Advent

Each Advent, we take a stroll down memory lane as we prepare our house for Christmas. We unpack decorations with ties to long-gone family members and hang ornaments that mark special occasions in our lives over the years – childhood memories, our first Christmas together, the birth of our kids, our arrival in Staunton, another Steeler Super Bowl victory (some are old ornaments). We pull out favorite movies – White Christmas, Elf, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer – to be viewed yet again with memories of those folks with whom we watched them in the past. We read Christmas cards from friends, some of whom we have had no contact with since last Christmas, but still remember fondly. We listen to familiar Christmas songs and carols that warm our hearts with their words and familiar tunes, and we hear again the familiar Scriptures that herald the coming of Emmanuel, God with us, in the baby born in Bethlehem. The danger in all that nostalgia is that we are so focused on the past that we forget that the good news of Jesus’ coming is not just about then, but also about now and the future. It is not just remembering what happened in Bethlehem 2,000 years ago, but also daring to believe that Jesus’ birth is significant for us today too. It is good news that gives us hope with which to live today in a world in which the news is so often not good, a world in which there is too much violence, hate, and conflict – as it was in Jesus’ day. The tidings of great joy for all people are tidings of great joy for us too, encouraging us to live with that joy throughout this season, but also into a new year after we’ve packed the decorations away. Advent not only looks back to Jesus’ birth but also looks ahead to his return in glory. It affirms that just as God was with us then, so God is with us now and into the future. It declares that just as Jesus came to earth in an unexpected place at an unexpected time, so it will be when he returns. Our responsibility as we await that return at a time unknown is to live faithfully day by day, sharing God’s love, joy, and peace with a world desperately seeking each of those good gifts. This Advent, I encourage you to take time to walk down memory lane with those old friends and family from your past, but take time also to turn your eyes to the present and to the future to Jesus’ promised return. For, his coming – then in Bethlehem and in days to come – is the source of our hope, joy, and peace, with which to live today, come what may!