All Creation Waits The Advent Mystery Of New Beginnings

Open a window each day of Advent onto the natural world.

A special gift edition of the bestselling book for Advent that reveals the wisdom and wonder of animals in the natural world In twenty-five portraits depicting how wild animals of the northern hemisphere ingeniously adapt when darkness and cold descend, we see and hear as if for the first time the ancient wisdom of Advent: The dark is not an end but the way a new beginning comes. Short, daily reflections capture in vivid detail the intricate and astonishing ways that familiar animals, from the honeybee to the porcupine, prepare for winter. Each day's reading is paired with a charming original woodcut illustration. Anyone who feels tired of the consumer hype of "the holiday season" will be refreshed and awakened to the eternal truth the natural world reveals. This special gift edition: Includes a new introduction, with suggestions for how the book can be used during Advent Features inspirational thoughts from men and women through the ages - scientists, poets, and philosophers - who have found God through the beauty of creation Includes an Afterword, bringing readers up to date on what has happened since All Creation Waits was first published Invites quiet reflection during an often-chaotic holiday season Prompts meaningful conversations between children and adults, church groups, book clubs, creation care classes, and much more Written with quiet passion and backed by extensive research, All Creation Waits has captured the minds and hearts of thousands of readers of all ages, from children to adults. Gayle Boss invites us to realize that God can be known in all creatures, and that paying attention to these creatures makes us more fully human, more fully ourselves. "The practice of Advent has always been about helping us to grasp the mystery of a new beginning out of what looks like death. Other-than-human creatures--sprung, like us, from the Source of Life--manifest this mystery without question or doubt. The more I'm with animals and the more I learn about them, the more I know they can be more than our companions on this planet. They can be our guides. They can be to us 'a book about God...a word of God,' the God who comes, even in the darkest season, to bring us a new beginning." --from All Creation Waits

"Written specifically for early readers and their families, this books explores the idea that animals from frogs to deer wait for the hope of spring and new life just as God our heavenly Father promised in the coming of his only son Jesus Christ"--

From bestselling author Gayle Boss comes a nature-based, faith-building journey through Advent -- for early readers who love nature, wonder, and the hope of Christmas through Jesus' birth. For spiritual parents, grandparents, teachers, and educators who are looking for a wonderful Advent story book, Gayle Boss offers All Creation Waits that celebrates the magnificent and complex way God created animals and their habitat to endure the dark and cold days of winter to emerge full of life and hope when Spring arrives. This book highlights the intricacies of nature and earth. Colorful and eye-catching illustrations paired with 25 individual stories bring the natural world to life with poignant details on every page and each story is certain to engage young minds and imaginations. Twenty-four animals and insects are featured in this marvelous book that takes children through the days leading up to Jesus' arrival. They include: a turtle, muskrat, bear, chickadee, deer. bee, chipmunk, rabbit, loon, frog, raccoon, bat, opossum, turkey, snake, woodchuck, skunk, porcupine, firefly, vole, squirrel, fox, cardinal and trout. All Creation Waits explores the idea that all nature waits for the Savior of the World who brings new life to all living beings. As children wonder about Christmas anticipating Jesus arrival, All Creation Waits reveals the beauty found in every animal habitat. The reason for the season is to bring reflect on the countless ways God has created creation to embrace the Messiah. All Creation Waits is the perfect book for discussing Advent, God's care for his creation, and learning how every being hopes for Spring, anticipating new life. From warm beds, to gathering with friends, children see how nature points to a marvelous and mighty Savior. This hopeful book filled with biblical truth celebrates Advent and is ideal for children ages 3-8. The easy-to-read text coupled with reflective questions makes this book a perfect addition to Christmas preparations at home and at church. Whether you buy this for your family or use it with your church family, All Creation Waits is sure to delight the little ones in your life as an excellent gift for Christmas and holiday gatherings.

Celebrate a Season of Wonder and Waiting Though the holidays are often jam-packed with busyness, the weeks leading up to Yuletide are still a time to reflect on the miracle of Jesus’s birth. Shadow and Light is a concise and customizable guide for the Advent season to help you rediscover your childlike wonder and contemplate the sacred gift we celebrate in the Christmas season. From bestselling author Tsh Oxenreider, Shadow and Light is a rich yet approachable experience that invites you to explore the historical meaning of Advent. Drawing from liturgical tradition, Tsh provides fresh insights for new and longtime believers alike. Each day includes Scripture, a reflection, a question, and a simple activity to engage the senses, such as lighting candles, listening to music, and viewing artwork both old and new. Let yourself break away from the hustle and bustle of crafts, cookies, and Christmas parties, and receive your invitation to remember the quiet focus of our celebration. Shadow and Light will help you reclaim the holiday season as a time to remember Jesus’s first coming, and to long for his one-day return.

"Illustrated stories of the world's magnificent, intricate, and vanishing creatures with the resurrection hope of rebirth"--

Offers guidance for taking part in the Advent tradition of the Jesse Tree, with scriptural passages, devotions, and activities intended to apply their themes.

Little children throughout the world wait impatiently for Christmas to arrive. As parents know, it can seem as if the days just crawl by. Now your family can learn and put to use Advent traditions from the country of Germany during the Christmas season. No doubt mothers have long been inventing ways to keep young children occupied during the Advent season—like Gerhard Lang’s mother, who in the mid-1800s helped her young son count the days on a calendar of cookies. In 1908, the grownup Gerhard, a printer, created the first commercial Advent calendar, twenty-four tiny pictures in the form of a calendar, from his fond memories. Waiting for Christmas tells the story of the young Gerhard—a story children everywhere will recognize as their own—and teaches us that we must wait patiently as we prepare to celebrate the birth of Jesus.