Church family,

The season of Advent is a liturgical season of waiting and preparation, as we draw near to Christmas. Each year, we await the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem in order to remind ourselves that we are also awaiting the return of Jesus to restore all things. The entire liturgical year is actually meant to be understood as a circle. We return to the beginning at every ending. Yet each new beginning is wholly unique. This is a reflection of our belief in the resurrection.

Our worship series for Advent is titled, “Out of the Blue.” We will be learning from the ways that God surprises us; so in the spirit of surprises, we are doing something new at Covenant UMC…This year we are observing 7 weeks of Advent!! You read that correctly — 7 whole weeks!! We aren’t doing this just for the sake of surprise but as a part of the stream of the larger Church. Many churches observe the ancient tradition of this longer Advent, and this year we are going to lean into this practice as a way to renew our experience of Advent.

Advent will begin November 9th! This means that our Stewardship Campaign will coincide with Advent this year. We are excited to see the ways that this season speaks to us about being faithful in the management of our time, talent, and treasure.

During these 7 weeks, we will have a devotional available. We will announce when these are ready.

– Pastor Megan