Looking Forward to the Nativity

by Jon Farrar

During the season of Christmas, it's so difficult to find time to help your family meditate on the true meaning of Christmas. The short devotions in Looking Forward to the Nativity help you show your... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1414315023
• ISBN13: 9781414315027
• Release Date: October 2006
• Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers
• Length: 101 Pages
• Weight: 0.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 4.8" x 6.3"

Customer Reviews

Excellent family advent devotional book

Looking Forward to the Nativity is an excellent daily (25-day) advent devotional book, which I would highly recommend to families with children of any age. Each day's devotion includes a reading, a scripture passage, a prayer and an activity. As we don't have children yet, my husband and I just read the readings and scripture passage together. Farrar's writing and the New Living Translation (the translation used for all of the scripture passages) both have stylistic warmth and clarity, so we enjoyed reading it together without finding it "childish" even though children of almost any age would be able to understand it. This book is right on in terms of building expectation and anticipation for Christmas. The readings build through the covenants, prophecies, and Jewish history pointing to Christ. I don't think I've ever read an advent book that paints this picture so clearly. I look forward to reading this book to my children someday. It helps reinforce the unity and overall narrative of the Bible, rather than just fragmented pieces of Scripture (Bible stories) which is what many children take away from Sunday school. The activities look like they would be fun and reinforce the readings well. I would recommend seeing the movie, The Nativity Story, after completing the readings--it is a very satisfying depiction of the "resolution" of advent and incorporates the Jewish culture and their expectation of the Messiah, as described in Looking Forward to the Nativity.

Shows the cohesiveness of God's Word in the Nativity

Looking Forward to the Nativity is an inspiring Christmas devotional book for families to use during the Advent season. Each day, Farrar offers a short story linked to the Bible passage, a Bible promise (verse or verses from the story), a prayer, and a family activity. Family activities include songs, a craft, or an object lesson--something concrete to help the lesson become more than just a daily reading. He also includes a description of Advent and the tradition of the Advent wreath, for those families who want to include this in their devotional times. One thing that sets this seasonal devotional apart from others of similar theme is its scope. Farrar begins his Scripture readings on December 1 not in Matthew, as one might expect, but in Genesis. To begin at the beginning, and to show humanity's desperate need of a Savior from the opening chapters of the Bible, is a fabulous notion and sets the tone for a meaningful Advent season. The Bible stories are told in simple, but not simplistic, language. I believe this makes this devotional more applicable to families with different-aged children. Farrar includes many familiar stories with our favorite Old Testament characters: Abraham, Moses, David, and Job, among other people of faith. He then builds up to the New Testament and familiar passages leading up to the birth of Jesus. Reading the Old Testament stories during Christmas adds a depth to the Nativity story that many readers may not have truly considered, making it fresh and new. I look forward to using this devotional with my own children this Christmas season, and anticipate a season of heightened awareness of the cohesiveness of God's Word. - Pattie Reitz, Christian Book Previews.com