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I first found a Jesse Tree online when my children were small and we used to Home School. I thought it was a fabulous idea ad have done them every year since.
The Jesse Tree is named from Isaiah 11:1:
"A shoot will spring forth from the stump of Jesse, and a branch out of his roots."
It is a vehicle to tell the Story of God in the Old Testament, and to connect the Advent Season with the faithfulness of God across 4,000 years of history.
Each day we have a bible reading and colour or make an image for the tree. I find it a great way to focus my thoughts of the coming time of advent when we prepare to welcome God's gift into the world.
Advent is a season for prayer and renewal of our hearts and lives as we look towards the coming of the Christ. Fire is a fitting sign to help us cleanse ourselves as we meditate and celebrate the season of Advent. Our worship and devotion will have to stoke the kind of fire in our souls that can truly change our hearts.
Purple is historically the first colour of Advent, so as a family this year we will light purple candles as we remember the glories and eternal royalty of the coming King, but purple is also a colour of suffering and connects the glories of the birth of the Christ with the suffering that follows at Easter, for the two cannot be separated. We also burn Lavender incense that calms and focuses the mind from the busy time of the day.
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