Author: Becca Upshaw

Advent: Day 16 December 16, 2023 | Nothing New Under the Sun There is a verse in Ecclesiastes 1:9 that says:What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.In some ways, there is comfort in knowing that when the world feels crazy, we… Continue reading Day 16 | Advent

Advent: Day 14 December 14, 2023 | Split in Two As a kid did you ever talk about becoming blood brothers with a friend? Well, the concept comes from an ancient practice where people would “cut a covenant,” meaning two people would cut their arms and suck a bit of one another’s blood. The mingling… Continue reading Day 14 | Advent

Advent: Day 12 December 12, 2023 | Say to the Mountain In the Christmas story, Herod the Great is best known for his attempt to assassinate the newborn Messiah. After a visit from the Magi, Herod orders all the infant boys under two to be massacred. It’s gruesome, and a result of his extreme paranoia.… Continue reading Day 12 | Advent

Advent: Day 10 December 10, 2023 | You Already Know Today is a little different. We’ll share one quick observation and then offer a practice to expand our Advent experience. Did you know that the disciples only asked Jesus to teach them one thing? They didn’t ask Him how to heal people. Or, to teach… Continue reading Day 10 | Advent

Advent: Day 9 December 9, 2023 | Cover Your Head One of the goals of this Advent series is to understand the social and cultural issues happening at the time of Jesus, so today we are going to look at a spicy issue of women showing their hair in church, and it comes out of… Continue reading Day 9 | Advent

Advent: Day 19 December 19, 2023 | The Great Reversal What was it like for God to have His relationship with us cut off? We focus a lot on what sin meant for us, but what about God? He created us and wanted – probably even more than we do – to be in a… Continue reading Day 19 | Advent

Advent: Day 1 December 1, 2023 | Zechariah – The Story Before The Story But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will name him John. You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice… Continue reading Day 1 | Advent

Advent: Day 8 December 8, 2023 | Even the Rocks Will Cry Out Michelangelo painted several iconic images on the ceiling of the Sistine chapel including ‘The Creation of Adam’ and ‘The Last Judgement.’ But in addition to these important pieces, around the outer rim of the ceiling he painted pictures of twelve people who… Continue reading Day 8 | Advent

Advent: Day 7 December 7, 2023 | A Shoot From the Stump of Jesse In the book of Matthew we read an account of Jesus’ early days that says,   So (Joseph) got up, took the child and his mother and went to the land of Israel. But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning… Continue reading Day 7 | Advent

Advent: Day 4 December 4, 2023 | O Come, O Come, Emmanuel During the Christmas season we often hear a hymn sung that has these lyrics:   O come, O come, Emmanuel, And ransom captive Israel, That mourns in lonely exile here Until the Son of God appear. Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee,… Continue reading Day 4 | Advent