Advent Blessings for Worship Leaders
Stewarding the mysteries of Advent and bringing them to the people is spiritual and theological work. Often it remains hidden even from worshipers themselves. Ministers, we want to acknowledge your vocation, and appreciate your labors. So we are offering blessings and prayers in the season of Advent especially for you, dear pastors, priests, liturgists, chaplains, and musicians.
To download each blessing, simply click on the button under each weekly image and a .PDF will open in a new page. We will add the blessings each week through the season of Advent.
Advent is here!
Advent has arrived. This season of waiting and anticipation is here. The church calendar begins again, and we reflect on themes of hope, peace, joy, and love. In reality, we rarely have much time to reflect. This is also a season of busyness, of calendars that often feel hectic, gatherings, griefs, and weariness. Alongside hope, we feel despair. As we long for peace, we wrestle with fear. Our joy feels tempered by gloom. Love is hard to hold onto when hate seems to swirl around us.
We find ourselves in this season where our plans and expectations will surely be met by both unexpected joys and burdens. How can our practices of prayer and reflection help us journey through the season in ways that feel hopeful? What do we need to find peace within? How might we notice and practice acts of love?
Additional Advent Resources
Putting together resources for your congregation, youth group, week-day Bible study or mid-week prayer group is always challenging. For the season of Advent, we can recommend the following stories, poetry, devotions, and guiding ideas. Enjoy!
- Here is a visio divina practice with a Gaelic blessing and beautiful art.
- Read this reflection on all that Advent requires and how we might find peace within.
- These are a few simple guiding principles for Advent from 2020 that still hold true today.
- Ten years ago I shared about engaging in the prayer practice of an Advent word a day.
- This poem calls us to awaken to the Advent journey, and this reflection inspires us to be present to this moment.
- We also love “Following the Star” an Advent devotional sponsored by our friends at Passport and d365. Follow the star to pause, listen, pray, think, and go each day of the Advent season and all year long.
