Seeking Christ this Christmas

MYRNA BROWN, HOST: Today is Friday, November 26th.

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Coming next on The World and Everything in It: resources for Advent.

EICHER: It’s easy to lose sight of Christ at Christmas with all the shopping, gatherings, and special events going on. So reviewer Emily Whitten has rounded up some resources to help you and your family stay focused on Him—and make the most of this Christmas season

EMILY WHITTEN, REPORTER: Christians already know that Christ is the best gift of all at Christmas. So, why don’t we focus more on Him this year?

One easy way to do that—download a free devotional app. Moody Bible Institute’s Today in the Word offers a daily series beginning Dec 1st. It’s called Unwrapped: the Gift of Christmas. Author Ryan Cook is an associate professor of Bible at Moody Bible Institute. He says his family often unwraps their under-the-tree gifts slowly to savor them, one by one.

CLIP: That’s kind of what I hope this study does for people, it helps us to slow down and reflect on the different gifts in the coming of Christ, and really appreciate the coming of Christ.

If you’re on the go, maybe on your way to work or school, check out the app’s option to have the two-minute devotion read aloud.

CLIP: Today in the Word we read in Micah 6, verse 9, “The LORD is calling to the city…"

The Today in the Word app provides devotions year round, so if you like this one, you’ll already be one step closer to a healthy habit in the new year. And if you don’t want to download another app, you can get the same devotional in several other formats at todayintheword.org.

If you’ve got little ones underfoot, you might check out TruthintheTinsel.com. Author Amanda White offers an ebook of simple ornaments and Bible links to help families engage the Christmas story. These aren’t upscale Jesse Tree keepsakes that will last forever. The focus here is on the experience, the memories, and the fun—not the cheap craft materials.

Here’s what one mom had to say about Truth in the Tinsel:

CLIP: It’s great. It’s an easy way that is already set up for me to sit down with my kids and talk about the Christmas story every single day in advent until it’s just drilled into their minds.

If you’ve got older kids or grandkids around the house, say ages 8-12, Jotham’s Journey might be a good resource. It’s the fictional story of a Hebrew boy named Jotham who lived during the time of Christ’s birth.

Jotham gets separated from his family, and the rest of the book follows his action-packed, heart-warming journey to find them. Here’s a clip from the audiobook read by Kirby Heyborne.

CLIP: Elizabeth told me that John is a special baby and that you would tell me why. Zechariah laughed, ‘Oh, she did, did she? Well, then, I guess I must tell my story yet again.’ He motioned Jotham to sit on a log, then did the same himself. I am a priest of the division of Abijah. About a year ago my division was on duty in Jerusalem, and I was chosen by lot to burn the incense before the LORD...

The story is divided into daily sections followed by short reflections and Scripture passages, as well as instructions about which Advent candles to light. You could use it as a daily Advent resource, or this would be a great option for a long car trip. The entire audiobook is 5 hours and 45 minutes long, so that will get you quite a ways down the road.

Two quick cautions: It might be useful to point out to young listeners that while many characters and places do come from history, Jotham’s story is imagined. So, some of these encounters don’t really line up with Scripture. My other caution: In chapter 22, the author mentions that God “accepts all people wherever they are in their own spiritual journey.” Parents may want to clarify that while God saves people from every tribe, tongue, and nation, we know that salvation comes through faith in Jesus Christ.

And finally, how about some Advent music?

CLIP: Well it came to pass back in those days that Ceasar he decreed a census should be taken of the Roman world, you see. So everyone packed up and headed back to their hometown. Joseph up from Galilee to Bethlehem was bound…

That’s from Andrew Peterson’s album, Behold the Lamb of God. If you’ve got teens or older kids, or if you just like this genre of music, Peterson works in a lot of Biblical and theological content here. I mean, he even sings those begats in Matthew! That’s commitment right there.

CLIP: Abraham had Isaac. Isaac he had Jacob. Jacob he had Judah and his kin. Then Perez and Zerah came from Judah’s woman Tamar. Perez he brought Hezron up and then came...

I know we all have favorite Christmas albums. But this one qualifies as an out-of-the-box advent resource because it so closely follows the arc of the Christmas story. You could try listening to a few of these songs each week as a family, or take some time after supper to look up the Bible references. Or just put it on repeat as you do your Saturday chores. It might be easier than you think to sing along with the greatest story ever told.

CLIP: Behold the lamb of God who takes away our sin. Behold the lamb of God who died and rose again.

I’m Emily Whitten.

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