Text: 1 Thess. 4:16, “For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.”

Devotional: This season brings joy from many angles. We enjoy seasonal music, and holiday movies, some of which are a bit corny and unreal. We love the lights on houses, streets and a tree in our home. We have presents to give, and to receive.

Yet, perhaps the best part of the season is when we see family and friend, especially those who live far way from us. Maybe those whom we have not seen in a while. Advent is a time of anticipation. We await the long-promised return of our Lord. The Advent story is the story not only of faith, hope, and love, but anticipation of that which is yet to come.