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25 Devotional Readings for Advent and Christmas.
In a world that’s difficult to make sense of, and a season that’s so often overtaken by consumerism, here you’ll find heart-stirring illustrations and thought-provoking meditations designed to show you the raw, powerfully sacred story of Christmas in a new light.
Has the joy of the holiday season become painfully dissonant with the hard edges of life? Do you feel weary from the way Christmas has become a polished, predictable brand? You aren’t alone. For too many of us, Christmas has lost its wonder. What if we stopped treating the Christmas story as something that happened a long time ago and started believing that it’s a story that’s still happening today?
From celebrated artist and storyteller Scott Erickson comes Honest Advent, 25 days of illustrations and meditations that will help you rekindle the wonder of this season. Honest Advent creates a space for you to encounter the Incarnate Christ in unexpected places: like a pregnancy announcement in an era of political unrest and empirical bloodshed, the morning sickness of a Middle Eastern teenager, and the shocking biology of birth that goes far beyond the sanitized brand of Christmas as we know it today.
Within the pages of Honest Advent, Erickson teaches us the valuable lessons he’s learned about:
Finding hope and light in the darkest wintersWhat it means to embrace the unexpectedHow God uses everyday vulnerability to help us understand ourselves, and our faith, better
Through powerful benedictions, prayers, and questions for honest reflection, you’ll discover how the wonder of God-with-Us is still happening today: in your unexpected change of plans, your unaccomplished dreams, your overcrowded lodging, and your humble stories of new beginnings.
Praise for Honest Advent:
“Scott Erickson’s beautifully crafted book helped me see God-with-Us with fresh eyes. Honest Advent is no shallow seasonal gift book; it’s an invitation to explore the divine flourishes of everyday human vulnerabilities. A transformative read, regardless of the time of year.”
–Jonathan Merritt, author of Learning to Speak God from Scratch
“Beautiful. Evocative. A wake-up call to the mystery of life.”
–John Mark Comer, author of The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry
From the Publisher
Discover the hope-filled truth that God is still showing up today even in the hardest parts of our humanity
25 days of heart-stirring images from a celebrated artist-storyteller
Includes powerful benedictions, prayers, and questions for reflection
“An evergreen gift for the weary soul, calling out fresh and upending wonder at the incarnation, what it meant then, and how we are to be now.”
—Jay and Katherine Wolf, authors of Hope Heals and Suffer Strong
“There is something so enticingly refreshing about the perspective and conversation of Advent through the feminine lens.”
—Arielle Estoria, poet, author, speaker
“If you want an Advent made for our moment of social and racial awakening, and one that doesn’t oversimplify, this is it!”
—Propaganda and Dr. Alma Zaragoza-Petty, The Red Couch Podcast
“I love Honest Advent.”
—Mike McHargue, author of You’re a Miracle (and a Pain in the A**) and host of Ask Science Mike podcast
“Beautiful. Evocative. A wake-up call to the mystery of life.”
—John Mark Comer, author of The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry
“Scott Erickson’s beautifully crafted book helped me see God-with-Us with fresh eyes…. A transformative read, regardless of the time of year.”
—Jonathan Merritt, author of Learning to Speak God from Scratch and contributing writer to The Atlantic
“Through striking visuals and conversational prose, Scott Erickson has created a doorway between … the simple and the complex, holiday and the everyday.”
—Hillary McBride, PhD, RCC, therapist, researcher, and author
“This book will be a tasty treat to savor and to help us reflect on the greatest wonder of all—God becoming one of us.”
—Peri and Brian Zahnd, authors of Every Scene by Heart and Postcards from Babylon
Publisher : Zondervan
Publication date : October 20, 2020
Language : English
Print length : 224 pages
ISBN-10 : 0310361877
ISBN-13 : 978-0310361879
Item Weight : 2.31 pounds
Dimensions : 5.4 x 0.55 x 8.4 inches
Best Sellers Rank: #8,661 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #54 in Devotionals #74 in Christmas (Books) #147 in Christian Devotionals (Books)
Customer Reviews: 4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars 1,409 ratings var dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction; P.when(‘A’, ‘ready’).execute(function(A) { if (dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction !== true) { dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction = true; A.declarative( ‘acrLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault”: true }, function (event) { if (window.ue) { ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } } ); } }); P.when(‘A’, ‘cf’).execute(function(A) { A.declarative(‘acrStarsLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault” : true }, function(event){ if(window.ue) { ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } }); });
Customers say
Customers find this Advent book thought-provoking and appreciate its stunning visual art. The devotions are inspiring and earthy, making it a refreshing opportunity to consider the season, with engaging illustrations that bring Christmas into reality. Customers value its honest perspective and heartfelt message, with one noting how it brings a new approach to Advent.
