Advent Retreat - Day 1

Theme: Longing for God’s Presence

December 10, 2021

Dear Friend,

The word 'Advent' comes from the Latin that means "coming." The purpose of Advent is to celebrate the coming of the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. God broke into time and space to dwell among us. Advent is also looking forward to the second coming of Christ.

We pray that as you make time in the next three days to pause, reflect, pray, and spend unhurried time with the Lord, you will experience the Lord’s refreshing joy and peace in your heart. Find a quiet space, write down your reflections with a journal, and before the day ends, share your insights with the people you love.

May the grace and peace of Christ surround you this Christmas season,

Strengths and Spirituality Fellowship

Opening Prayer

Dear Lord,

This Advent, come to the manger of my heart. Fill me with Your presence from the very start. As I prepare for the holidays and gifts to be given, remind me of the gift You gave when You sent Your Son from Heaven.

The first Christmas gift, it was the greatest gift ever. You came as a baby born in a manger. Wrapped like the gifts I find under my tree, waiting to be opened, to reveal Your love to me, restore to me the wonder that came with Jesus' birth, when He left the riches of Heaven and wrapped Himself in rags of earth.

Immanuel, God with us, Your presence came that night. And angels announced, "Into your darkness, God brings His Light." "Do not be afraid," they said to shepherds in the field.

Speak to my heart today, Lord, and help me to yield. Make me like those shepherd boys, obedient to Your call. Setting distractions and worries aside, to You I surrender them all. Surround me with Your presence, Lord, I long to hear Your voice. Clear my mind of countless concerns and all the holiday noise.

Slow me down this Christmas, let me not be in a rush in the midst of parties and planning, I want to feel Your hush. This Christmas, Jesus, come to the manger of my heart. Invade my soul like Bethlehem, bringing peace to every part. Dwell within and around me, as I unwrap Your presence each day. Keep me close to You, Lord. It's in Your wonderful Name I pray. Amen.

Taken from Renee Swope, “The Manger of My Heart” from Proverbs 31 Ministries

Worship: Light of the World by Lauren Daigle

The world waits for a miracle

The heart longs for a little bit of hope

Oh come, oh come, Emmanuel

A child prays for peace on Earth

And she's calling out from a sea of hurt

Oh come, oh come, Emmanuel

And can you hear the angels singing

Glory to the light of the world

Glory the light of the world is here

The drought breaks with the tears of a mother

A baby's cry is the sound of love

Come down, come down, Emmanuel

Oh, He is the song for the suffering

He is Messiah, the Prince of Peace has come

He has come, Emmanuel

Glory to the light of the world

For all who wait

For all who hunger

For all who've prayed

For all who wonder

Behold your King

Behold Messiah

Emmanuel, Emmanuel

Glory to the light of the world

Behold your King

Behold Messiah

Emmanuel, Emmanuel

The world waits for the miracle

The heart longs for a little bit of hope

Oh come, oh come Emmanuel

Scripture Reading: Isaiah 9:2-4;6

²The people walking in darkness have seen a great light;

on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.

³You have enlarged the nation and increased their joy;

they rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest,

as warriors rejoice when dividing the plunder.

⁴For as in the day of Midian’s defeat,

you have shattered the yoke that burdens them,

the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor.

⁶For to us a child is born, to us a son is given,

and the government will be on his shoulders.

And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,

Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Meditation

If you were asked these questions, “What three words come to mind when you think of Christmas?”, or “What are three of your favorite Christmas songs?”, or “What three dishes do you look forward to eating during Christmas?”, you would take no longer than five minutes to answer all of them. The idea of Christmas does whet our appetites, awaken colorful memories and spark in us a sense of festivity and celebration. Buddy Owens, the Teaching Pastor of Saddleback Church said that “Joy is the primary emotion of Christmas”.

But did you know that the first Christmas was indeed a “silent night”?

Four hundred years before Christ’s birth, God was indeed silent. These four hundred silent years mark the duration between the Old Testament and New Testament. God used to speak to the Israelites through His ordained prophets. And then He stopped speaking to His people. The Israelites chose to worship the gods of other nations. And so it was that God withdrew His hand of blessing upon them because of their disobedience.

In these 400 years, the people of Israel were ruled and enslaved by different empires. Bowed by a heavy yoke for generations, the Israelites longed for the day when the promised Messiah would come to rescue them from slavery.

How are you today? Do you also experience a heavy burden with all the unexpected circumstances that the pandemic brought into our lives? What is it that you are deeply longing for?

How do you sense God’s presence in your life? Is He silent too? Take a moment to reflect on your life and personal relationship with Him.

The Lord may be silent, but He never stops loving us. God is a Deliverer and Promise Keeper. On that first Christmas, God came down and dwelt among us. Emmanuel means God is with us.

Jesus Christ is with you today. He is with you in your joys and sorrows, in your victories and failures, in your lack and in your wealth. Jesus Christ is the greatest gift that God has given us. He is faithful in the past, in the present and in the future.

Faith Story

Lee Strobel was an atheist. One day, as an investigative journalist working for the Chicago Tribune, he could not get his mind off the grandmother and her two granddaughters whom he wrote about. Lee had not seen anyone else poorer and more devoid of material possessions than Perfecta Delgado and her two granddaughters. They lived in a small two-room apartment with only a small table and a cup of rice. The two granddaughters shared only one jacket that took them walking one mile to school every day. But he could not explain why he sensed in them a feeling of joy and peace that he could not explain.

Lee’s article in the newspaper about the family drew much attention from the readers. So, one day on Christmas Eve, Lee decided to pay them a visit. What he saw astonished him. The house literally looked like a department store! The room was filled with furniture, appliances, coats, Christmas gifts, and food. The readers of Chicago Tribune had compassion on the plight of Perfecta and the young girls. But as Lee himself narrates, “But what really astonished me was what I saw Perfecta and the girls doing when I arrived. They were busy packing up many of the possessions they had been given so that they could give them away”.

Lee could not believe why this family was giving away a lot of what they had received. Perfecta explained, “Our neighbors are still in need. This what Jesus wants us to do. All that we received from the readers are precious gifts we do not deserve, and we are very grateful. But Lee, these are not the greatest gifts. What we celebrate tomorrow is God’s greatest gift we have received – that gift is Jesus.”

At that moment, Lee recalls, there was something inside him that desperately wanted to know more about the Jesus whom Perfecta talked about. Lee narrates, “I saw Jesus in Perfecta, Lydia and Jenny. They had peace despite their poverty, while I had anxiety despite my plenty. They knew the joy of generosity while I knew only the loneliness of ambition. They looked heavenward for hope, but I only looked out for myself. They experienced the wonder of the spiritual, while I was shackled by the shallowness of the material.” Something extraordinary happened in Lee’s life. He had come to faith in Jesus Christ and Christmas has never been the same.

Pause for Prayer

· What is your deepest longing today?

· If you too have accepted Jesus Christ as God’s personal gift to you, what would you like to say to Him today?

· How does your personal relationship with Jesus shape the way you celebrate Christmas?

· Which of your top talent themes or strengths do you consider as gifts from God? Which of these strengths enable you to connect more deeply with Him?

Closing Prayer

Dear Heavenly Father,

Help me to hear your voice.

Touch me once again.

Give me the courage to be your beloved.

Give me courage to choose joy.

I need you now this Christmas.

Be born in me again. Today.

In Jesus' name, Amen.

Source: Bonnie Gray, from “Why it Takes Courage to Choose Joy”