“Low – An Honest Advent Devotional” by John Pavlovitz is available for free at the church by request while supplies last. Please either call the church office before you arrive (517)351-7030 or email office@eluumc.org to schedule a time to pick up your book.

Description excerpt: “Let’s be honest about Advent: American culture forces many of us to put on a happy face, to pretend we’re merry when we’re frustrated and stressed and exhausted by the expectations of others. We’re also frustrated by what Advent has become – a celebration of consumerism – while it forgets the season’s origins in a dark, cold stable with an empty manger. In this honest Advent devotional, best-selling progressive Christian author John Pavlovitz reminds us that God came to meet us in the low places of our lives – and that Jesus continues to come low this Advent season: when we live humbly, when we seek forgiveness, in our grief and suffering, when we act on behalf of someone else, when we pray. As we walk the road of Advent, Jesus reminds us the invitation is not to escape this world to an elevated Heaven somewhere else, but to bring Heaven down. “God with us” is Jesus, getting low. Each devotional includes a scripture and Advent reflection on Jesus meeting us on the ground, in the grit.”

John Pavlovitz is a writer, pastor, and activist from Wake Forest, North Carolina. His blog, Stuff That Needs to Be Said, reaches a worldwide audience, and he is the author of “Hope and Other Superpowers.”

At University United Methodist Church, we affirm that as disciples of Jesus Christ, we are an open and inclusive congregation and welcome all persons into full participation regardless of race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, socioeconomic situation, age, ability, education, background and whether single or partnered.