The Advent and Christmas season is my favorite time of the year. Advent is the four weeks of the church calendar that leads up to and helps us prepare for Christmas. For me, Advent is the refrain, “He’s coming, He’s coming, get ready” that culminates in the bells of Christmas ringing in “He’s here!”
I love the lights, the excitement in the air, the baking, the gathering of family and friends, the exchanging of gifts. I love it all.
Now, some years I have not had as much of a sense of excitement as others. There have been years when we lost family members, and years when my depression got the better of me. But my spirit is always uplifted to consider his coming.
Preparations
We love putting up the Christmas lights (that is the royal “we”, as my son puts it, since the boys do most of that work for us now). To me all the lights of Christmas are our own small way of remembering the star that led the wise men to Jesus.
The excitement of the season can sometimes be overwhelming, especially if as mothers we are trying to make it all perfect. And yet, God did not appear as Immanuel in perfect circumstances. He chose to come to a poor girl and her fiance, in a stable, when there was no room for them elsewhere. Were Mary and Joseph wishing for more perfect preparations to welcome the Son of God? As we prepare for Christmas, we need to embrace the joy and the mess.
I love selecting gifts for my loved ones, and sharing our baking efforts with friends, neighbors, and others. When I give, I remember not only the gifts of the wise men, and the gift of Jesus, but also the cost of the gifts. I am giving of my time in shopping and baking, wrapping and prepping, but it pales in comparison to the cost of God’s own Son sent for us.
As I am selecting the perfect gift for each person, I know that Jesus is the perfect gift for me. God knows me individually and loves me in spite of myself. He sees me as perfect in Jesus, not as flawed as I know myself to be. He has “made perfect forever those who are being made holy.” Hebrews 10:14.
Participation
I especially love looking forward to celebrating the gift of baby Jesus. But this time of year, as we anticipate his birth, also reminds me that we should also be anticipating his return: when he will come not as a humble babe, but as the conquering king. My heart swells thinking of the triumph of that day, but it also saddens when I see my loved ones that are not looking forward to His return. And it prompts me to ponder, how can I best live my life so that I am pointing others to Jesus – the King of Kings, Immanuel.