Christ Among Us – An Advent Journey from Watching to Living

Christ Among Us An Advent Journey from Watching to Living 4-session Small Group Study Guide Digital download product By Philip Garside

Discover Christ in everyday encounters this Advent through a four-session journey of thoughtful reflection, honest conversation and practical hope.

This Small Group Study Resource will help you:

- Recognise Christ’s presence in ordinary acts of compassion, justice and welcome.
- Explore Advent and Christmas readings through thoughtful, inclusive reflections.
- Lead meaningful conversations using prepared summaries and discussion questions.
- Make room for uncertainty, grief and joy within the journey towards Christmas.
- Listen to overlooked voices and discover opportunities to work alongside others.
- Connect the Christmas message of God among us with daily life.

Features

- Four sessions based on selected Revised Common Lectionary readings for Advent and Christmas 2026, Year B.
- Sessions designed to last 45–60 minutes.
- A final session bringing together Advent 4 and Christmas Day, suitable for meeting before Christmas.
- Sermon summaries for group reading, with all five full sermons included for background and deeper exploration.
- Six discussion questions per session, including an invitation to a practical response.
- Opening prayers, blessings and The Grace.
- PowerPoint slideshow and an image for each week included.
- Suitable for in-person groups or online gatherings using Zoom.

Your digital resource zipped package includes

- A 35-page A4 PDF Study Guide, with leader instructions and all four sessions.
- A 61-slide PowerPoint presentation, covering the introductions, prayers, reading references, sermon summaries, discussion questions and blessings.
- Four weekly images for promoting your study through your website, church bulletin or social media.

When you complete your online purchase you will be provided with links to download the full zipped package and also the PDF Study Guide separately.

After purchasing the course package for your church or group, you are welcome to share, copy or email extracts among course leaders and participants to help run the sessions.

Video Introduction

or the image above to play a 7-minute video introduction to this study resource

Where might we meet Christ this Advent? In familiar readings and favourite carols, certainly. But also, in a neighbour needing company, a stranger offering kindness, or people working together to restore a damaged community.

Christ Among Us invites groups to explore those possibilities through four sessions that move from watching attentively to living compassionately. Drawing on the Worship at Hand resources for Advent and Christmas 2026, it connects biblical stories with the relationships, questions and responsibilities of everyday life.

The journey begins by noticing where love is already at work. It then explores how we can offer comfort, remove barriers to belonging and participate in the work of healing and justice. In the final session, Mary’s questioning and willingness to respond lead into the Christmas declaration that the Word became flesh and lived among us.

Throughout, God’s grace comes before our response. Participants are encouraged to discover what they can offer and what they need to receive. Rest, listening and accepting help have a place alongside action.

Rooted in the life of Aotearoa New Zealand, the reflections engage with experiences familiar to many communities: loneliness, housing insecurity, exclusion, care for creation and uncertainty about the future. They invite a faith that honours human dignity and recognises God’s activity beyond familiar church boundaries.

There is room here for people whose Christmas includes grief, complicated relationships or unanswered questions. Hope grows through honest attention to life as it is, and through discovering what love makes possible.
The Four Sessions Advent 1 — Learning to Notice

Sunday 29 November 2026
Bible readings: Mark 13:24-37 and 1 Corinthians 1:3-9.

Mark’s call to keep awake invites us to look for Christ in the people and circumstances around us. Paul’s assurance of grace reminds us that we are already loved and equipped to participate.

This session explores watchfulness as a daily practice: recognising small signs of hope, noticing overlooked neighbours and discovering where we might join God’s continuing work.
Advent 2 — Making a Way for Love

Sunday 6 December 2026
Bible readings: Isaiah 40:1-11 and Mark 1:1-8