Devotional 11-30-15

 
Ad-vent
noun, the arrival of a notable person, thing or event.

As I write this, it’s October, and 78 degrees outside.  It’s that confusing time when the stores aren’t sure what they should be promoting: Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas are simultaneously bombarded at us.  Like stores, the JM Music Department has been working on Christmas for weeks.

Okay, honestly - do you ever find Christmas exhausting?  Maybe not exhausting, but overwhelming? Or just plain stressful? I remember my Mom, church organist for 50 years, needing to hibernate on Christmas afternoon.

Have you ever fantasized about going to a far-away island and ignoring the entire season? Ignoring the crowds, shopping parties, overspending, baking, cleaning, final exams, wrapping, relatives, rehearsals, performances, fruitcake, clutter of life, stress-of-too-many-expectations? Away from it all? No stress, no worry.  But wait a second! Those things aren’t supposed to be important, right?  My favorite Dr. Seuss paragraph:

And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow, stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so? It came without ribbons. It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags.  And he puzzled and puzzled ‘till his puzzler was sore.  Then the Grinch thougtht of something he hadn’t before.  What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store? What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more.  Theodor Seuss Geisel

You know what? The season always come sand goes. No matter if the choir is prepared for Lessons & Carols. No matter that I’ve given up on gift wrapping and just toss the gifts into Kroger bags. No matter that my Christmas cards are mailed on January 9th.

Every Advent, I usually find 3 hours of peace: in the stillness and calm after our Christmas Eve service, I watch the beautiful services broadcast from England This year, I won’t allow those pesky “Ghosts of Christmas Present” to steal the peace, comfort, joy, and love of this Holy Season.

Bruce Rous

Devotional 11-29-15

Advent Begins

The stores have been well into Christmas with sales—decorations, music, toys, gifts of all types, and before we know it, Santa will be at the mall waiting to check the lists of children coming to see him. These preparations started well before Thanksgiving, and explosively erupted on Black Friday, giving shoppers ample time to complete their shopping —until the kids change their minds and toys already purchased are either  exchanged or new toy requests are simply added to their list—easier, more expensive, but—hey, it’s Christmas!

So what is this scripture—one of several readings designated for the first Sunday in Advent—all about?

Luke 21:25-28
“²⁵There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on the earth distress among nations confused by the roaring of the sea and the waves. ²⁶ People will faint from fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. ²⁷Then they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in a cloud’ with power and great glory. ²⁸Now when these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”

Christmas time is a result of our changing culture, created by us, lasting from November  through December 25th.  Advent, on the other hand, starts on the first Sunday of Advent, or even earlier on some church calendars, and goes through Epiphany, on January 6th.

Every year, the two compete for our attention. Advent season is meant to be the season in which we practice self-examination, we meditate, and we focus on preparation for Christ’s return to us. It’s the time we should remember the second coming, the new creation, and the fulfillment of all things good. The church year starts with Advent, so it should naturally be the time we “…begin with the end in mind.” (Taylor Burton-Edwards, Disciple Ministries of the UMC).

I don’t believe for a minute that we are expected to give up the joys of the season—the feelings of comfort in celebrating the birth of the baby Jesus, the excitement of giving and receiving, the traditions of families gathering, and trimming the Christmas tree. But we should not in any way let it consume us to the point that we lose the true meaning of the Advent season,  a time specifically meant for reflection and preparation, attention to Scripture and the understanding that Advent’s purpose is to focus on Christ’s return and our redemption.

Let us all do that with prayer and intention, as we welcome the arrival of the First Sunday of Advent.

Luke21:36  Be alert at all times, praying that you may have the strength to escape all these things that will take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.

Diane Feaganes