Junkyard Wisdom Advent: Authentic, daily devotions about the human, humorous, and sometimes messy side of the Advent story.

by Roy Goble, D.R. Jacobsen

From the creator of the popular Junkyard Wisdom(TM) email series comes a one-of-a-kind devotion that celebrates the human, humorous, and sometimes messy aspects of the Advent story.

In his signature style—authentic, thought-provoking, and funny—Roy Goble takes readers on an unexpected adventure, making the familiar story of Christmas come alive in a new and life-changing way. In addition, each devotion ends with questions and room to journal, encouraging readers to go deeper.

In only a few minutes each day, readers can experience Advent anew, discovering the lasting hope and joy at the heart of the season.

Genres: Devotional

194 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 30, 2024

About the author

Roy Goble is the author of Junkyard Wisdom Advent, and Salvaged: Leadership Lessons Pulled From the Junkyard. He is also the CEO of Goble Properties, a real estate investment company based in Silicon Valley, and co-founder of PathLight International, a nonprofit based in Belize—while still finding time to visit and learn from friends and ministry partners around the world. Roy lives with his wife, D’Aun, in Northern California.

Reviews

[Cherry Brandstater · Rating 4 out of 5]

I actually won this book through the Goodreads giveaway. I was so excited to see that I had one finally. Then I saw what I got: junkyard wisdom. Great! Just my luck. I’ve never been good at daily meditations in a book. It has always seemed a little contrived to me. But I decided to do it anyway. The author signed the book and that was a nice plus. I have to admit that he did make me think of things I had never thought of before such as What did Mary’s parents think when she told them she was pregnant? Yikes!

We tend to see the story with glowing eyes that have been burnished over the years by the retelling of the story. But they were human. It also never dawned on me before that they made the trip from Nazareth to Bethlehem without being married. They stayed in the manger without being married. They had a baby without being married. Nazareth was a small town and everyone knew their story. It was no small issue for Jesus growing up being labeled as a bastard.

Some of the author’s silliness in bringing in modern day aspects didn’t quite hit the mark for me, but he did make me think in a new way and I read all the way to the end and was very glad I did. Thank you.

[Debi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was read for an Advent study hosted by my church. Roy Goble is a wonderful writer who makes the Bible and Advent very understandable and relevant for the 21st century. Language is constantly changing. We can all think of words that had one meaning while we were growing up that are now used with entirely different meanings. Roy is able to cut through the 1st century writing along with the many translations and unintentional biases as the Bible was hand written in the days before printing presses with a little bit of wit and humor added in to make the readings much more understandable in today's world without changing the underlying meaning. This is not a rewriting of the Bible in modern style but rather an explanation in today's terms, along with some folksy humor.

[Brooke Edwards · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the advent story written in a fun and unique way. With chapters like, "Chocolate Chip Cookie Cravings", and "You Still Gotta Get the Donkey Fed", it will have you laughing and putting more thought into the Christmas Story than you ever thought possible. Each day also has referenced scripture and several question for you to reflect on. I haven't shared this with my family yet, I'm waiting for advent to begin, but I couldn't help myself and have already read it!

[Janice Barnes · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great alternative way to look at the nativity story. <3

[Crystal Watkins · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not exactly what I expected, but interesting.

[Jacek · Rating 5 out of 5]

A thought-provoking and grounded Advent devotional.

[Rachael Ashiwer · Rating 5 out of 5]

best description of the book (taken from the book itself): A non-theologians take on a familiar Bible story made short, funny and real with a touch of snark. This book shares the incredibly human experiences of everyone involved that I had not thought about before and just really makes this seem even more real than before. How did Mary tell her parents she was pregnant? What was it really like to travel on a donkey so close to giving birth? The potential fears of not finding a place to stay and giving birth without her family around.
Thank you Roy for this book and all the areas you've made me ponder about not just the overall story, but the incredible people that make up this story and had so much faith.