Advent

The King is Coming

“The word advent means “expectation.” What advent can do for us is create a sense of hope.”

– Louie Giglio

Advent. The season of advent encompasses anticipation and longing. We long for peace. We long for contentment. We long for some sort of rescue. This rescue indefinitely comes to us but it might take a little bit of waiting. In the waiting comes the greatest gift we could ever receive. The promise fulfilled. Yet, we must recognize that advent begins in the dark. It begins in the waiting. It begins in the unknown. Maybe Advent is a familiar tradition to you. Maybe this is something completely brand new to you.

Advent can be defined as “the arrival of a notable person, thing or event.” It comes from the Latin word advents, which means “coming.” Every year, Christians all around the world, use this time preceding Christmas to celebrate the advent of Jesus. We celebrate the coming of Jesus. We anticipate it and long for it. It is really a joyful expectation. It reminds us of the way the Jews waited for the coming of the Messiah. They stayed in the dark for a long time as they awaited the presence of Jesus. It also reminds us of the way that we wait and long for the second coming of Jesus. Advent is simply a celebration and an anticipation of the coming of Jesus. This celebration of advent has been commemorated in diverse ways.

In A.D. 567, a group of monks fasted every day in December leading up to Christmas. This is thought to be the first official advent celebrated. Today, Western Christianity celebrates what we traditionally think of as advent, usually beginning four Sundays before Christmas. On the other hand, Eastern Christianity celebrates advent through a 40 day fast leading up to Christmas.

Modern culture has attempted marketing strategies when it comes to the advent season. You may have even noticed these calendars in the stores in the recent years. Modern culture uses this as a way to countdown to a day of family and food and presents. Even the presence of Santa Clause the night before. But the advent calendar was originally created to help us count down and anticipate the birth of Jesus. Advent calendars can be a fun and meaningful way to prepare our hearts and minds by anticipating the baby in a manger and why He came. I mean, Trader Joe's has a large selection of advent calendars. There's even a calendar you can give your dog to anticipate the season. But, let’s not lose sight of the true meaning of the advent season and what it means for each of us.

“The Lord is coming, always coming. When you have ears to hear and eyes to see, you will recognize him at any moment of your life. Life is Advent; life is recognizing the coming of the Lord.”

Henri Nouwen

Today, many churches make use of the advent wreath. An advent wreath will hold four candles around the outside and one candle in the middle. These candles will represent the four weeks of the advent season. Of the outside candles, there will be three purple (or royal blue) and one will be pink (signifying joy). On every Sunday, an outside candle will be lit. The pink candle will be lit on the third Sunday. The final candle in the middle is white, and it is lit on Christmas. The candles usually represent the virtues of hope, love, joy, and peace. They are typically lit in this order.

Maybe you have your own traditions. Or you remember such traditions in your family or in your church growing up. Maybe you have special ornaments. Maybe you like to sing through “O Come O Come Emmanuel” in preparation. You might even enjoy reading through specific scripture each day as you look forward to the coming, the advent of Jesus Christ. Whatever you do, it is important that you use this season to center you heart and mind on His Coming. His coming in our lives and His triumphant return some day real soon.

Advent. The King is coming.

Prayer: Lord, we desire to celebrate You. Stir in us anticipation of Your coming. Prepare our hearts and minds for Advent. We join together in making this season of waiting special. Help us intentionally focus on the meaning of our Savior’s birth. Help us to fix our eyes on Your Presence. We want to treasure this time for ourselves and also lead others to Your precious gift of salvation. We thank you for coming beside us each day as Emmanuel. In Jesus name, amen.