This is the weekly bulletin insert from Sermons That Work.

Journeying the Way of Love – Saying “Yes” to the Journey

As Advent begins this week, we invite you to orient yourself to the coming of Jesus at Christmas through the practices of Journeying the Way of Love. This journey begins by saying “yes” to God’s call to birth new life into the world—a call that is both powerful and gentle, a call that will, if fully embraced, grow beyond our imaginations, spilling out of ourselves and into our family, friends, community, and the whole world. Over the course of this holy season, we invite you to respond to that call using these daily practices, and encourage you to offer them to your friends, family, and neighbors.

For more Advent resources related to the Way of Love, visit episcopalchurch.org/wayoflove. There, you’ll find links to the full Advent curriculum Journeying the Way of Love, as well as Living the Way of Love in Community, a nine-session curriculum for use anytime.

Sunday, November 27: WORSHIP

Read Luke 21:25-36. How do the symbols of the Advent season help you understand the story of Jesus? Where do you see them in your worship today?

Monday, November 28: GO

Go out of your way to have a conversation with someone you might not normally visit with today. Ask God to open your heart to hear this person as God does.

Tuesday, November 29: LEARN

Read Matthew 4:18-22. How do these verses from Matthew inspire you to read Scripture with new eyes? Try reading several different translations of this passage. See how the language might change your reading of it.

Wednesday, November 30: PRAY

Pray along with the Collect for Advent 1, found on page 211 of The Book of Common Prayer. Set a timer for three minutes to sit in silence and hear what God might be saying back to you.

Almighty God, give us grace to cast away the works of darkness, and put on the armor of light, now in the time of this mortal life in which your Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; that in the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge both the living and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal; through him who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Collect for Advent 1

Thursday, December 1: BLESS

We know that angels are God’s special messengers to us, and that Gabriel spent intentional time with Mary, helping her to understand her part in God’s story. Who has shared an important lesson or their presence with you this week? Thank them today with a call or note.

Friday, December 2: TURN

Read Isaiah 58. How does this reading challenge you to think about feasts and festivals differently? How might this lesson change the way you celebrate or recognize this holy season?

Saturday, December 3: REST

Put your phone on airplane mode and leave it in a dresser drawer for an hour or two. Whatever happens in that time, you can handle later. Give this time to yourself and Jesus, to rest and recharge for the week ahead.

Bulletin Inserts

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Sermons That Work

For more than 20 years, Sermons That Work, a ministry of The Episcopal Church’s Office of Communication, has provided free sermons, Bible studies, bulletin inserts, and other resources that speak to congregations across the Church. Our writers and readers come from numerous and varied backgrounds, and the resources we provide are used in small house churches, sprawling cathedrals, and everything between.

Church of the Redeemer

Church of the Redeemer: Worshiping God, living in community, and reaching out to the world around us. We are an Episcopal Church serving north King County and south Snohomish County, Washington. As you travel your road, go with friends walking the way of Jesus at Redeemer.

Church of the Redeemer is at 6210 Northeast 181st Street in Kenmore, Washington. The campus is a short distance north of Bothell Way, near the Burke-Gilman Trail. The entrance looks like a gravel driveway. The campus is larger on the inside than it is on the outside. And we managed to hide a large building on the side of a hill that is not easily seen from the street.

The Episcopal Church welcomes you.