A guide to Advent Week One: Hope | Dec 1-7

During week one, we light the prophecy candle and think about the HOPE that is ours in Christ.

Read aloud or meditate on this week’s Scripture Reading each time you light the first Advent candle this week. Fill your home or car with music from this week’s playlists. And scroll down for ideas for actively observing and expressing HOPE this week.

 

Week One Scripture Reading

- The Word of the Lord from Isaiah 11 and 40 -

Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, and a Branch from his roots will bear fruit. The Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and strength, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. 

Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem and proclaim to her that her hard service has been completed, that her sins have been paid for, that she has received from the Lord’s hand double for all her sins.

A voice of one calling in the wilderness: Prepare the way for the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be raised up; every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain.

And the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all the people will see it together. For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.

- and from Hebrews 1 -

In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, and through whom also He made the universe . . . About the Son He says, “Your throne, O God, will last forever and ever; a scepter of justice will be the scepter of Your kingdom. . . You remain the same, and Your years will never end.”

 

ideas for observing and expressing hope this week

  • Notice how often people use the word “hope” in conversation, in writing, on TV or radio or websites. Share these observations with a friend or around your dinner table, and talk about how the idea of “hope” appears in our culture. If there are small children in your home, Dad and Mom can make a simple game of letting little ones catch them using the word.

  • Invest time in prayer, especially interceding for those in need of hope, such as people who need to hear the Gospel, and those with physical needs in our communities.

  • Journal what comes to mind when you read this week's Scriptures. Sit with the Lord and name any questions that arise as you consider the idea of hope. Ask God to help you release the uncertainties of this life and cling to the hope of Christ.

  • Discuss hope with your family or friends. What does hope mean to them? To you? Is having hope the same as wishing for something? What makes Christian hope different? Advent yearns in hope for the Savior. What might it look like to yearn for the Savior in the regular rhythms of life?

  • Pick a song from the Hope playlist to learn and sing throughout the week.

  • Do something for someone else that tangibly gives hope or encouragement by meeting needs (if you need ideas, CLICK HERE to learn about our local and international ministry partners who are dedicated to meeting needs and providing the hope of Christ).

Hope-Filled music

Listen to songs of HOPE throughout the week.