Advent 20- Anticipatory Joy

December 16

Read Luke 1: 57–60

Anticipatory joy builds as we watch and wait for Christ. Think of the excitement you see in the child who checks the growing stash of presents under the tree and finds one bearing his name. He can’t open that package yet, but he knows it is there, he knows it was chosen with love, and he knows it is for him. The birth of John shouts that God is keeping His promise of a Messiah and it will happen soon! The promise is for you, you can’t quite see it yet, but it is sure. The promise was made with love and fulfilled at great price.

Advent hymns are the church’s ‘Are we there yet?’ songs to God. As you sing ‘Come, Thou Precious Ransom, Come’ pay special attention to the last two lines of verse 1 and the first two lines of verse two.

Come, Thou precious Ransom, come, Only hope for sinful mortals! 

Come, O Savior of the world!

Open are to Thee all portals. Come, Thy beauty let us see; 

Anxiously we wait for Thee.

Enter now my waiting heart, Glorious King and Lord most holy. 

Dwell in me and ne’er depart,

Though I am but poor and lowly. Ah, what riches will be mine 

When Thou art my guest divine!

My hosannas and my palms Graciously receive, I pray Thee;

 Evermore, as best I can, 

Savior, I will homage pay Thee, And in faith I will embrace,

 Lord, Thy merit through Thy grace. 

Hail! Hosanna, David’s Son! Jesus, hear our supplication! 

Let Thy kingdom, scepter, crown

Bring us blessing and salvation, That forever we may sing: 

Hail! Hosanna to our King.

The symbol for today is a gift package.

For the Family:

 Use heavy paper or card stock to make a cross that folds into a small box.  Make a square the size you would like to use for this project. Suggest at least 2 inch square.The cross is 5 squares long and 3 squares wide with the cross over square the 2^nd square down from the top. Now get out last year’s Christmas cards and cut out a nativity scene from one and paste it in the center square of the template. If you wish you can add a star to the top, angels to one side, shepherds to the other side, and magi coming up from the lower portion of the cross. Fold on the cross lines to make a box with the picture on the inside and secure the joints with a bit of tape or something sticky. Wheat Ridge Christmas seals would be perfect if you have them. On the top of the box write ‘To ___________ ‘ and ‘From Your Heavenly Father’. Put your own name on the blank. Now make a package for each member of the family. Place the gifts under the Tree of Promise and give thanks for Christ in your heart.

Bible Journaling:

Advent 20-
Anticipatory JOY
Luke 1:57-60

Bible Journaling
Connie Denninger

From the Kitchen:

Anise Cookies

 Dora Pfitzer Meyermann-Mother of Natalie Hartwig

5 eggs

2 C sugar

½ tsp anise oil

3 C cake flour

• Beat eggs and sugar together for 30 minutes (1 hour if by hand) – it gets very light and sugar is completely dissolved.
• Fold in anise oil and cake flour
• Drop by ½ tsp full on greased cookie sheet
• Let stand in cool place over night
• Bake at 350 for 10 minutes.

I only remember momma making these cookies when we lived in Des Plaines. (Dad taught at Immanuel Lutheran School, Des Plaines, IL) The  house had an unheated back porch area surrounded with windows. She would put the card table up in the porch and the cookies would rest there overnight. 

I remember that the cookies were very hard and Dad liked them. I picked this recipe because of the overnight wait between putting the cookies on the baking pans and being able to bake them reminded me of the way time seems to drag at the end of a pregnancy. 

The recipe is in my mother’s hand writing on paper that came out of her first cook book. I do not like anise and have never made these cookies, but the recipe is certainly interesting. Can you even imagine making them without an electric mixer?

Tree of Promise Devotions
Natalie Hartwig