Advent - Week One HOPE
As I enter through the gates of thanksgiving into the kingdom of Advent, reign in love on the throne of my heart… Amen
(Centering Prayers, Peter Traben Haas)
A few evenings ago, I plopped down on the sofa to admire our newly decorated Christmas tree. “I just LOVE Christmas,” I said to my husband who responded with a hint of sarcasm, “Really!” All who know me well, realize I love everything Christmas. The sights, the sounds, the scents of the season fill me with excitement—and sometimes, exhaustion.
In my non-liturgical faith tradition, little emphasis was placed on Advent, the four weeks leading up to Christmas. I was introduced to the significance of this season through a meaningful advent devotional.
This is the third season I have featured Advent posts in the Listening on the Journey… blog.
During the 2020 Advent season, I will be reprinting some of those posts and using the same photo of the Advent wreath I made three years ago in each Monday post.
There are variations of the order in which each week is symbolized. The weekly designations I’ll use are:
Week One, symbolizing HOPE;
Week Two, symbolizing PEACE;
Week Three, symbolizing JOY;
Week Four, symbolizing LOVE.
On Christmas Eve, our two youngest grandkids have lit a fifth, taller candle, symbolic of Jesus, the true reason for this lovely season.
This first week of Advent reminds us of the long-hoped-for Messiah, the arrival of Emmanuel (also spelled Immanuel), through the mystery of the incarnation. I liked this quote concerning the word incarnation.
Christmas is about the incarnation of Jesus. Strip away the season’s hustle and bustle, the trees, the cookies, the extra pounds, and what remains is a humble birth story and a simultaneously stunning reality — the incarnation of the eternal Son of God.
This incarnation, God himself becoming human, is a glorious fact that is too often neglected, or forgotten, amidst all the gifts, get-togethers, pageants, and presents…[i]
In Thursday’s post, I will focus further on the importance of the hope of Emmanuel. Until then,
Blessings as you ponder the mystery of the incarnation and the HOPE of Christmas…
