Advent 2023 Series - Week 2

The road to Complete Wholeness is full of potholesIn Isaiah 9:6 God echoes the promise that He made in the garden to Adam, Eve, and the serpent! For a child will be born for us, a son will be given to us, and the government will be on his shoulders. He will be named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.*The word advent comes from the Latin term adventus meaning "arrival" or "coming," particularly the coming of something having great importance. Advent is a time of waiting, expecting & celebrating. by thanking God for Christ's first coming to Earth as a baby, His indwelling presence today through the Holy Spirit. Advent is also the story of creation all the way through Jesus, through the apostles, through The Holy Spirit working in us the church, in our families and the communities of today. Advent always starts four Sundays before Christmas. This year, in 2023, Advent starts Sunday, December 3 all the way to Dec 24th. Then on Christmas starts the 12 days of Christmas(so see Hallmark gets it wrong)Those 12 days run from 12/25 to Jan 5th and The Feast of Epiphany is celebrated on January 6th.Epiphany is a Christian holiday primarily commemorating the Magi's visit to the baby Jesus and the baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist. Eastern traditions, which usually call the holiday Theophany, focus on Jesus' baptism, seen as the manifestation of Christ as both fully human and fully divineAdvent is broken up into 4 Themes 4 Candles Hope (candle 1)Peace (candle 2)Joy (candle 3)Love (candle 4)Today is we focus on PeaceThe 2nd candle in the Advent Wreath is called The Bethlehem CandleWhy? The second candle, the Bethlehem candle represents peace. It symbolizes the preparations being made to receive and cradle Emmaunel. Bethlehem is a story about a humble couple onan unwanted journey, at an inconvenient time, to visit a tiny insignificant town.Listen in as we unpack Joseph and Mary's perspectives on what it was like to carry with them The Prince of Peace while walking through stressful times.