Preparing the 'last' of anything for a given period of time is always an opportunity for reflection. As I write to you this last column of the year (for Sunday is the end of the Christian year), I find myself looking back over the last year, and see two distinct choices staring me in the face. One one hand, there is the typical tendency to do a 'year-in-review' sort of thing, look back on the past and live through all that has transpired since we last celebrated Christ the King Sunday. As a student of history, I love to do this kind of thing, for I firmly believe that when we fail to look at and learn from the past, we are the loser. Highs and lows have been a part of the past year, and any of us could easily allow ourselves to want to stay in those moments.
On the other hand, the end of any year is also the opportunity to anticipate what is coming in the next year. It is my firm belief that the saints of the church laid out for us a Christian year that puts us in this perspective. We start out anticipating the future. We start out in a time of preparation, marking the time until we experience the ultimate new event, the Savior's birth. We spend time intentionally observing Hope, Peace, Joy and Love, and as we do, we see an Advent wreath coming more and more to light. From absolutely no light to a wreath of light on Christmas Eve/Christmas Day. How wonderful it is to anticipate a life of light - light from Christ. That's what we get to do - anticipate a life of light, not darkness. Our sole task as the new year begins is to prepare ourselves for this newborn's arrival.
You will be getting soon (if you have not already gotten it) our church's Advent calendar. I urge you to take part in these preparation activities. From the Hanging of the Green through Christmas Eve night worship, we will be preparing in many different ways for the arrival of our King. In their own ways, each of the events that are planned bring to us a sense of hope and anticipation. In their own ways, they give us (the body of Christ) a means of preparation for this wonderful celebration of God breaking through into humanity as one of us.
May we not be in so much of a hurry to get to Christmas that we miss Advent.
See you Sunday!
Lamar
On the other hand, the end of any year is also the opportunity to anticipate what is coming in the next year. It is my firm belief that the saints of the church laid out for us a Christian year that puts us in this perspective. We start out anticipating the future. We start out in a time of preparation, marking the time until we experience the ultimate new event, the Savior's birth. We spend time intentionally observing Hope, Peace, Joy and Love, and as we do, we see an Advent wreath coming more and more to light. From absolutely no light to a wreath of light on Christmas Eve/Christmas Day. How wonderful it is to anticipate a life of light - light from Christ. That's what we get to do - anticipate a life of light, not darkness. Our sole task as the new year begins is to prepare ourselves for this newborn's arrival.
You will be getting soon (if you have not already gotten it) our church's Advent calendar. I urge you to take part in these preparation activities. From the Hanging of the Green through Christmas Eve night worship, we will be preparing in many different ways for the arrival of our King. In their own ways, each of the events that are planned bring to us a sense of hope and anticipation. In their own ways, they give us (the body of Christ) a means of preparation for this wonderful celebration of God breaking through into humanity as one of us.
May we not be in so much of a hurry to get to Christmas that we miss Advent.
See you Sunday!
Lamar
