Advent happens at a fun
time of year. It’s getting cold outside,
people decorate their houses, lawns and yards with lights, wreaths and other
fun things from the Christmas section of the store. We get busy shopping for
gifts for loved ones, liked ones, those we tolerate, and those we can’t get
away with not getting a gift. And all of
these things are great ways to recognize and celebrate the gift of Jesus
Christ. They are great ways to
acknowledge the absolute grace and mercy of his incarnation and God’s choice to
become one of us and live among us.
But Advent is also
about recognizing the ways God still moves among us and expecting the second
coming of Christ in final victory over sin and death. Advent gives us the opportunity to celebrate
the past event of Christ’s incarnation, to feel the movement of the Holy
Spirit, and to prepare ourselves for and proclaim the advent of Christ’s
return.
We shortchange
ourselves when we fail to acknowledge and embrace all three facets of the
Advent season. As Christians, Advent
marks our new year and when we celebrate Advent in all of its glory we lay a
foundation for celebrating what God has done, is doing and will do among God’s
people for the rest of the Christian years.
An Advent Prayer:
O God, we are challenged to be patient during these
days of Advent. Yet we find ourselves growing less patient as we wait in slow
retail lines, manage our overfilled calendars, wrap gifts, and do online
shopping and home decorating into the late night hours. Be patient? Yes, be
patient. In this worshipful season, strengthen our hearts, center our minds,
and quiet our bodies, for your coming is near. We pray as your beloved ones.
Amen
From Worship
and Song: Leader’s Edition; Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2011, #1; by David
Bell, ©2007 General Board of Discipleship.
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