It’s hard to believe, but Christmas is just around the corner. As a child, Christmas was a magic time of year. It seemed that Christmas would never arrive and then when the wonderful day arrived, it was a time filled with wonder and joy. Of course, there were presents, but there were also family gatherings, and special foods and unoccupied days to keep the joy of December 25th rolling until the dreaded day came and we returned to school.
What I remember most keenly from childhood is the longing for Christmas to finally arrive. In the Church’s worshiping year, the season preceding Christmas is called Advent. In the most basic sense, Advent is a season of preparation for Christmas. But with Advent comes the sense of longing. It reminds us how God’s people yearned for the arrival of the Messiah, who eventually did arrive on the first Christmas. Before the joy of Jesus’ birth came a season of waiting, of worrying, of longing.
This year, let us not fall into the hasty rush for Christmas. Take some time to live into Advent. Let Advent be an annual reminder that as the world received Jesus 2000 years ago, we need to continually seek and receive Jesus in our lives. One of my favorite Christian writers, Henri Nouwen, wrote in The Inner Voice of Love,
"When your eating, drinking, working, playing, speaking, or writing is no longer for the glory of God, you should stop it immediately, because when you no longer live for the glory of God, you begin to live for your own glory. Then you separate yourself from God and do yourself harm. Your main question should always be whether something is lived with or without God."
This Advent, don’t rush straight to Christmas. Spend some time looking for the God who is already with you. Because, if you do, you will always find Him.
Yours in Christ,
Thomas