"Advent is a season, not an event; a spiritual discipline, not a calendar date."
It's finally come...the most wonderful time of the year! By far, last week was my favorite week. The anticipation of family being together (this heightens when you have one child away at college), the refrigerator stocked with holiday food, the boxes of Christmas decorations begging to be opened early, the lists of what we are grateful for bulging at the seams, and permission to get on with Christmas. My expectations were exceeded by God's gracious gifts of love, fun, friends and family.
Which brings us today - only a few days from what is without a doubt my most favorite month, December. We've had a little snow this week which makes it especially anticipated. Why so excited you ask? For many reasons, really, some mentioned above. To the cynic, there is too much fluff at Christmastime that clouds what lies beneath, the "real meaning", God sending His only Son Jesus into our world to walk among us and eventually die in order to save us from our sins. It is true that we can get caught up in the shopping, baking, wrapping, party hopping, list-making and more. But to the seeker, God is never more present, in my opinion, than in December. I believe that people are more open to listening to the Gospel of Christmas than they are any other time of year. Just listen to the sacred songs played freely on the radio or at public concerts. It's inescapable, Christmas is Jesus.
The real thrill for me is this season of Advent. While December and Advent are happening simultaneously, they are not synonymous; very different in fact. "December brings all the outward preparations, all that we have to do to prepare for Christmas. Advent is an invitation to an inward preparation, calling us to listen to, to attend to the preparation of the heart. Advent calls us to stop - however briefly - all of the frenetic doing and invites us to come into an experience of the holy. Advent is a season, not an event; a spiritual discipline, not a calendar date.*
For you, advent might be a church word from your past that you've long since forgotten. Revisit I beg you. "Historically, a time of rich tradition and meaningful reflection within the Church, the word advent comes from a Latin root that means 'coming'. Advent is an experience of anticipation, an invitation to prepare for the coming of the light of Christ into our world."* Jesus used the word 'come' many times as He engaged with would-be followers in His short time on earth, always beckoning us to draw near. Homework - do a little word search in the Gospels - you will be amazed! We are all invited to come.
"Answering the call to come in Scripture almost always results in faith. Luke 7:16 says, 'God has come to help His people'. God has come. This news is the crux of my faith - the glad tidings of great joy the angel proclaimed to the shepherds. The coming of God to His people. Advent. The gospel in a word. Because of Advent, I came. I come still. And I hope you will come too. And eventually through God's coming, His children will all come - back to the cradle, back home, back to where we belong."**
Every year I take my own journey through the season of Advent even as I attend to the demands of December. It can be done. I set my mind to it. It's a discipline, but a most enjoyable one. A big part of this comes in the form of Advent devotionals (most urging a December 1 start date). This is my favorite kind of pleasure at Christmastime. Over the years my collection of these special and often gorgeous books has grown. However, my first love will always be Thomas Kinkade's "Christ, Light of the World". Year after year, I read through this book, trying to limit myself to one chapter a day which is not always easy to do. I can't even tell you how many of these I've given to friends I love for the express purpose of guiding them into the very best of Christmas delights - God Himself.
I want you girlfriends to experience the inner watching and expectant waiting; to listen with your heart; to be attentive to the presence of God within even the most mundane moments. As I do, ask God to "show up" this year in your life in a new, previously unexpressed way. I'm not talking about extra-Biblical revelation, I mean becoming more sensitive and aware of His work in your life and the world around you. Let Him thrill you. Truly, we are all looking for something at Christmastime. We are all longing. What we may not realize is that it's God Himself that we ache for. He can do this in any number of ways. He is the Creator after all.
Here are a few options that I love:
*Christ the Light of the World by Thomas Kinkade
The Power of Christmas Prayer by Stormie Omartian
Wonderful Counselor by Larry Libby and Steve Halliday
**The Gospel of Christmas by Patty Kirk
No comments:
Post a Comment