Advent 2009

Today is the first day of Advent.  As I've shared before,

"Advent is a season of preparation. For centuries Christians have used the month prior to the celebration of Christ's incarnation to ready their hearts and their homes for the great festival. While we moderns tend to do a good bit of bustling about in the crowded hours between Thanksgiving and Christmas--shopping for presents, compiling guests lists, mailing holiday greeting cards, perusing catalogs, decorationg hearth and home, baking favorite confections,a nd getting ready for one party after another--that hardly constitutes the kind of preparation Advent calls for. Indeed, Advent has been a time of quiet introspection, personal examination, and repentance. A time to slow down, to take stock of the things that matter the most, and to do a thorough inner housecleaning. Advent is, as ancient dogma of the Church asserts, a Little Pascha--a time of fasting, prayer, confession, and reconciliation. All the great Advent stories, hymns, customs, and rituals--from the medieval liturgical antiphons and Scrooge's A Christmas Carol to the lighting of the Advent candles and the eating of the Martinmas beef are attuned to this notion: the best way to prepare for the coming of the Lord is to make straight His pathway to our hearts."

~from Christmas Spirit by George Grant and Gregory Wilbur

Because of some more pressing priorities, we won't be using my wonderful Upsized Advent Calendar this year, but you can look at it and possibly get ideas for your calendar if you're wanting to make one.

For our daily Advent readings, we'll be reading from Jotham's Journey.  It's an Advent devotional we use every few years, and we never tire of it.  The publisher summarizes the story...."In one of the most exciting Advent stories you will ever read, follow ten-year-old Jotham across Israel as he searches for his family.  Hold your breath when he faces thieves, robbers, and kidnappers.  Rejoice in his encounters with wise men, shepherds, and innkeepers until at last he finds his way to the Savior born in Bethlehem."

You could start using this advent devotional from Christ the King Presbyterian Church.  It's a free PDF.

Here are some Advent poems written by Pastor John Piper.

May this be a wonderful time of "thorough inner housecleaning" as you prepare to celebrate the gift of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.


Love,
Queen Mom