Advent Reflection Guide – Week 2

In an age of instant gratification, fast food, and one-day shipping, observing Advent is a counter-cultural activity because at the core of Advent is waiting. Yes, we wait in anticipation for Christmas, but Advent is much more than a calendar countdown: it is an opportunity to pause amidst our waiting. As Christians, we are not to be consumed by the commercialization of Christmas; instead, we are to be focused on the Messiah who is the fulfilment of our deepest longings. Through the lens of the Promises of the Messiah – his past coming in the flesh, his present coming in the Spirit, and his future coming in glory – we seek to wait faithfully while seeking Him urgently.

During the Sundays of Advent, we will be exploring passages in Isaiah that present some powerful images of what the promises of the coming of Jesus looks like. They remind us of the desperate need of the Messiah by the people of Israel. They will also give us glimpses to how the promises of the Messiah spark our imagination for God’s restoration and provide a lens to identify how God’s kingdom is breaking into our own lives today. Lastly, they will stir our hearts to long more deeply for Christ’s second coming – for the day of completion of everything he began during his time on earth.

How to Use This Guide

Throughout the week, please use these guided reflections to prepare yourself in the waiting. Each reflection includes a related Scripture passage, a brief connection to Advent, and prompts that invite you to prayerfully respond. Take your time: read and re-read the passage slowly. Return to the same guided reflection two days in a row if needed. Try to let these reflections lead you to moments of waiting in silence. When you become distracted or anxious to move on to the next item on your to-do list, graciously direct yourself back to waiting in God’s presence.

WEEK 2: The Shoot from Jesse

Guided Reflection #1: 

A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse;
    from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.
The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him—
    the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
    the Spirit of counsel and of might,
    the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord—
and he will delight in the fear of the Lord.

He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes,
    or decide by what he hears with his ears;
but with righteousness he will judge the needy,
    with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth.
He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth;
    with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked.
Righteousness will be his belt
    and faithfulness the sash around his waist.

The wolf will live with the lamb,
    the leopard will lie down with the goat,
the calf and the lion and the yearling together;
    and a little child will lead them.
The cow will feed with the bear,
    their young will lie down together,
    and the lion will eat straw like the ox.
The infant will play near the cobra’s den,
    and the young child will put its hand into the viper’s nest.
They will neither harm nor destroy
    on all my holy mountain,
for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord
    as the waters cover the sea.

In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his resting place will be glorious.

Isiah 11: 1-10 (NIV)

The prophet Isaiah had described the people of Judah as a stump: they had been cut down as a nation and were seemingly lifeless because of their unfaithfulness to God. Yet, Isaiah’s vision of “the shoot from Jesse” is a prophecy of hope for new life for God’s people through the royal lineage. These verses describe the promises of the Messiah to overturn the power dynamics of the broken world and restore peace according to God’s order.

• Prayerfully reflect on the characteristics of the shoot from Jesse this passage describes, particularly as his reign brings about unparalleled peace. Identify some areas in your life that feel disordered and lacking peace. How does this passage provide hope to the clutter or confusion of the world?
• The passage ends with a description of the Messiah’s glorious resting place. As we hope to experience the fullness of that glorious resting place when Christ returns, we can still experience new life and unparalleled peace in Christ today. Spend 3-5 minutes in silence, breathing deeply and meditating on the peace of Christ.

Guided Reflection #2:

Endow the king with your justice, O God,
    the royal son with your righteousness.
May he judge your people in righteousness,
    your afflicted ones with justice.

May the mountains bring prosperity to the people,
    the hills the fruit of righteousness.
May he defend the afflicted among the people
    and save the children of the needy;
    may he crush the oppressor.
May he endure as long as the sun,
    as long as the moon, through all generations.
May he be like rain falling on a mown field,
    like showers watering the earth.
In his days may the righteous flourish
    and prosperity abound till the moon is no more.

Psalm 72: 1-7 (NIV)

Praise be to the Lord God, the God of Israel,
    who alone does marvelous deeds.
Praise be to his glorious name forever;
    may the whole earth be filled with his glory.
Amen and Amen.

This concludes the prayers of David son of Jesse.

Psalm 72: 18-20 (NIV) 

Every king of Israel, especially those whose rule was marked by righteousness and justice, was a glimpse of the King of kings to come – the one described as the shoot from Jesse. Advent is a time of preparation, not only for the coming of Christ as King, but also the coming of his kingdom. In this psalmist’s prayer, we get both a vision for King Jesus and his kingdom.

• As Christians, we believe the gospel is a fact of reality – good news that Jesus is King. Yet, we are often deceived into thinking that our lives are better off under our rule. Prayerfully reflect on how God might be inviting you to realign yourself to his rule and reign. Where might you need to surrender control?
• Spend 3-5 minutes in silence, lifting your mind’s eye to King Jesus. As guided by the Spirit, begin to loosen your grip on the aspects of your life you are most tempted to “rule” over.

Guided Reflection #3:

For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.

May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God. For I tell you that Christ has become a servant of the Jews on behalf of God’s truth, so that the promises made to the patriarchs might be confirmed and, moreover, that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy. As it is written:

“Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles;
    I will sing the praises of your name.” 

Again, it says,

“Rejoice, you Gentiles, with his people.”

And again,

“Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles;
    let all the peoples extol him.”

And again, Isaiah says,

“The Root of Jesse will spring up,
    one who will arise to rule over the nations;
    in him the Gentiles will hope.”

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Romans 15: 4-13

In a season defined by waiting, Paul reminds us that the Scriptures were given to form us into a people of endurance and encouragement, anchoring our hope in the Messiah who has come and will come again. Through Christ, God gathers Jew and Gentile into one family, fulfilling the ancient promises and revealing that our waiting is not passive but shaped by a shared longing for his restoring peace. As we lean into this Advent week, we are invited to welcome one another as Christ has welcomed us, becoming living signs of the kingdom that is already breaking into our cluttered and hurried world.

• Prayerfully reflect on where you sense a need for the “endurance and encouragement” Paul describes, especially in areas of life that feel disordered or rushed. How might the hope of Christ – promised, present, and future – speak into those places today?
• Paul envisions a community united in praise, welcoming one another as Christ welcomes us. Spend 3-5 minutes in silence, asking the Spirit to show you one concrete way to extend Christlike welcome and peace in your relationships this week.

Guided Reflection #4:

Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying:

“Sovereign Lord, as you have promised,
    you may now dismiss your servant in peace.
For my eyes have seen your salvation,
which you have prepared in the sight of all nations:
a light for revelation to the Gentiles,
    and the glory of your people Israel.”

The child’s father and mother marveled at what was said about him. Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.”

Luke 2: 25-35 (NIV)

Simeon shows us that waiting can become a place of formation, where hope is sustained not by control but by a quiet, steady attentiveness to the Spirit. In a world that resists slowness, his long obedience reveals that God often shapes us most deeply in the in-between spaces where we cannot hurry the promise. As we cradle the hope of Christ in our waiting, we learn to trust that God is at work even before the complete fulfillment appears.

• Prayerfully reflect on where you feel caught in an in-between space of waiting. What emotions rise to the surface as you name it before God?
• Spend 3-5 minutes in silence, asking the Spirit to shape who you are becoming in the waiting and to deepen your hope in Christ’s promised consolation.