Jesse Tree

I typically don't get to into family traditions. It really isn't my thing. It's not that I don't like family traditions. I just never made it a priority to start any new family traditions after Jared and I got married. I guess I think the best traditions are usually the ones you don't plan. More like the ones that you fall into by accident. But for some reason I am extremely excited to start the family tradition of having a Jesse Tree.

For those unfamiliar with a Jesse Tree, it is a way to celebrate the advent season. The idea comes from the scripture Isaiah 11:1

¹ A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse;
from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.

In a nut shell this is a daily devotional that you can do as a family each day of December leading up to Christmas. With each scripture reading, you have an ornament that is a symbol representing one of the main points in the passage. The devotionals start in Genesis and work their way through the Bible and ending with the birth of Jesus.

The reason I like this idea so much is because it pulls your family into scripture during the busy Christmas season. Here is a link to some more detailed information about Jesse Trees. The link also has a the a list of the daily devotions and ideas for the ornaments. Personally, we tweaked some a the devotions by adding a few different scriptures relating to Christ's coming and taken out a few. Let me know if you are interested in what our Jesse Tree looks like or our schedule of devotionals.