Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Advent

Advent is the season of preparing and waiting for Christmas. Sometimes, lately, I have wondered what has happened to waiting? It seems as if Christmas is speeding rapidly toward me and I am not going to be ready for it!
As soon as I have this thought, I begin to feel guilty because I am too busy and too distracted and too….whatever! This week, I have been trying to catch myself so that I stop and look and smell and hear the symbols of the Advent and Christmas season. It doesn’t matter to me if it is the secular or religious, for me it is about Christmas! It is about sharing with others, doing something for someone, enjoying the laughter in a moment, embracing those whom you love, and delighting in surprises—my own and those of others.
In hearing Jingle Bells or O Hanukkah or Silent Night; or eating a Christmas Cookie, or preparing for an Advent worship service, I can pause for a moment and allow all of the hope, peace, love and joy of the Christmas Season to wash over me and revel in a moment of what Christmas is all about. It is in those moments that I experience all that is cradled into the little bundle of a newborn child. It is in those moments that I understand God’s unconditional love for me and each of us.
Take a moment to have a Christmas Cookie or listen to bells ring or see the lights that you pass in the evening and enjoy the moment as you remember what Christmas is for you!