Welcome to the season of Advent!



You probably spend more time using your listening skills than any other kind of skill. Like other skills, listening takes practice.

What does it mean to really listen?

Real listening is an active process that has three basic steps.

• Hearing. Hearing just means listening enough to catch what the speaker is saying. For example, say you were listening to a report on zebras, and the speaker mentioned that no two are alike. If you can repeat the fact, then you have heard what has been said.
• Understanding. The next part of listening happens when you take what you have heard and understand it in your own way. Let's go back to that report on zebras. When you hear that no two are alike, think about what that might mean. You might think, "Maybe this means that the pattern of stripes is different for each zebra."
• Judging. After you are sure you understand what the speaker has said, think about whether it makes sense. Do you believe what you have heard? You might think, "How could the stripes to be different for every zebra? But then again, the fingerprints are different for every person. I think this seems believable."

LISTEN is the message of the first candle of ADVENT.  Here in God’s Word is a light that shines beyond the bounds of Bethlehem, beyond the hillsides of the shepherds, for all to see.  He is the Word of God proclaimed for all the world to hear – a message of HOPE!

So what are you HOPING for?  Do you have something to look forward to?  A future! 

That is what this first candle and the first week of Advent is all about, a bright future with God.