Daily Advent Devotional

About Daily Advent Devotional

Phillips Theological Seminary is once again providing this Advent Devotional for you and congregations. We continue to be blessed by the response to the booklet and the way that it is used. Many have shared that you use the booklet to assist with sermon preparation, in church small groups and Sunday school classes, as a daily congregation-wide devotion, and for personal and family devotion time. We have asked four writers to write on the theme for each week of Advent. We are so grateful for staff, scholars, and alumni that are willing to contribute to this devotional. The writers are: Week One, HOPE: the Rev. Dr. F. Douglas Powe Jr., President and Mouzon Biggs, Jr. Professor of Methodist Studies Week Two, PEACE: the Rev. Mike Miller, Alum, Senior Minister at Marion Christian Church (Marion, Illinois) Week Three, JOY: the Rev. Jenny Wynn, Director of Advancement Week Four, LOVE: the Rev. Dr. Allie Utley, Assistant Professor of Liturgy and Practical Theology. Our readers for this podcast are Ashely Gibson, Executive Assistant to the President and Board, and Matt Dean, Online Social Media Specialist. This year's cover graphic, The Path to Christmas, ws created by fourth grader Eden Berman. We are grateful that you choose to join us in reflection and thoughtfulness by reading the Advent Devotional (https://www.flipsnack.com/phillipsseminary/2025-phillips-advent-devotional/full-view.html). In Gratitude, Malisa Pierce Assistant Vice President of Advancement Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

Publisher

Phillips Seminary

Category

religion & spirituality

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

23 Oct 2020

Latest episode

25 Dec 2025

Latest episodes

155 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   25 Dec 2025

   Pondering

   ADVENT WEEK FOUR: LOVE December 25 Rev. Allie Utley, PhD Pondering Luke 2:(1-7), 8-20 So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph and the child lying in the manger. Luke 2:16 Can you imagine giving birth in an outdoor stall? And then, as you begin to re- cover, a group of shepherds show up and tell you that an angel told them that your baby is the Son of God and Messiah? You aren’t surprised by the announcement. The angel has come to you as well. But every time someone says it out loud—you are the mother of the Holy One—it feels shocking and overwhelming. Can you imagine mothering this child? An all-powerful, all-knowing deity, now fully dependent on you for shelter, nourishment, care? This is the mystery of Advent: God comes as a vulnerable baby. The Son of God is also the son of Mary. Then and now, God entrusts the work of love to human hands. God needs us—our arms to cradle, our voices to sing, our lives to bring grace and mercy to a weary world. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

2. 

   24 Dec 2025

   You Are Family

   ADVENT WEEK FOUR: LOVE December 24 Rev. Allie Utley, PhD You Are Family Titus 3:4-7 This Spirit he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. Titus 3:6-7 We are a people born of water and the Spirit. In our baptism we are claimed by God and grafted into a family of faith. One of my favorite songs for worship is Mark Miller’s “Child of God.” In the last verse, he writes, “No matter what the world says… you are a child, you are a child of God… There is nothing and no one that can separate you from the truth that you’re someone—you are family; you are meant to be a child of God.” Baptism is historically associated with the seasons of Lent/Easter/Pentecost rather than Advent/Christmas/Epiphany. But I love that the daily lectionary includes this passage about being heirs of God, being part of the family of God, because in Advent, we do think a lot about genealogies and generations. I think the inclusion of this passage invites us to think about the communities that hold us—our chosen families. How might we draw closer to one another in this season of waiting? What relationships need tending, mending, or nurturing? How does belonging to God’s family help us prepare to receive Christ’s love? And how might this fam- ily work toward the fulfillment of God’s kin-dom of love and justice? In this season and the next, may your belonging be deep, your connections tender, and your waiting full of love. That’s a Christmas celebration comprising proclamation of God’s jus- tice-working actions and a celebration of what God is doing. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

3. 

   23 Dec 2025

   Who am I?

   ADVENT WEEK FOUR: LOVE December 23 Rev. Allie Utley, PhD Who am I? 2 Samuel 7:18, 23-29 Then King David went in and sat before the Lord and said, “Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house, that you have brought me thus far?” 2 Samuel 7:18 This chapter of 2 Samuel opens with King David pondering how to best play host to God: “Here I am, living in a house of cedar, while the ark of God re- mains in a tent.” David plans to build a house for the Lord. If you know your Bible well, you will not be surprised that God isn’t interested in a permanent dwelling place. God declares to David, You will not build me a house; I will build you one. God promises to establish David’s family line, to make his name great, and to plant his people in a home of their own. David’s response is a performance of humanity: “Who am I, O Lord God, that you have brought me this far?” He might have been wondering: Who am I to be held by your promises? Who am I to bear a legacy of faith? Who am I to be given a place in your unfolding story? As we approach Christmas, many of us are thinking about homes and houses too. Where will we gather? For whom will we make space? What traditions will we tend? Making plans for Christmas brings up questions of place and identi- ty. I recently spoke with a group of young adults trying to navigate the pressure of holiday expectations: how to honor family traditions while creating their own rhythms, how to choose where to dwell and whom to prioritize. Perhaps David’s story invites us to hold our own questions about home lightly. God reminds David—and us—that the truest “house” is the one God is build- ing: a household of promise, presence, and peace that transcends cedar walls and travel plans. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

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