This page is designed to guide you in how to create and upload your Advent Devotional video.

With Christmas coming soon, the celebration of Christ’s birth and coming to earth, we’d LOVE your help in guiding the Grace community through this Advent season.

How? We’d like to create a video devotional Advent Calendar, having a different person from the Grace community record themselves reading an Advent Bible passage and sharing a short devotional thought from the reading every day until Christmas.

Step 1 – What the Video Should Look Like

In 2 or less minutes, similar to Mark, create your video doing the 3 following things:

1. Introduce yourself and your connection to Grace.
2. Share what day of the advent you are doing, the Bible passage name and read the passage.
3. Share a short thought and from the passage and pray.

Use the video above as an example and just be yourself! We love this community and want to empower you to be a part of encouraging the body as who God made you.

Step 2 – How to Record the Video

We want to make it as simple as possible for you to record and send the video to us. If you have access and would like to create your video with a video camera or DSLR, you are welcome to. However, using your phone’s camera is equally as good. Here are a set of tips and suggestions for how to create good video on any device:

1. Framing: Center yourself in the video and either level it to your face or raise it slightly above you. If you’re using a phone, feel free to record your video with the camera shooting wide or tall.
2. Lighting: Good light is essential to good video. Make sure you have a light source light facing you and away from the camera. If you’re indoors, face a window with the camera facing away from the light or do the same with a lamp. Outdoor light is also good, but make sure the sun is behind the camera lighting your face.
3. Stability: Keeping your video steady is an easy way to increase quality. Set your camera on a stand, a stack of books, a window sill or be creative. If you need to hold it, lean your hand one something or use both hands to keep still.
4. Good audio: Good audio is equally important to good video. If you have a mic, this is an easy way to improve audio. If not, your camera mic is fully OK, but always make sure you find a quiet space to record where someone will not walk in to interrupt you. If you are outdoors, be aware wind will always mess up your audio and it is incredibly rare to fix this. Record indoors if there is wind.
5. Background: Lastly, simply be aware of what is behind you when recording that may be distracting. We want you to record in your spaces, so use whatever space you’d like. Just take a moment before you start to make sure you are comfortable with what is seen behind you.

Step 3 – Where to Send the Video

Simple. Use the link below and upload your video to my dropbox. You can do this on your computer, tablet and phone. That’s it! Thank you for being a part of this creative way to bless Grace!