Thanksgiving Advent Anticipation

Thanksgiving Advent Anticipation

Speaker: Tim Bounds

Service Date: November 28, 2021

Thanksgiving Advent Anticipation

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.  Psalm 107:1

Pause now and share what is good in your life that you have to be thankful for.

Look, I am coming soon! Revelation 22:7

Look, I am coming soon!  Revelation 22:12

'Yes, I am coming soon.' Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. Revelation 22:20

We concluded the Revelation series last week. At the end of the book, John was still exiled to an island, and the churches were still living under the oppressive rule of Rome. It is powerful that he repeats this message three times in the last chapter: "I am coming soon". For now, we are living in the in-between time. For now we enter the Advent Season and turn our attention to his first coming.

Be patient then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord's coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and firm because the Lord's coming is near. James 5:7-8

"The celebration of advent is possible only to those who are troubled in soul, who know themselves to be poor and imperfect, and who look forward to something greater to come." Dietrich Bonhoeffer

I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances... I can do all this through him who gives me strength. Philippians 4:11, 13

Expressing thanks to God is an important spiritual discipline. For many of us the Christmas Season is difficult for a number of different reasons.  Share what this time of year is like for you; what you look forward to and enjoy, and maybe what makes this time of year hard for you and what you might not be looking forward to.

Read Acts 3:1-8

Peter and John stopped and looked straight at this man. They noticed him. His expectation was that they could give him money, but they had much more to offer. As we enter this Advent Season, what are your expectations? Could it be that God has more for you than you have been expecting?

In what ways could you live with the expectation that God is working in amazing ways in our midst?