Best Printable Advent Bible Reading Plan for Rest

Christmas Eve is drawing near. If you’re struggling to connect with the Lord, rest, and focus on the true reason for the season, this FREE Advent Bible Reading Plan is for you!

I’ve struggled with resting and self-care in the past. It seems the season of Advent brought the worst exhaustion and stress of the year.

Struggling to find rest?

Grab this 2024 Advent Season Self-care Bible Reading Plan and take a daily 5-minute rest with God.

If you’re the head or mom of the household, serving and caring for others, and trying to remember all of the things related to the needs of the whole family and the holiday season, you know what I’m talking about! 

There’s just so much we’re expected to remember and do! 

That said, an essential Christian tradition of Advent (typically through the entire month of December) is to prepare our hearts and create a sense of anticipation for the birth of Christ, focus on our faith and eternal life, and anticipate Jesus’s future return.

In the past, I often thought, “How in the world do I balance the busyness of the season and find the time to rest so I can be calm and at peace to prepare my heart?” 

I knew I wanted to experience the rest and calm of Advent, so I wrote it down in my weekly plan.

The problem was that my worst periods of overwhelm occurred in the busyness of the Christmas season.

Then, often caught up in traditions (usually way too many), I would hit the wall of burnout. 

Every. Single. Time.

Why I Needed an Advent Bible Reading Plan

I suppose part of the problem was I also saw it as an Advent task instead of an Advent journey.

Preparing for Jesus’s arrival is different and more meaningful than decorating the Christmas tree and completing the good things on the to-do list. This isn’t a great way to celebrate the season of Advent if you want to rest and connect with The Father.

So, if you’re struggling a bit (and if that’s why you’re here), I can relate to you and help you.

I wanted to connect with the Lord, but after trying and failing many times,  I wondered if I was going about it wrong, but I didn’t know what to change.

So, for the longest time, I would ignore my soul’s desires.

I’d push through the season (imagine a football player running with the ball with his arm straight out, knocking all the people and barriers out of the way!).

That was me, only not so good at knocking the barriers out of the way!

But when my daughter was born, she had some special needs, and I couldn’t do it all anymore. I remember how incredibly exhausted I was during that particular season. 

There were many tears, but it led me to pray about it earnestly, and my life changed!

Start with the Holy Spirit to Find Peace and Calm During Advent

I discovered that I was going about resting with the Lord all wrong. Looking back, I would go as far as to say I was doing it backward! 

Specifically, I was trying to find peace, calm, and rest in the Christmas story through my human effort and strength.

I thought I could adjust my schedule, get a little rest, and then take in whatever I was supposed to be doing and learning at church during the Sundays of Advent. 

I was so far off.

Plus, here’s what happened.

I cleared my schedule (a little). Then, I put ‘self-care appointments’ on it (like nails, pedi, and even a massage!), thinking that would help me rest.

But then I felt guilty about saying no or removing tasks and PUT THEM BACK ON.

So then I was highly overscheduled, spent lots of money, and didn’t feel rested (even during the massage!). 

There’s a better way to focus on the Lord and prepare for Jesus’ birth. It’s what I hope you do this season. 

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Remember What the Purpose of Advent is

I spent some time reading Advent-focused Bible studies and studying Scripture passages in the Gospel of Luke to understand better the birth story of Jesus and the true meaning of the season. 

The purpose of Advent is to connect with the Lord to let Him give you rest. (But how exactly do we do that, I remember asking?)

The answer is found in the definition of knowing what God’s rest means.

The rest we’re seeking, and what He provides, is knowing and truly understanding that we are saved from our sins because we accept Christ as our savior (with the final consummation of His rest occurring with the second coming of Christ).

We can rest instead of working through good deeds or service. We can’t earn salvation. He just gives it to us! This is the reason for celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ and is good news of great joy!

Hebrews 4:3 (NLT) explains it below (I realized in the past year that Hebrews 4 is all about God’s rest). 

“For only we who believe can enter his rest. As for the others, God said, “In my anger I took an oath: ‘They will never enter my place of rest,’” even though this rest has been ready since he made the world.”

When you understand the meaning of God’s rest, you will see He is at the center of the verse. 

The priority. 

In fact, as always, putting Christ first allows you to prioritize everything else, including rest during Advent!

Use an Advent Bible Reading Plan to Slow Down 

Understanding God’s rest, deep in our souls, helps us slow down, trust, and savor God’s promises. 

It made me come to an abrupt stop (like an EF Hutton moment, if you’re old enough to remember the reference) and realize how many of the activities I was practically killing myself doing weren’t important to me (or my family) at all.

But here’s what else I learned.

God provides the ultimate rest; we can carry this knowledge throughout the season. 

But we need to do an honest assessment of ourselves. Explore and ask, “What other areas of myself can I offer rest?”

To get right to the point, ask yourself, “Am I truly going to experience, soak in, and savor God’s rest if I only observe it an hour or two on Sundays during Advent and then go back to living a chaotic life?”

I didn’t think so.

I felt compelled to apply it to all parts of my life.

Use an Advent Bible Reading Plan to Bring Rest and Calm into Your Life

You may find many small ways you aren’t taking care of yourself in a way that prioritizes rest. 

But you may find massive things, too!

You may even be working against your goal of deepening your understanding of rest and the worship God deserves!

If you’re like me, you may find your holiday lifestyle honors and worships the busyness of society and the midst of traditions around you instead of Jesus.

This Free Printable Advent Bible Reading Plan Was Created

I dug into Scripture and prayerfully considered how I could honor the Lord during the season of Advent by taking care of my mind, body, and soul.

As I studied the list of meaningful verses, I saw they fell into various self-care categories. 

That helped me see my life in a whole new way.

I created reflective questions and actions to accompany the verses, and now I prayerfully self-examine every Advent Season.

That list of verses is now the Advent Season Self-care Bible Reading Plan, and the companion Advent Season Self-care Devotional contains the questions I use to assess where I need to refocus (I use it to re-assess my focus each year!

Improving self-care to honor and glorify God is a way to worship the Lord. What better time to do this than Advent?

Why is Advent a Good Time for Self-reflection?

I use these very simple tools to review my self-care activities and attitudes every Advent season, and I’m so thankful that I can now say I experienced peace and calm during the rest of Advent.

This is why Advent is important to me, where my reading plan and devotional came from, and why I think Advent should be important to you. 

As Christians, we should be awed by His saving rest.

I encourage you to spend a few minutes a day in God’s Word to experience the real reason for the Advent season.

If you’d like a guide with daily readings, download the FREE Advent Season Self-care Bible Reading Plan HERE.

Dear friend, I hope you have a Merry Christmas!

Advent Bible Reading Plan FAQs 

Q1 What is Advent?

A1 Advent is when Christians spend time deeply reflecting on the true meaning of Christmas. There are different ways to prepare for Christmas Day. 

• Some enjoy using an Advent calendar and daily Advent readings.
• Others read daily Scripture readings or say prayers while they light candles in an Advent wreath.
• And still, many others take the opportunity to reflect on Christ’s birth with an Advent reading plan.

Most believers find that combining the above activities provides the deeper meaning of rest and peace in the true story of Christmas. 

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The post was originally published on November 21, 2023