Christmas and Advent Plans

One Baby For The World takes you on an unforgettable Advent journey seen through the eyes of missions. Author Shari Tvrdik offers a unique perspective through Advent. She connects the powerful story of the nativity to her experiences with life among the suffering poor of Mongolia's ger district. Adapted from the book, One Baby For The World.


One Baby for the World: 24 Days of Advent From a Missions Perspective 

In a brand new devotional series titled, The Reason for the Season, Pastor Jim Cymbala provides fresh insight into the Christmas story. As he addresses the unspoken sadness that many carry at this time of the year, Pastor Jim Cymbala challenges us to think about what would mean the most to Jesus this holiday season.

The Reason for the Season

This year and last year have felt chaotic, stressful, uncertain, but God (I love those two words!) is unchanging, faithful, and our source of peace. Christmas is a time of remembrance, to reflect on what our God really did when Jesus was born in a manger. Follow along as we meditate on Christmas, joy, peace, love, and hope this Advent season. -Matthew West

We Need Christmas With Matthew West 

In Isaiah 9:6, we see that Jesus is our Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace. In this 5-Day Plan, we'll celebrate the arrival of Jesus by learning about His different names, and how they apply to our lives today.

Unto Us: Celebrating the Arrival of Jesus

The celebration of Jesus' birth during Christmas time is about much more than a single event. Long before the Son of God took His first breath here on earth, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit determined a plan that would provide the greatest gift to all humanity: Jesus, the perfect sacrificial Lamb of God. Join us in this 5-day devotional as we celebrate the Gift That’s Freely Given.

The Gift That's Freely Given

In all the holiday hustle and bustle, it can be easy to lose sight of why we’re celebrating. In this 5-day advent plan, we’ll dive into the promises fulfilled by the birth of Jesus and the hope we have for the future. As we learn more about who God is, we’ll discover how to live through the holiday season with hope, faith, joy, and peace.

Living Changed: At Christmas

Christmas is a time when we as believers celebrate God’s heart to write himself into our story. Prior to Jesus, we had no real picture of God’s love. All we had to know him by was through stories of old and commandments written into law. But only in Jesus was a pathway created whereby we could walk in intimacy with the Father again. Only in Jesus was the veil torn, allowing God’s manifest presence into the earth. We owe all that we have to Jesus. We owe all that we have to Christmas.

Emmanuel

The Greatest Gift will take you through the Christmas story in ten days, reminding you of the reason why you can have hope, joy, and peace in a world filled with turmoil and despair. 

The Greatest Gift

Is it really possible to experience peace when life is painful? The short answer: yes, but not in our own power. In a year that has left us feeling overwhelmed, many of us are left with questions. In this 7-day Bible Plan, accompanying Pastor Craig Groeschel’s message series, we’ll discover how to find the Missing Peace we all crave.

Missing Peace

What if this Christmas, we were to remember the miracles that Jesus performed in the lives of those who came to Him? This Advent season, I pray you enjoy these 25 compelling stories based on the New Testament characters from The Chosen series. May their diverse, powerful testimonies inspire you to experience and become a miracle of God for others! Are you ready? You are a Miracle! Christian Misch

Chosen to Be a Miracle! Advent Plan Based on “The Chosen"

When was the last time you did a really deep dive into the Christmas story? From King Herod to the shepherds, Mary and Joseph, to the wise men and Zechariah, there is much to learn from the events surrounding the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem. Over the next 10 days, we’ll look at truths from the Christmas story we should live all year long. 

10 Days of Christmas Truths to Live All Year

Feel like the wonder of the Christmas gets lost amidst all of the digital distractions and busyness of the season?

This 3-day plan will help you to adorn your heart with wonder. Each day includes a "Wonder Challenge," a short, practical activity that will help to bring some wonder into your life through a reflection on a part of the story of Jesus' birth.

Hearts Adorned With Wonder

‘Tis the season to be jolly, but also very busy.  Come away for a few moments of rest and worship that will sustain you throughout the merry labors of the season. Based on the book  Unwrapping the Names of Jesus: An Advent Devotional , this 5-day devotional reading plan will guide you to receive Jesus’ rest this Christmas by taking moments to remember His goodness, express your neediness, seek His stillness, and trust His faithfulness.

All Is Calm: Receiving Jesus' Rest This Christmas 

It’s easy to feel small in a world filled with seven billion people, especially when there are people with titles like president, king, or even influencer. But most of the people in the Christmas story weren’t all that powerful or famous, and yet they played a part in one of the greatest stories ever told! This four-day devotional will remind us that everyone has a role in God’s story.

Good Enough for God

It’s the most wonderful time of the year, but we often find ourselves hustling through the holidays. This Christmas, what if we reclaimed wonder? In this 5-day Bible Plan accompanying Pastor Craig Groeschel’s series, The Gift, we’ll discover how the three gifts the wise men gave Jesus can lead us to a place of wonder and worship today.

The Gift

Countdown to Christmas Day by poring over the miraculous events surrounding the birth of Christ, one piece of the Nativity at a time. Beginning with the prophecies from the Old Testament to the promises God fulfilled, each piece played an important role in the night that changed eternity. Each day includes a devotional, scripture reading, and artwork from Casey Hilty’s Nativity Garland Christmas countdown cards available online. 

The Nativity: A Christmas Countdown Devotional

The true intention behind Advent was a way of preparing one’s heart for Christmas. It was a way to create a posture like Simeon: “Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was on him” (Luke 2:25). This devotional by Dan Stanford is designed to help us do that.

The Adventures of Christmas 

Are you looking for the perfect gift this Christmas? Is it expensive, rare, mysterious, and hard to find?
What if I told you that the perfect gift is available now, to everyone, everywhere, and is free? It's not only free, but it frees you from condemnation, separation from God, and eternal death. Learn more about God's perfect gift to you, and unwrap all Jesus has for you today! 


Jesus Is the Perfect Gift

In a crowded Christmas season, most of us feel the stress and anxiety of family relationships, financial pressure, hasty decisions, and disappointed expectations. So go ahead. Take a breath. Start this Life.Church Bible Plan and realize the weight we feel may be something God never asked us to carry. How about we let go of the baggage? Let’s travel light.

Travel Light

One of the many Christmas traditions for families is to set out a nativity scene depicting the birth of Jesus.  Usually, we see Mary, Joseph, shepherds, sheep, and wise men surrounding a tiny baby in a manger.  It’s a picturesque scene to remind us of Jesus’ birth.  But our familiarity with the nativity scene can cause us to forget the humanity of each person present on that special night. 

The Nativity Scene

Year after year, millions of people do their best to make the excitement and festivities of Christmas Day match the anticipation that precedes it. But what about the first Christmas? Why did it happen? And was anyone disappointed? This plan focuses on the wonder, mystery, and purpose of the first Christmas—challenging us to praise God for His goodness as we receive and remember His gift of salvation.

The Wonder and Mystery of Christmas

He Shall Reign is a two week Advent study from New Life Church of Arkansas. Throughout this plan, we look at the anticipation of Christ's birth and how He came to establish His kingdom on earth. Our prayer is that this study would remind you of the unshakable reign of our Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace. 

He Shall Reign

Mary & Joseph’s walk of obedience brought God’s deliverance for all men. Mary kept the promise of God her focus by surrounded herself with miracle believing people. Joseph's obedience was necessary for Mary’s promise to be fulfilled. 

Could your obedience be the door to someone else’s promise fulfilled?
Is God birthing a promise within you and are you stewarding it well? 
Will you obey no matter what the cost?

The Coming Promise

God gave David a special promise. His descendants would reign over Israel forever. Biblical history shows us how God kept this promise in an amazing way, despite the unfaithfulness of David’s descendants. He sent Jesus Christ, the ultimate Son of David, who will be King forever and ever — not only over Israel, but over all the nations.



A Shoot From the Stump of Jesse

The holiday season can surface many emotions. Making decisions, shopping, and preparing to host family members can be stressful. As you enter this season, it is essential to make peace a priority. This 5-Day Bible plan will guide you toward having a peaceful season. We believe there is the peace God promises everyone, and we can access it through scripture and self-care. 



A Peaceful Season: A 5-Day Bible Plan on Having Peace During the Holiday Season

Christmas Plans

Advent is not only the anticipation of Christmas. It’s a time when we’re facing the darkness of this world and at the same time seeing the rise of the Light. The Light that no darkness can ever overcome. 
For the next seven days, we’ll reveal that Christ has not just come once but that He comes to us today. 
This plan will help you feel Christmas not merely as an event from the past but as a living hope that renews your personal heart, family, and the nation.

Advent: The Light That Rises in the Darkness

Advent is a season of anticipation and hope. This 12-day journey through the Christmas story will remind you that when Jesus stepped into our world, everything changed. From shepherds in fields to wise men following stars, from a humble virgin to anxious parents, God broke into ordinary moments with extraordinary purpose. As you walk through these devotions, may you discover anew that the Light of the World has come… for you.

Light Has Come

Do you feel like you're sitting in a waiting room waiting for a door to open? All of us are going to end up in a waiting room at some point. The problem is very few of us wait well. After all, waiting can make us feel powerless or even hopeless. However, the Advent season reminds us that God does some of His best work in the waiting room. Learn how to wait with God today!

The Waiting Room

The birth of Jesus is the best news ever!
His birth brought great joy in Heaven and on Earth, a joy that still remains today since that special day.
Why not take the time to discover or rediscover this good news and share in this great joy?

CHRISTMAS - ADVENT - Good News, Great Joy - Jean-Luc Trachsel

During a season that often feels busy and stretched thin, we invite you to pause and remember what matters most: following Jesus. The birth of Christ is more than a story we tell in December. It's the beginning of our Savior's life on earth — and the pattern for our own life with Him. Our prayer is that these 25 days prepare your heart to celebrate His birth, deepen your walk with Him today, and stir your hope for His return. We’ve also created a companion worship playlist –  search “Following Jesus Through the First Christmas” on Spotify to listen. 

Following Jesus Through the First Christmas: 25 Days of Advent Truths

An Audacious Advent: Setting the Table invites you to look at the story of Jesus’ coming through the lens of equity, welcome, and belonging. Each day explores a different facet of God’s heart for inclusion and what it means to make room for others, just as He made room for us. This five-day journey challenges us to prepare differently this season—to open our hearts, homes, and communities to reflect the Kingdom table Jesus came to set.

An Audacious Advent: Setting the Table

As you rediscover Christmas in these devotions, you will find your heart opening to the wider field of God’s Love, empowering you to participate in the new Creation Story launched at Christmas and extending far beyond the Christmas season. 

Rediscovering Christmas

Need help and ideas for savoring this Christmas season and enjoying each day with your family and friends? Join the Help Club for Moms community for encouragement and helpful tips for taking in each moment and focusing on what's really important this year!

Christmas Encouragement for Moms

In this seven-day reading plan, journey through the Christmas season by reflecting on Jesus's nature as King. From his sacrificial love to his merciful heart, triumphant victory, and humble leadership, we’ll discover together how King Jesus transforms our lives. Each day invites you to pause, center your heart, and encounter Christ in a fresh way.

God With Us: Encountering the King This Christmas

Over the first 25 days of December, we will cover the genealogy of Christ, the characters of Christmas, the prophecies Jesus fulfilled, who Jesus is, and the Christmas story. 

The Christ of Christmas

This four-week series is an introduction to the Advent season and the things that the people watching and waiting for Jesus found when He came to Earth. You will learn that the birth of Jesus is just the beginning of the hope, peace, joy, and love He brought to the world. And the best news is—we don't just get to experience it on Christmas.

Not Just on Christmas: A 4-Week Devotional About Advent

In the Christmas special “Holy Night,” the creators of The Chosen have told the Story of the first Christmas really well. And this 6-day reading plan lets you peek in on some of the most powerful moments from “Holy Night,” setting the stage for deep reflection as you prepare room in your heart for the arrival of Jesus this Christmas.          

Christmas With the Chosen

Spark awe and recapture the wonder of Christ’s birth in this 4-day Plan. Join Bible teacher Jen Weaver and explore Isaiah’s ancient prophecies, revealing the beauty and majesty of Jesus nearly 700 years before His arrival. Let these timeless truths inspire worship in your heart and draw you closer to Christ.

In Awe of Jesus: Christmas Foretold in Isaiah

Immanuel in My Story is a 4-day Christmas devotional that helps you see the birth of Jesus as more than a distant event. Through the lives of Joseph and Mary (primarily based on Matthew 1), you will explore God-given dreams, carrying purpose, and trusting a story He has already written. By the end of these four days, you will be clearer about your part in God’s Christmas plan and the next step of obedience He is calling you to take.

Immanuel in My Story: Finding Your Part in God’s Christmas Plan.

This 9-day devotional invites you to rediscover the miracle of Christmas through the lens of Heaven's gift. From Mary’s surrender to the Magi’s pursuit, from the shepherds’ awe to the wonder of incarnation itself, each reflection reveals how Jesus—Emmanuel—is with us in our waiting, our weakness, our worship, and our wonder. Written by Jemima Gleeson this devotional is rooted in Scripture and pastoral insight. 'Gift of Heaven' offers a fresh perspective on the Christmas story and a renewed invitation to draw near to the God who first drew near to us.

Gift of Heaven: A Christmas Devotional Series

No trips on donkeys. No angels singing. Not even a baby in a manger. Yet, there are still 25 gifts God wants to give you for Christmas. We can find them in a little, six-chapter book halfway through the New Testament. These are The Greatest Gifts, as revealed in Ephesians. Along the way, you'll find the gift of love, the gift of salvation, the gift of unity, and many more. Prepare your heart in a special way this Christmas season by receiving, and giving, God's greatest gifts.

The Greatest Gifts

The Christmas story reminds us that hope is not found in perfect circumstances but in our faithful God. Over the four weeks of Advent, journey through the readings of this devotional plan to help you reflect on the promise of Immanuel, God with us, and discover how He meets us in every season of waiting with faithfulness and hope.

Advent: Hope in the Waiting by Wycliffe Bible Translators

Forgiveness is a big word, but what exactly does forgiveness mean? And what are the consequences if we don't forgive? And what is the difference between forgiving, pardoning and reconciling? This reading plan is structured like an Advent calendar: 24 “doors” and behind each one a little treasure awaits you about the incredible gift that Jesus gave you for Christmas.

Forgiveness and Reconciliation

This Advent, spend time in the opening verses of John’s Gospel reflecting on what these verses reveal to us about who Jesus is. 

Who Is Jesus?

Advent is more than a countdown to Christmas. It’s an invitation to hope. Advent teaches us to choose peace over fear, receive joy in God’s presence, and behold the One who has come, is coming, and will come again. Whether your waiting is full of longing, uncertainty, or anticipation, these devotions will help you slow down and experience the transforming presence of Jesus, the God who is with us.

Waiting for Jesus

Advent is the season when we prepare our hearts for the arrival of Jesus - the Word made flesh, full of grace and truth. In these five reflections, we’ll look at how Jesus reveals the fullness of God’s love and challenges us to live in that same balance of mercy and conviction. Each week offers a Scripture reading, a short devotional, and questions for reflection to help you draw closer to Christ. As you read, may you come to know that God’s grace meets you in truth, and His truth always leads you back to grace.

Grace & Truth

Seven hundred years before Christ was born, Isaiah prophesied the Messiah would be called a Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace. Only in the divine foreknowledge of God could all of these titles be perfectly fulfilled in the person and work of Jesus Christ. This Advent, be awed and amazed at the Wonderful Counselor who’s a wonder of a counselor. Oh, come, let us adore him! 


He Shall Be Called

Advent

This 5-day devotional explores the hope, peace, joy, love, and light found in Jesus. Use it daily or as an Advent guide for the four Sundays before Christmas and Christmas Eve. This Christmas, don’t just celebrate a season — spend some time with the Savior who stepped into our story. Once distant, now among us, God came near so we could draw near. 

Light of the World

Christmas isn’t simply about celebrating what God did thousands of years ago but what He is doing for you when you trust His Son. Jesus is Immanuel, God-With-You, right here and now. Embark on this journey to unwrap the greatest gift. 

Christmas: The Greatest Gift

What have we missed about the Christmas story?
Through brand new Salt + Gold artwork, scripture, and real-life stories, explore the people, interactions, moments, and objects often unnoticed within the familiar Christmas story. From messy mangers to wild dreams, come and see the things you may have missed about Emmanuel - and the God who never misses you.

Christmas: The Things We May Have Missed

When hope feels distant—buried in silence, barrenness, or delay—Jesus is quietly at work, bringing life where we least expect it. 

In this five-day Advent journey, uncover fierce hope: hope that waits with expectation, trusts God’s work in the silence, chooses joy in uncertainty, believes against all odds, and prepares Him room. 

Each day offers Scripture, a short devotion, and a prayer to steady your heart with fierce hope this Advent season.

Fierce Hope: An Advent Journey of Waiting and Wonder

As the month of Christmas begins, you can begin the journey towards the Prince of Peace, Wonderful Counsellor, and Mighty God.

From the book of Isaiah to the gospel accounts of the birth of Jesus - Give space for the Holy Spirit to open your eyes to the reality of Jesus Christ, who was, is, and is to come. The King is here! 

Journey to Christmas

THE BEST CHRISTMAS PAGEANT EVER and Kingdom Story Company have created this reading plan to help individuals and groups explore the biblical themes of compassion, community, and Christmas in the new film from the creators of Jesus Revolution. In this five-day Bible reading plan, you’ll see clips from THE BEST CHRISTMAS PAGEANT EVER, a video from Dallas Jenkins, and find reflection questions to help you study what the Bible says about the role of the church.