to admit, since becoming a responsible adult (the age of that still debatable), joy for me describes an extreme emotion. John Piper, in his article “How do you define joy?” states, “Definitions are simply descriptions of the way people use words. Words don’t have intrinsic definitions. They are given definitions by the way people use them.” Joy is a word like that for me. I am deeply content and happy on a regular basis but being joyful is a cautiously rare emotion to describe and define. This is especially true around the Christmas season. The Advent season is meaningful and reverent, but it is also filled with obligations, self-imposed and world imposed. Obligations of Christmas cards and lists, presents, parties, school presentations and more fill my time around the Christmas season until all I want to do is cover my head with a blanket and refuse to come out. But Piper also says in the same article, “Christian joy is a good feeling in the soul, produced by the Holy Spirit, as he causes us to see the beauty of Christ in the word and in the world.” Over two thousand years ago, Magi who only had known a world without Christ, looked into the sky and saw a bright star proclaiming the birth of a King. They were compelled to search for Him and when they found Him, they were OVERJOYED and they fell down and worshipped Him. They were face to face with the beauty of Christ in the world. Have you searched for the beauty of Christ in Christmas or have you put Him behind the Christmas card lists, school plays, and obligations? Have you let this world rob your memory of the Joy of the Messiah? Strive to hear that Christian joy in your soul, produced by the Holy Spirit, because He causes us to see the beauty of Christ in the word and in the world. Seek Him, find Him, be overjoyed and worship Him. May this Advent season be one of recognizing your Christian joy, and intentionally abandoning the things that rob your memory of the joy of Christ in this world. https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/how-do-you-define-joy Cammy Taylor 3 Years at Lakeside An Anchor for Your Soul Tuesday, December 3, 2019 Eleven years ago I said goodbye to the man I called Daddy. He taught me to parallel park, hang sheetrock, make biscuits and tell awful puns, but most of all, He loved me. When he died, I wanted nothing more than to preserve in myself the things I held so dear about him. Maybe he could live on somehow in me. Grief fades, but the desire to identify with and live out the character of one greater than I calls me onward to find its ultimate goal in Christ. That He lives in me and calls me His own gives me substance, anchors my days, and gives me hope for all my days to come. Though He has always existed, His advent into this world that first Christmas morning became the anchor of all eternity; when the One who made us, who truly gives meaning to our souls, put on flesh and lived among us. May life and hope and an anchor for your soul be yours this Christmas in Christ. Margaret Webb 28 Years at Lakeside Celebrate with Service Wednesday, December 4, 2019 Every year we celebrate the birth of our savior Jesus Christ. This brings up the question, how do we celebrate? Are we only to celebrate during December as tradition dictates or should it be something we do daily? If it is something we should do daily, what does that look like? Mathew 20:28 says “Even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Jesus not only humiliated himself by becoming a man, he served his people. 1 Peter 4:10 “As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace:” I would like to suggest that we celebrate Jesus everyday all year round by serving him. How do we serve him? By serving each other and his church. Mathew 22:37-39 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Gavin Clark 3 Years at Lakeside Shine His Light Thursday, December 5, 2019 And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn. Luke 2:7 Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. John 8:12 As a child, Christmas was celebrated in two different places with my family. In Oil City, PA where we lived, it was spent with my paternal grandmother and grandfather, and took place at the big house on the hill. It was filled with antiques – horsehair chairs, crystal chandeliers, china plates, silver utensils that all matched- and when I went there my mother kept saying “Be quiet! Don’t touch!” Everything was formal but I loved the hustle, the smells in the kitchen, the chatter of the grownups, and the table full of food. I ate until I couldn’t eat anymore.