Its beginning to look a lot like Christmas, everywhere you go. Decorations are popping up in businesses and homes. Stores are filled with items enticing gift purchases. Music is playing on the radio and the seasonal movies are featured on television. People are shopping, wrapping, baking, and holiday making at every turn. There is a lot of energy going towards Christmas preparations and Christmas celebrations. It is easy to get caught up in the wonder, joy, and excitement of the season. It is easy to focus on Christmas right now.
Except, from a Christian perspective, it isn’t Christmas. The twelve days of Christmas, the full length of its season, begin Dec. 25th and end Jan. 6th when we celebrate Epiphany and the arrival of the Magi. Right now, we are celebrating the season of Advent. Yes, this season includes an anticipation of Christmas, but it is more than that. Advent is our opportunity to embrace a faith that God comes in darkness, as a vulnerable baby, to a family on the margins. Advent is the time in which we remember that God isn’t about palaces, temples, pomp and circumstance. Our God is a God whose love transcends even the darkest, humblest, desert-like spaces.
‘But about that day or hour no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Beware, keep alert; for you do not know when the time will come.
It is an interesting juxtaposition of experiences. On the one hand, we are preparing for Christmas. There are patterns that we follow in terms of what we do, when we do it, and with whom. We have traditions and expectations about what this season looks like and yet, as we engage in the season of Advent, we are challenged to be alert and reminded that we don’t know when the time will come. Some may want to say – yes we do, Christmas comes on Dec. 25th.
We choose to celebrate Christmas on Dec. 25th. There are aspects of this celebration that link to our faith, including participating in meaningful worship. It can be a wonderful celebration of Emmanual, God with us.
While all the pageantry, music, and celebration is heartfelt and hopeful, the point of Advent is to continually draw us back into the heart of the story. By centring ourselves in the Advent journey we are invited to hope for more than what can be wrapped and placed under a tree. We are challenged to hope for more than what we experience in gathering with family and friends. We are called to hope for more than any movie, carol, or even worship service can convey.
In Advent we are reminded that the journey is about our relationship with God and each other. Amid the Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales, God remains present to retail workers who are feeling overwhelmed, overworked, and underpaid. While people soak up Hallmark movies, God walks with those struggling through broken relationships, illness, and loneliness. When people are singing joyful Christmas carols, God is offering comforting music to those living in places where sounds of war prevail. Advent is our opportunity to embrace a faith that God comes in darkness, as a vulnerable baby, to a family on the margins. Advent is the time in which we remember that God isn’t about palaces, temples, pomp and circumstance. Our God is a God whose love transcends even the darkest, humblest, desert-like spaces.
‘But about that day or hour no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Beware, keep alert; for you do not know when the time will come.
Advent is our opportunity to embrace a faith that God comes in darkness, as a vulnerable baby, to a family on the margins. It is a time when we are invited once again into this wonder and grace. It is a time when we are challenged to trust that God is doing something new, not just in remembering God coming into this world some two millennia ago, but RIGHT NOW!
We are called to beware, and keep alert, because God has the power to work in and through us in ways that are more than we can ask or imagine. God has been doing this from generation to generation, in the Church and in Christ Jesus even today. And so, we hope that the wonder, joy, and generosity of Christmas becomes a catalyst for practices that better reflect the love of God in Jesus. We hope that we are continually transformed by the story of God with us in darkness, as vulnerable baby, to a family on the margins. We hope that we will embrace opportunities to be a sign of God’s love not only at Christmas, but every day in as many ways as we can imagine.
Beware, keep alert; for you do not know when the time will come. We don’t know when the time will come when God will transform this world to a full expression of the Kingdom promised by Jesus. We only know we can play our part. May we embrace the message of Advent, living in hope, and embodying hope to all who need it. This we pray as we sing: (VT) 237 Now the Heavens