Practical Advent is a daily blog series I’m doing throughout Advent this year. Join me on my blog each day for practical faith tips.

Practical Advent, Day 23

Since childhood, I’ve observed Advent each year. It’s been a wonderful way to build my faith and increase my anticipation of Christmas for all the right reasons. I highly encourage you to observe Advent as well, because it can help you be more intentional in this busy season.

In this Practical Advent blog series, I’ll have the same post format to give you about 10-15 minutes of practical tips for loving God, loving others, and loving yourself during the Advent season.

Praise

Each day of Practical Advent, I’ll share one of my favorite songs to listen to during Advent. Take a moment to praise God while you listen.

Here’s a really old one I like – Adeste Fideles by Bing Crosby.

Ponder

Every day of Practical Advent, I’ll share a quote or idea from an Advent book in my collection for you to ponder, along with my thoughts and a few reflection questions.

Today’s quote is from The Characters of Christmas by Daniel Darling.

Here’s the quote I’ve chosen to share today:

Reflection questions:

1. In what ways have you faced temptation to slip into the warm sentimentality of Advent over developing your personal relationship with God?
2. How does the fact that the world’s first missionaries were ordinary, unnamed shepherds encourage you today?

To ponder the shepherds’ story further, you may enjoy THIS POST I wrote about them:

Prayer

Here’s a prayer I wrote today:

Heavenly Father,

I praise you for the examples of the shepherds.

They were ordinary men, and the Bible doesn’t name them, yet we retell their story every Christmas.

Thank you, Jesus, for coming into the world in the poorest circumstances.

You meet us at our lowest points, and you understand us, no matter how destitute we are in body or spirit.

Thank you for using our humble testimonies for your glory.

Holy Spirit, inspire us to share our faith stories with others this Christmas.

May our stories encourage them to believe in Jesus as their Lord and Savior.

In Jesus’ name, 

Amen.

Pour In

To save yourself some last-minute Christmas stress, take a few simple actions today. Head to the store to stock up on tape, batteries, bags of ice, paper goods, and any other essentials for your home. My grandma taught me this tip: always have a box of chocolates, a nice candle, and a couple of gift cards on hand for unexpected guests. Then you can give them a decent gift even if you weren’t expecting them. You can find more last-minute, practical tips for Christmas peace HERE.

Pour Out

Last week, my daughter received a $100 tip at her food service job. This brightened her whole week because she really needs the money in a transition she’s currently facing. Consider giving a significantly larger tip than usual to a retail or food service worker. It doesn’t need to be $100 – maybe $15 or $20, when you would normally give $5. It will make a great impression and help someone financially in this season.

Just for Fun

Did you know I have my personal Christmas recipes in my Library? Subscribe HERE to get instant access and use the tried-and-true recipes to make your Christmas gatherings extra delicious. Don’t forget to confirm your email address to get instant access. I hope you enjoy them as much as my kids do!

See all new and/or previous posts in this series on THIS PAGE.

Find all my additional resources for Advent on THIS PAGE.

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