Look for the Light
An Advent assembly
by Alexandra Palmer
Suitable for Whole School (Pri)
Aims
To consider the meaning of the Advent season for Christians.
Preparation and materials
- You will need the PowerPoint slides that accompany this assembly (Look for the Light) and the means to display them.
- Optional: you may also wish to use the extension activity (Look for the Light - Extension Activity) that accompanies this assembly.
Assembly
- Show Slide 1.
Ask the children, ‘What sort of lights might we see during December?’
Listen to a range of responses.
Answers might include Christmas lights on trees, outside houses and in city and town centres; car headlights; lights in rooms; street lights, stars at night and candles on birthday cakes. They might even include Rudolph’s nose and children’s eyes lighting up with excitement!
Show Slides 2 to 4 to illustrate some of the possible answers. - Show Slide 5.
Explain that during December, many churches are lit up in different ways.
Ask the children, ‘What do you think is happening in these photos?’
Listen to a range of responses.
Explain that one photograph shows a church service called Carols by Candlelight. The two bottom photos show a Christingle service.
Explain that Carols by Candlelight and Christingle are special church services that happen during the season of Advent.
Tell the children that Advent starts four Sundays before Christmas Day, so it will fall on 27 November this year. Explain that Advent is all about preparing for a special day. For Christians, this day celebrates the arrival of a special baby. - Ask the children, ‘What is the special day called? What is the name of the special baby?’
Listen to a range of responses.
The children should give the answers ‘Christmas Day’ and ‘Jesus’. - Ask the children, ‘Why do you think light is so important during the season of Advent?’
Listen to a range of responses.
- Explain that quite a lot of the Nativity story occurred in the dark.
Show Slide 6.
We don’t know whether it was daytime or night-time when an angel told Mary that she was going to have God’s son. However, the Bible does tell us that an angel lit up Joseph’s dreams and told him who the baby was and what to call him. - Show Slide 7.
We also know that the shepherds were on a hillside at night, looking after their sheep. Suddenly, a host of angels lit up the dark sky and announced Jesus’ birth before they sang in celebration.
We know that three wise men travelled in the dark across vast deserts. They were following a bright star that led them to Jesus’ birthplace, Bethlehem.
After the wise men left, Joseph had another dream. In it, he was warned that Jesus’ life was in danger because King Herod wanted to harm him. The Bible tells us that because of this dream, Joseph, Mary and Jesus escaped one night and travelled to Egypt.
Time for reflection
Show Slide 8.
Instead of using Advent calendars to count down the days to Christmas, many churches use a different method. An Advent wreath holds five candles: four around the edge and one in the middle. At the four Sunday services during Advent, one of the four outer candles is lit. The candles represent hope, joy, love and peace. Then, on Christmas Day, the central candle is lit.
Ask the children, ‘What do you think the central candle represents?’
Listen to a range of responses.
The central candle represents the birth of Jesus; think of it as a candle on Jesus’ birthday cake!
The day when we are born is often the time when we are given a name of our own. Sometimes, after we are born, our friends and family might give us a friendly nickname or shorten our name to something else. In the Bible, Jesus has many names, which all mean different things. For example, he is described as the Son of God, the Almighty, the Creator, a shepherd, a holy servant, the king of kings, the prince of peace and Emmanuel.
Jesus is also described as the Light of the World. At the start of this assembly, we looked at different light sources during December. If we didn’t have those light sources, it would be difficult to go about our daily lives, go outside and have fun on dark, winter nights. Christians believe that Jesus as the Light of the World means that he is the ultimate source of life and light, especially when things around us might feel dark and lonely.
Thinking quietly, what do you hope for during Advent?
Pause to allow time for thought.
Thinking quietly, what is joyful about December?
Pause to allow time for thought.
Thinking quietly, how can we show love to our families, friends and those around us?
Pause to allow time for thought.
Thinking quietly, how can we be peaceful and bring peace during Advent and the Christmas season?
Pause to allow time for thought.
Prayer
Dear God,
Thank you for Advent and for the exciting time in the lead-up to Christmas.
Thank you for Christmas lights, which bring us joy and excitement during December.
Thank you for the birth of baby Jesus and for the light that Jesus brought into the world.
Please help us to play our parts in making Advent a joyful and peaceful time for those around us.
Amen.
Song/music
‘Away in a manger’, available at: https://youtu.be/AnwO_0DrpCk (1.59 minutes long)
Extension activities
- Give each child a copy of the sheet that accompanies this assembly (Look for the Light - Extension Activity). Ask them to design an Advent wreath.
