This Sunday is the first Sunday of Advent, a season of waiting. Hopeful waiting. Expectancy. Longing. Things are not right within us nor in the world around us, so we wait. We wait for the arrival of King Jesus. The word “advent” comes from the Latin word adventus, meaning “coming” or “arrival.” During Advent we remember the first coming of Jesus and we long for his second coming. Robert Webber explains Advent as, “a corporate spiritual journey that calls for expectant waiting and readiness for the coming of the Christ. When the Church travels this journey and treats it as a discipline of life and prayer, the joy of Christmas is immeasurably intensified.”
Talk with your family about how to incorporate Advent into your celebration of the Christmas season. Also consider purchasing an Advent devotional that will guide you through the season like Dietrick Bonhoeffer’s, God is in the Manger: Reflections on Advent and Christmas or Seeking God's Face: Praying with the Bible through the Year. Seeking God's Face is not exclusively an Advent devotional, but contains a great section on Advent. Both are available on Amazon.com and at the Redeemer book table.
Advent Calendars aren’t just for kids. Available at the Redeemer book table is an Advent Calendar with adult-geared devotionals, poems, hymns, and verses, and it's stylish enough you will actually want to hang it where everyone can see it.
We all need to learn to wait. You will be surprised by the power and health that comes from learning to wait on Jesus. Make good use of the Advent season.
Pastor David