Advent is the season when we prepare to celebrate Jesus’ birth and we await with expectation and hope for the day our Lord will return.
Enjoy this playlist of activities on your own or with your family. There are resources for all ages!
Reflect
Advent Devotionals for Families
Lego Advent: If Lego is your family’s love language, try this family devotional guide.
Journey to Bethlehem: This free printable Advent devotional from the Presbyterian Church in Canada includes the opportunity to light Advent candles, read the scriptures, and hear stories from great Bible storybooks that help families prepare our hearts for the birth of Jesus.
For Youth and Adults
Bless This Advent – Seeing the world as it really is. Practicing hope for the coming King. Celebrating generosity and love any chance we get using this free 4-week devotional from Kate Bowler.
Another Starry Black Night: A Womanist Advent Devotional – Twice weekly devotionals are written from the perspectives of women of color. “The Advent season has a multitude of different intersections that the womanist perspective can speak to.”
Following the Star – This series, starting on December 3, will be posted daily to d365.org, and will feature scripture, prayer, and meditative thoughts accompanied by gentle music.
Create
For Families
Make an Advent Wreath: Create a family tradition by making your own Advent Wreath together. Here is a handout with instructions and inspiration.
Make an Advent Calendar: A Simple Stone Advent Calendar lets you count down to Christmas. Provide your own nativity scene or make this one to remember the true meaning of Christmas.
For Youth & Adults
Praying in Color Advent Calendars This Advent calendar is a simple way to pay attention and pray during the four weeks of Advent. Each day you can write a name or word and surround it with doodles. Here are a variety of ways to use these calendars.
Practice
Excerpted from Faithful Families for Advent and Christmas: 100 Prayers, Practices, and Lessons to Make the Season Sacred by Traci Smith (Chalice Press: 202, All Rights Reserved). Used with permission.
Light Advent Candles
Beginning with the first Sunday of Advent, light one more candle. Use the discussion questions and prayers below to guide you. The traditional order is
Advent 1: the Candle of Hope (purple)
Advent 2: the candle of peace (purple)
Advent 3: the candle of joy (pink)
Advent 4: the candle of love (purple)
Christmas Eve/Christmas Day: the Christ Candle (center white)
Advent Week 1: Hope
Light: Today, we light the candle of hope.
Read (optional): Psalm 25:4-5
Discuss: What does it mean to have hope? What do you think about when you hear the word hope? How can we share hope with others?
Pray: God, we thank you for giving us hope. Help us to have hope and to share hope as we wait for Jesus to be born. Amen.
Week 2: Peace
Light: Today, we light the candle of hope and the candle of peace.
Read (optional): John 14:25–27
Discuss: What does it mean to have peace in your heart? How can we share peace in our family and in the world?
Pray: God, please help us to understand peace and to share it with others. We wait for Jesus to be born with hope and peace. Amen.
Week 3: Joy
Light: Today, we light the candles of hope, peace, and joy.
Read (optional): Philippians 4:4–6
Discuss: What does it mean to rejoice? How is joy the same or different from happiness? How can we share joy with others?
Pray: God, we thank you for the gift of joy. Help us to share it with one another. We wait for Jesus with hope, peace, and joy. Amen.
Week 4: Love
Light: Today, we light the candles of hope, peace, joy, and love.
Read (optional): 1 John 4:7–12
Discuss: When have you felt or seen God’s love? How can we show God’s love to the world?
Pray: God, thank you for showing us what true love is. Help us to love you and to love one another. We wait for Jesus with hope, peace, joy, and love. Amen.
Christmas Eve or Christmas Day: The Christ Candle
Light: Today, we light the candles for hope, peace, joy, and love, and we light the center candle for the birth of Jesus.
Read (optional): Luke 2:1–16
Discuss: The day we have been waiting for is here! How does it feel to celebrate the birth of Jesus today? What does the birth of Jesus mean to you?
Pray: God, today we are thankful for the birth of your son, Jesus, and for the lessons he teaches us about how to love one another. Help us throughout the year to share hope, peace, joy, and love wherever we go. Amen.
Watch/Listen
Enjoy Westminster’s beloved Christmas Pageant, created during the first season of Covid, in which children tell the traditional nativity story through drama, narration, music, and art.
For Kids:
Waiting Songs by Rain for Roots (or listen on YouTube or Spotify)
For Youth & Adults: Learn more about Advent while watching this short video, Advent in 2 Minutes
Explore
Ideas for Reclaiming Advent & Christmas – a Just Living Resource: Shape your seasonal celebration to be one centered on the true meaning of Christmas. This resource will help you prepare for the holiday by simplifying life, incorporating prayers, giving alternative gifts, and serving sustainable foods.