Dec 6, 2023

Advent 2023: Making Room for the Prince of Peace Through Visio Divina

The Advent season has arrived!

This Sunday, December 10, 2023, marks the second week of Advent this year. (If you’re unfamiliar with the practice or purpose of Advent, you can learn about the meaning from last week’s video.)

This week, we are met with an invitation to experience the peace of Christ. In the five-minute video below, Bette Dickinson—artist, author (Making Room in Advent) and speaker—walks us through active participation in visio divina (Latin for “divine seeing”), creating space for us to meet the Prince of Peace and connect with God while engaging with art and a passage of scripture.

The visio divina that Dickinson leads us through reminds us to ground ourselves in the everlasting peace of Christ. Throughout the video, she encourages leaders to:

Take time to be led to the presence of Jesus, especially in life’s busier moments
Take time to slow down and engage in rest and rejuvenation this season
To take time to center ourselves on Jesus through the practice of prayer

Dickinson notes that visio divina can be practiced both individually and with a group. If participating in this specific practice brought revelation, comfort, reassurance or inspiration to you, we encourage you to share this with others in your life this week.

May you be blessed this Advent season, brothers and sisters in Christ.

Further research and resources:

Interested in purchasing Bette’s book, Making Room in Advent? You can order your copy here!
Are you trying to figure out what it means to lead effectively into the future? You’re not alone. Join The Resilient Pastor Cohort, a 12-week learning community launching late January 2024, to help you grow in resilience. Learn more here.
Currently on its third season, The Resilient Pastor podcast is hosted by Glenn Packiam, Rich Villodas and Sharon Hodde Miller. Follow along as the hosts invite pastors to think out loud together about the challenges and opportunities facing church leadership today.

About Barna

Since 1984, Barna Group has conducted more than two million interviews over the course of thousands of studies and has become a go-to source for insights about faith, culture, leadership, vocation and generations. Barna is a private, non-partisan, for-profit organization.