A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse,
and a branch shall grow out of his roots.
The spirit of the Lord shall rest on him,
the spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the spirit of counsel and might,
the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
A little branch
December 1
Read: Isaiah 11:1-2
Listen:
Long ago, God’s people were kicked out of their neighborhood and sent to live somewhere else. Life was hard, and their new neighbors were mean. God’s people weren’t being kind, either. It seemed like everyone only cared about themselves. Some little kids had no parents, and no one took care of them. Some old people had no family, and nobody bothered to check in on them.
God was fed up with that behavior. He cares about people and wants them to care about each other! So he told his people he was going to put a stop to it, just like you would cut down a big tree. Once that tree is cut down, that’s the end. It stops growing.
But God made a promise: a tiny branch would sprout out of the dead tree stump. A fresh green shoot would start growing. Things wouldn’t be dead anymore.
That little branch is Jesus. He’s coming from the stump of his great-great-way-back-great-grandpa, Jesse. For the rest of Advent, we’re going to hear more stories about the people in Jesus’s family history and about how they helped God bring new life to his people.
Wonder:
Have you ever seen a new shoot growing from an old tree? How does your heart feel when you see new plants growing in spring?
Pray:
God, you give us hope. Thank you for giving us Jesus, like new growth in spring. Would you help us to pay attention to him this Advent? Amen.
This devotion is part of
The Jesse Tree Story:
A Family Advent Devotional
Each devotion in this family Advent devotional invites you into the story of someone on Jesus’s family tree. These devotions will show young children how God was preparing for Jesus to be born across many generations. Each story pairs with a symbol you can hang on your own Jesse Tree.
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