I have spent the past few days trying to get things ready. It’s the change of the season—winter is coming. I have been winterizing the yard and the faucets, checking the plants and the bushes, checking the furnace, putting away the summer stuff, getting ready for cold and ice. Also rearranging the stuff. Do we really need all these things we have in the boxes? So many decisions wear me out. Christmas is coming, that means deciding about the Christmas decorations, outside as well as in. Are we ready to put up a Christmas tree? What does the Christmas gift list look like this year? Christmas cards, write a letter, or just skip it all together? I know of people who have been Christmas ready since Halloween. The Black Friday Sales seem to have started weeks ago. Our mailbox is filled with everything but personal mail. Anyone need some extra catalogs?
This Sunday marks the beginning of the Advent season, celebrating the promise of the coming of Christ into this world. Churches will echo with the biblical proclamation to Prepare the Way of the Lord, as foretold by prophets and proclaimed by John the Baptist. It is our call to pay attention to our God as He ushers in His Kingdom into the everydayness of our lives. It is not too hard to lose sight of the message of Christ at Christmastime because of all the busy-ness and materialism of the holidays. By the way, the word holidays is derived from the term holy days. Amid all the decisions to be made, the work to be done, and the money to be spent, Jesus is showing us a better way of living. The Kingdom of God perspective reminds us that Jesus never had a Christmas tree; His tree was a cross. Jesus never wrapped a Christmas present; His gift was the Word made flesh. Jesus never sang a Christmas carol or wished anyone a merry Christmas; His salutation was “follow me.” Jesus never signed a Christmas card; His love was written in red on a cross. When Jesus burst forth from the grave, He conquered sin and death itself. This is more than a Christmas story; it is love and life eternal, and a call to right relationships.
Keep healthy. Pray mightily. Enjoy your life today. Prepare the way of the Lord. And let’s experience the love and power of God together.
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