Welcome to Day 2 of our 2010 Advent Calendar - We hope you enjoy exploring the themes of Advent - guiding us each day towards Christmas and the excitement that it brings. I hope you enjoy the Calendar - there are some new things and some older items from previous years - I hope you enjoy Advent and Christmas
Here is our Christmas Countdown Clock!
B is for the Bible where the story is to be found.
B As also for Bethlehem where the baby was born.
B for the Baby Jesus - who was born in Bethlehem.
 Isaiah Ch40 V1 to 5: Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her that her hard service has been completed, that her sin has been paid for, that she has received from the LORD’s hand double for all her sins. A voice of one calling: “In the wilderness prepare the way for the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain. And the glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all people will see it together. For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”
Luke Ch1 V5 to 20 In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron. Both of them were righteous in the sight of God, observing all the Lord’s commands and decrees blamelessly. But they were childless because Elizabeth was not able to conceive, and they were both very old. Once when Zechariah’s division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God, he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside. Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John. He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even before he is born. He will bring back many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous — to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” Zechariah asked the angel, “How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years.” The angel said to him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news. And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will come true at their appointed time.”
Something to do today
Now that you have read a few verses from the Bible and found out about the baby that was to come before Jesus to point the way - He was to be called John and he was a cousin of Jesus, why not visit Bethlehem online and get some more information and Ideas before Christmas. Click here to Visit the Bethlehem Site! Opens in a new window
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Listen to the Carol; O Little Town of Bethlehem.
 Gabriel:
The name Gabriel means 'God's Hero' and he is God's special messenger angel. On several occasions in the Bible he is given the job of coming to earth to give important announcements and tell of special events.
So it was Gabriel who had the amazing job of telling Mary that she would be the mother of Jesus, the king of the universe! It's also highly likely that it was Gabriel who spoke to Joesph and told him that Mary would have a special baby called Jesus 11.
Nowhere in the Bible is Gabriel called an archangel, although in Jewish folklore he is one of the seven archangels. In Daniel 21:9 it says that Gabriel arrives in 'swift flight', but it doesn't mention wings! Swift flight could just mean quickly!
Angels are to be found all through the Bible - and particularly because of the Christmas story we remember them every year. Can you think of some places where Angels appear in the Christmas story...???? (Yes he visited Zecheriah while he is in the temple; Then the Angel vsited Mary; and the Angel visited the shepherds on the hillside; and then the Host of angels to the shepherds again) - Well done if you got some or all of these occasions!
Angels are messengers from God. They do special things. And angels have names just like us. Can anyone think of another Angel?
(Michael)
Gabriel is the most important of all God's angels. It is said that he leads all the other angels when they go do something very special in the world. Sometimes, when he appears - he looks just like a man - but a man who is nine feet tall, with wings, and a sword. Gabriel can appear very frightening until you realize that he comes from God - and that God is full of love - and so are his angels. Other times Gabriel can appear just like you and me - because angels can change how they look - and still other times it seems that they have wings and fly - kind of how our Christmas tree angels look..
Anyway - many years ago the angel Gabriel - the most important of all the angels, came from God to deliver very important messages to all the world. Now - if you had a very important message to give to the whole world - where would you go to deliver it...???
Gabriel didn't visit the Emperor of Rome - who ruled the whole world in those days - nor did he visit Herod who was King of Israel - who ruled over God's people. He didn't even go to the biggest city to deliver his message - but instead he went to a tiny village and to an old Man who was a priest. He also visited Mary - but more of that later. God thought Zechariah and Mary were important. And God sent Gabriel to them. And do you know what God wanted Gabriel to say to her...???
 God told Mary, through the angel Gabriel, that she was to give birth to the Saviour of the whole world - that she would be the mother of Jesus.
Gabriel told Zechariah that his wife Elizabeth would also have a boy child and his name was to be John. Because of these visits things have never been the same since.
I think that this Christmas we should remember that God gave a gift to everyone - everyone who believes and it means that every person is precious to God. God chooses us - not always with an angel's visit - but God still chooses us - to bring the good news of Jesus and his love to the whole world. That is part of what Christmas is all about - telling the whole world about the special things that God has done - and is still doing - so as we give our gifts with Love this Christmas - remember the the most wonderful gift of all - Jesus. |
Here is a simple pencil drawing of Gabriel giving Zechariah the wonderful news that he is to be a Father and that his son John will point the way to his cousin Jesus. Colour the picture in, in your own colours. If you are small ask Mummy or Daddy to help. Enjoy! Right click to copy or download to your computer and use the paint programme in Windows to colour it in.
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