Redemption is Near: Advent Daybook 1
Happy New Year, Church! I’m so grateful to have you joining me for the prayerful expectation of Advent and the festive celebration of Christmas! For the first few days, I’ve included a “how-to” guide at the bottom of each post just to help you get oriented to the format we’re using each day. Please feel free to reach out with your questions!
And now, take a few deep breaths, settle your body, mind, and heart into a quiet space and let’s begin with prayer.
Opening prayer: Heavenly Father, make me more like Jesus and more like the true self you’ve created as I savor your loving presence today. Please guide my thoughts and impressions by your Holy Spirit. Amen.
Look: Monumental painting, Cathedral of Saint Malo, Augustin Frison-Roche - Source
Listen: He Comes, The Porter’s Gate [feat. Molly Parden & Jonathan Ogden] - Spotify | YouTube
Read: Jeremiah 33:14-16, Psalm 25:1-10, 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13, Luke 21:25-36
Excerpts:
“The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will fulfill the promise I made to the house of Israel and the house of Judah. In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David; and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.”
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“To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul. O my God, in you I trust; do not let me be put to shame; do not let my enemies exult over me. Do not let those who wait for you be put to shame; let them be ashamed who are wantonly treacherous.
Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth, and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all day long.
Be mindful of your mercy, O Lord, and of your steadfast love, for they have been from of old.”
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*How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy that we feel before our God because of you? 10 Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you face to face and restore whatever is lacking in your faith.”
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“There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on the earth distress among nations confused by the roaring of the sea and the waves. People will faint from fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in a cloud’ with power and great glory. Now when these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”
— Jeremiah 33:14-15 * Psalm 25:1-6 * 1 Thessalonians 3:9-10 * Luke 21:25-28 (NRSV)
Pray: Book of Common Prayer, Collect for First Sunday in Advent
Almighty God, give us grace to cast away the works of darkness and put on the armor of light, now in the time of this mortal life in which your Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; that in the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge both the living and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal; through him who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Do: Enjoy a slow, steady increase of light as Christmas approaches.
If you haven't done a single thing yet to get ready for Advent, you are exactly on time. That's the beauty of a season of preparation like Advent. It's a gradual, unfolding story. Today, gather four or five candles in a special place in your house you can come back to each day of Advent. Light one candle this week and add another candle each of the following weeks until you have four burning with the fifth one, the Christ candle, reserved for Christmas morning.
You might also enjoy: A few simple ways to decorate for Advent
These daily devotional posts are available to those who subscribe at the Daybook ($5 a month) level. You can also purchase a one-time .pdf download of all 40 meditations for Advent & Christmastide in my Shop. You can see the entire Advent archive here.
* Listen to my entire playlist on Spotify: Make A Way: Advent 2021 .
** Sunday Scripture readings are taken from Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary. Daily Scripture readings are taken from the 1979 Book of Common Prayer and include both Morning and Evening Psalms (Year 2).
Why Advent?
Advent is a season of invitation for the feast that is coming. Practicing Advent for over a decade has formed me spiritually, emotionally, and relationally in ways that are hard to quantify. It’s a little bit of growth year after year that adds up to a quieter soul and a sturdier hope. Each year, the prophets, psalm singers, and gospel writers invite me to see with a clearer lens the mystery of God’s miraculous arrival. The same mystery shapes our entire lives, the waiting for Christ’s next and final arrival. The arrival that we expect is the one that will never end with another good-bye. Oh, mysterious hope!
While Advent trains me to embrace mystery, it also requires me to not look away from the inherent tension of acknowledging that, yes, all shall be well, and all is not yet well. Every year, I sort of hope the prophets' words will be cozier. Why must there be so much talk about God’s justice wiping out man’s evil? Why so many flaming arrows and toppling earth?
The reality of arrival is not a cozy scene, but a cosmic, unstoppable disruption of the kingdom of men by the reigning God and His Son, Jesus, the Christ. Advent is the invitation to walk the pathway of this eternal kingdom. The reign of Christ that’s already here, but not yet fully arrived shines the light for us as we walk. We live in this stretched out parentheses and Advent kindly welcomes our weary souls to contemplate the visible reality of our lives and the world in contrast to the invisible reality of the Christ who came, is with us now, and will most assuredly come again.
In the spirit of Advent’s invitation, I welcome you to walk through the days - one by one - quietly, slowly, and contemplatively. If this all sounds impractically holy, I assure you the best sort of contemplation is what happens when we carry a quiet heart through all the noisy celebration or the sorrowful absences of December.
How to enjoy Advent Daybook posts: Look, Listen, Read, Pray, & Do
Each day of Advent (November 28 - December 24) I’ll share a devotional post that includes a work of art, a song, daily Scripture passages, a short prayer, and a simple action to help you practice the waiting days of Advent.
Look
Some might call this devotional practice of visual contemplation Visio Divina, or a divine looking. It’s not the actual work of art that is divine, but the Holy Spirit’s invitation to encounter Christ through nonverbal reflection. Throughout the year I collect digital images that I think will enhance the Scriptural themes of Advent. You’ll notice that some of the images evoke traditional Christmas scenes while others seem to have nothing to do with the holiday season at all. The images rotate through classic and contemporary art of all media. Each week I include an image (usually a photograph) from news headlines of the year. My hope is that the Scripture passages for each day orients the visual art selection and sometimes, honestly, that’s a difficult task. The prophets don’t make cozy, holiday scenes a priority in their descriptive language!
Listen
December is prime time for music lovers! One of my earliest concerns about practicing a slow entry into the Christmas feast was that I’d miss all of the beautiful carols and Christmas songs I’d been singing at the top of my lungs since childhood. And, it’s true - I do miss singing along with most of the world (although, I’ve come to appreciate the store soundtracks as a perk of shopping in December!) What I didn’t know until I’d lived Advent for a few years is that I’d grow the same attachment for the old hymns and carols of Advent.
While I could never get tired of the quintessential Advent hymn “O Come, O Come Emmanuel”, there are so many more to enjoy. Almost as much as the Scripture we soak in each year, it’s the theologically rich, melodically beautiful lyrics of Advent that have formed me. Thankfully, as the Church has become increasingly reacquainted with the historic liturgical calendar, there’s been a lovely renaissance of new and retuned music allowing us to raise our voices every season.
Most of the songs I share each day are contemporary versions of old classics or new tunes written for Advent, but each week I try to mix in a choral or traditional arrangement. You’ll notice a special emphasis this year on the newly released Advent Songs by The Porter’s Gate. Between each Sunday in Advent & Christmastide and a few Wednesdays, you’ll hear the entire album.
I try to select quality recordings and include a Spotify, YouTube, and when available, a Bandcamp version for your convenience. Since the music is chosen to enhance the visual art, my family chooses to play the music as a backdrop for contemplating the image. You might choose to do each separately. I also include a link to lyrics for each song so you can sing along if you’d like!
Read
Oh my goodness, I love the lectionary. I’ve always been intrigued by the interweaving of Old and New Testaments for the beauty of the various literary rhythms as well as the deep satisfaction of experiencing the living, breathing word of God that looks backward and forward at the same time. It’s so rich.
If you don’t do anything else with the posts I send each day, read the Scripture passages. I include a link for the complete lectionary passages each day and then excerpt the portions that particularly spoke to me as I was preparing the post. This year I’ve switched to the New Revised Standard Version most often, but if you click through the link to the Biblegateway page, you can adjust the version to your preference. Sunday Scripture readings are taken from from Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary.. Daily Scripture readings are taken from the 1979 Book of Common Prayer and include both Morning and Evening Psalms (Year 2).
The prophet Amos features prominently in the daily passages this year, and I’ve been trying to get to know him a bit better. The Gospel accounts and the Psalms offer a counterpoint to the weighty prophecies we find tucked into the end of the Old Testament. Read each passage (or the excerpt provided) slowly and listen for the invitation of God to the world, his people, and you.
Starting December 17, I’ll be focusing the reading portion of each post on one of the “O Antiphons” (an ancient liturgy that is the root of the beloved “O Come, O Come Emmanuel” hymn). We’ve begun to find the emphasis on worship and adoration the final week of Advent each year. We continue to be inspired by Malcolm Guite’s sonnets and a prayer service our church holds during this week. I look forward to sharing the beauty here with you, too.
Pray
Each week the prayers are formed around the Sunday collect (a prayer said by the congregation in Sunday worship). While you could pray directly from the daily Scripture (especially the Psalms) or the hymn lyrics, I include a guided prayer for each day. Once a week, I invite you to a form of intercessory prayer termed “Prayers of the People” in the Book of Common Prayer. This allows us to set aside at least one day to remember each sphere of our world with specific prayer.
Do
The spiritual practice of contemplation, at its best, moves from reflective stillness to thoughtful action. We were made by a Creator to love Him, our neighbors, and ourselves with heart, mind, soul, and strength. I’m delighted to invite you to join me in simple, daily actions to demonstrate God’s love to our neighbors, ourselves, and the world. Some of the activities will feel familiar to the traditional customs of Christmas time, and some will feel new and counterintuitive. It’s all good.
An Advent Retreat
The daily devotional posts will then be available to those who subscribe at the Daybook ($5 a month) level. You can also purchase a .pdf download of the entire 40 meditations + retreat guide in my shop: https://www.tamarahillmurphy.com/shop/advent-daybook-2021
Each digital download includes free registration to my Advent virtual retreat on Thursday, December 2. Just purchase the download here and check the box for me to either save your seat on December 2 or to send you the recording afterward for you to use on your own.
If you enjoy what I’ve been curating and creating here, please invite your friends to subscribe to a Daybook membership or to purchase their own one-time digital download. The Daybook devotional posts provide a beautiful experience to be able to share and talk about together.
To make sharing even easier, you can purchase a Gift Certificate in my shop. What an excellent gift for the people in your life you’d like to encourage spiritually this time of year!
As always, please feel free to email me your questions.
Thank you for keeping me company during these prayerful, expectant days. May we be reminded in our deepest hearts that we do not wait without hope!
Peace,
Tamara
p.s., Whether your friend joins us as a Daybook member to receive daily meditations in their inbox or purchases a one-time digital download of all 40 meditations + retreat guide, they’ll be able to jump in at any time while having access to previous posts from this year!