Advent, with flickering candles and a wreath, was not something I celebrated corporately growing up, but the idea of Advent was a personal and family practice. Every year our family expectantly waited and prepared for the celebration of Christ’s birth.
Even as a child, I knew December 25th was not Christ’s actual birthdate. Even so, I looked forward to singing carols with my family—Lawrence Welk style with smiles on our faces—and listening to my father read the Christmas story from the Gospel of Luke. We didn’t have many traditions, but these two things always occurred.
Advent may only come once a year, but living a lifestyle of expectant waiting is part of the Christian life. Dietrich Bonhoeffer said it well:
“The advent season is a season of waiting, but our whole life is an advent season, that is, a season of waiting for the last advent, for the time when there will be a new heaven and a new earth.”
As you prepare to celebrate the birth of Christ, remember also to anticipate the return of Christ.
Merry Christmas from my home to yours,
Heidi