Preparing My Heart for Advent A Spiritual Pilgrimage for the Christmas Season

PREPARING MY HEART FOR ADVENT Does the holiday frenzy leave you jadedtoward the real meaning of Christmas? Do you find yourself loathing"Christmas music" two days after Thanksgiving? Then STOPthe Christmas Insanity! Preparing My Heart for Adventchallenges women to immerse themselves in Scriptures during the months of November and December so that they are more likely to keep Christ in Christmas rather than becoming entangled by obligations and commercialism. It accomplishes its purpose with a two-fold thrust, serving as both a seasonal Bible study and devotional. Each day of the November studies corresponds to a December devotional reading on the same topic. For example, readers will study Joseph on November 10th only to refresh their learning on this topic with a devotional reading on December 10th. Each week in the November Bible study portion offers refreshing thoughts for meditation and reflection. Spiritual significance is offered for common Christmas imagery, and the historical background of familiar carols is explained in detail. Suggestions are given for reaching out to others during the season of giving. The December devotionals aim to keep readers in the Word of God during the busiest season of the year, celebrating and reflecting in a way that reinforces their studies in November. In the author's words, Preparing My Heart for Adventwill encourage readers to "stop, look, listen, and experience Immanuel-God with Us-wherever we are. Put on a familiar carol, pour a cup of peppermint tea, and settle into a reflective look at a birth unlike any other!Stewart, Ann Marie is the author of 'Preparing My Heart for Advent A Spiritual Pilgrimage for the Christmas Season', published 2005 under ISBN 9780899570839 and ISBN 0899570836.