A thrill of hope...

Nov 30

2 min read

In the darkest weeks of the year, just when it's gotten really cold in Central Minnesota, we find ourselves at a new beginning. Again.

It's the Saturday before Advent, the Church's liturgical New Year's Eve. While the rest of the world is racing ahead to Christmas celebrations the day after Thanksgiving, the rhythm of the Church invites us to pause, to reflect, to prepare intentionally and deeply for the coming of Christ.

This time of year isn't just about getting ready for the infant Jesus. It's about being ready for when he comes again. Some of the Scripture readings we hear in these weeks are unsettling. It's easy to see why we might decide to tune out a little, to focus on the goodwill and cheer and sparkle of the Christmas season a little early.

To skip ahead to Christmas without Advent, though, is to miss an opportunity.

The whole miracle of the Incarnation is that God saw how desperate we were and decided to show up as Emmanuel, God-with-Us. Can we appreciate the fullness of the Light without meditating a little on the darkness that comes right before it?

Maybe you are already enjoying your favorite Christmas music as you prepare for Christmas. But if you're looking for something a little different this year, try our Advent playlist. It's filled with themes of light and darkness, of waiting and longing, of freedom from everything that gets between us and the God who loved us enough to show up and save us from ourselves.

As you listen, join our community in praying this Advent prayer together:

Emmanuel,

Creator of the Universe,

You stepped out of eternity to be born in time.

Surrounded by the same stars you numbered and set in their courses,

you could have kept your distance

But instead, you came among us, as one of us,

to free us from all that separates us from you.

As we invite you in, again, to expand our hearts,

give us the courage to put aside anything

that takes up the space

that you should fill.