by Taylor Devine
If you have lived in the liturgical cycle for a while, you probably have a favorite season as we follow Jesus’ story through the year. Advent is definitely mine, though with its brevity, I find it is important to prepare myself for the layers of invitation embedded in the season.
Advent invites us to experience God’s grace in our lives on a number of different levels: personally, as we reflect on our own relationship with God, and communally, as we hear those long readings from the prophet Isaiah and familiar readings from the Gospel of Luke. There’s also an invitation for those of us committed church attenders to offer robust hospitality during Advent and Christmastide to occasional attenders, out-of-town guests, and those experiencing the highs and lows of life, made more intense by the holiday season. And then there’s the invitation for all of us to enter into the emotional experience of Advent: into quiet, waiting, and often into rich family traditions that draw on our time, resources, and attention.
In previous years, Bonnie Smith Whitehouse’s beautiful book Seasons of Wonder, Laura Alary‘s seasonal children’s books, and the O Antiphons devotions in the Saint Augustine’s Prayer Book have all been Advent companions for me. This year, I am especially looking forward to reading Gospel Voices, a new book about practicing Advent spirituality – waiting, watching, repenting and rejoicing.
Advent will be here before we know it! If you want to pray with and live with the season in a new way this year, consider these reflections:
Think ahead to the people for whom you have responsibility for spiritual guidance: children, grandchildren, or godchildren; family members; church or other friends who look to you for guidance and support. Are there connection points in Advent that could be strengthened with a little pre-planning?
Consider doing your Christmas gift shopping in advance: this can leave more space in December for the celebration of Advent.
Sometimes the busyness (or even chaos!) of the days leading up to and around Christmas is fun. If you and your family enjoy the busyness, you are not doing it wrong! Just pay attention to where the fun is creating bonds of love and support, and where you may need a different pace in order to pray and be with Christ in this season. Don’t be afraid to change your patterns if you need to.
If you would like to begin to think about the season as a church leader or participant, please join us this Thursday for a short Discipleship Chat (register here).
God-with-us is a gift we get to receive all year, but we get to do it so robustly in Advent!
The Rev. Taylor Devine is the Church Relations Coordinator for Discipleship Initiatives at Forward Movement and a member of the Cedar team.