What is Christmas? Advent Devotional

Please note: As of mid January 2013, this book is off market.

Twenty years ago, Earl and Bev began to focus on the Bible account of Christmas.

Their hope was to help their children, at that point three of them, grow up understanding the real meaning of Christmas:

God became a man so he could redeem humankind.

They started with five devotionals based on the advent candles, and in the next 15 years expanded it to 31 advent tree symbols that review

Jesus as existent from eternity past,
God’s world and promise to restore lost creation,
Prophetic promises of the coming Savior, and
The miraculous birth of Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ.

Earl and Bev understood that children need something to help them identify and remember ideas:

ideas need to be shared in a short time period;
and participation helps remember and motivate.

Each symbol was developed for just these reasons.

The one minute devotionals and coloring book style drawings are particularly focused towards small children and their short attention span.

Earl and Bev and their children are family friends and currently serve as missionaries in Nicarauga.

The Result?

What is Christmas? is 31 day Advent/Christmas devotional that allows a big idea to be shared in a short time with a coloring book activity to interest the smaller children while the parents share and converse about the ideas with older children and adults.

What is Christmas? is a chance to be as quick or as deep as you like and still have an ordered and interesting plan for learning about the most important reason for celebrating Christmas: God became a man and lived with us.

I hope you enjoy this short yet profound Christmas devotional.

Glory to God in the highest, peace and good will to all who please Him. Luke 2:14

How to use the What is Christmas? Advent Devotional

What is Christmas? is a 31 day Advent devotional that starts on November 25 and ends December 25.

If you have young children (or if you are a child at heart) you can color and cut out the symbols and paste it on a tree as the author’s did.

You can see their original tree and 31 symbols in the photograph.

Read a devotion each day and place the symbol for that day, starting at the bottom left of the tree and work your way up until December 25th with the star at the top of the tree.

The symbols also serve as a review each day or every other day.

The first symbol reminds us that Jesus was from the beginning; the second one tells us that Jesus is the creator and sustainer of the universe; and so forth. We laminated our original symbols and reuse them each year.

The devotional, the symbols and the verses at the end of the book are tools for you to use as you and your family learn about the miraculous birth of our LORD, His divine eternal existence, and the prophetic promises given by God to the Hebrew prophets.

The Advent story is much greater and grandiose than just the birth of a baby boy in Bethlehem.