Advent is a time of hope and expectation. Our eternal living Hope, gracing us with his son and giving our hearts a new song. And the expectation of Jesus coming back to this earth to claim his people again, to meet us in our hardships, and to wipe clean our worries and stress.
As I decorate for Christmas with a lit tree and simple stockings, the finished Christmas tree emits a soft, warm glow. I love to sit in my cozy armchair and observe the tree. There is a magical, mesmerizing beauty that emanates from the twinkling lights; a sweet awareness that something great is coming. Advent is the calm in a normally chaotic season. It’s a time to slow our thinking, look up in trust, and remember what God has done through his Son, Jesus.
These thoughts are what motivate and excite me in anticipation of the Advent season.
Last year, I wrote about preparing God a room in my heart (you can read that blog post here). 2019 was a crazy, busy year with my son’s birth, figuring out what it means to be a stay-at-home-mom, and trying to do all the “first Christmas” events with my son. So in that season, I needed to make space in my heart (and my calendar) for his goodness. His goodness is always there, but sometimes it comes in the quietest of moments—a small tap on the shoulder, a passing thought, or falling leaves. And the blaring reds and greens that mark the Christmas season can mask his angelic face.
But 2020. Oh, 2020. Yes, you, 2020. We’re all looking at you.
“If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink…”
John 7:37b
Oh, how thirsty we’ve grown in this barren time. We are thirsty, Lord. Thirsty for a lasting drink. We have been parched and not able to take a deep drink from the well of living waters. Our minds have been distracted. Our quiet time has been interrupted, and now we see the effects of fruitless time and the desert stretches out before us.
“The one who believes in me, as the scriptures have said, will have streams of living water flow from deep within him.
John 7:38
The year began in much the same way it always does. With resolutions and the making of plans. Preparing for my son’s first birthday, among other things. Then our tracks were abruptly stopped mid-March. The train that was gearing up for Easter and beyond came to a screeching halt. And, for most, this train has not started chug chugging again.
We are ending the year in a darkness that we didn’t expect.
December is upon us like a boisterous feud, with shouting, condemnation, division, and violence, to name a few. For some of us, December is not the jolly, energetic holiday we’ve come to expect. In fact, it’s so quiet; we wonder if our “hope” has disappeared without the glitter and events of the Christmas season. We fear our “hope” has been depleted due to the unforeseen circumstances of 2020.
This Advent season begins a little differently, but it commences nonetheless.
Instead of looking at our calendars trying to find time and space for quiet time, we blaze forward with menial tasks, hoping to stir up some amount of joy in this season. The “hope” that comes with the expectation of events is lost. Our hope has been stripped down to the nitty-gritty: our Savior and us.
Will this hope survive?
Maybe I’m a bit melodramatic, or maybe I’m harshly realistic. However you’re feeling this season, I believe you are justified in your feelings.
But even as this Advent season starts in a darkness, let’s not settle into this bleakness. The events, glitter, and pageantry that tend to fill our hearts in these Advent seasons is being uncovered for what it is: distractions from the true source of confidence, joy, prosperity, and faith. His name is Jesus.
Our hope has every chance of surviving this austere drought because he is enough.
Jesus is enough.
That’s why I believe it is so important to get rid of all the negative distractions and the hindrances that pull us away from the joy of the Advent season and replace them with good spiritual disciplines that draw us closer to the heart of what the Advent season holds.
I am no expert, but there are certain ways to help celebrate this season.
Here are some ways to welcome the Advent season with a full and expectant heart:
1. Choose an Advent Bible study.
I love the SheReadsTruth Lent and Advent studies. These studies are grounded in the Word and a welcome treat in this season. I also love Ann Voskamp’s “The Greatest Gift” for adults and kids. We are going to read the children’s version with our son this Advent season. There are also ornaments you can buy to put on the tree as reminders of all the promises of God. There are also so many free Advent studies as well! Check out YouVersion for their Advent studies.
2. Limit or cut out social media.
This is huge for me. Putting the phone down and stopping social media during such a festive time is difficult at first, but it’s a necessity. When I put the phone down, I tend to fill that time with reading my Bible or doing my actual study or even thinking of others I need to pray for. Limiting the use of my phone is a great way to have a distraction-free quiet time. Curbing phone use also negates the comparison trap many of us face when looking at pretty, effortless squares. Instead of making the season about me and my wants, I can focus on God who satisfies every passion in me. Jealousy, bye!
3. Spread Christmas cheer for all to hear.
We are not able to convene with our friends in the same we have in the past. But we are still effective in spreading the cheer that comes especially at this time of the year. Some great ways to foster and spread the joy of Christmas are to send Christmas cards, deliver store-bought baked goods or even a meal, take Christmas walks through neighborhoods decorated in lights, create a Christmas playlist with favorite old hymns, have outside socially-distanced get-togethers with a few friends, and many more!
Before Jesus was born, the world was in darkness.
Covered in sadness. Losing hope that the prophets had gotten it all wrong. Where was this man, this king, this amazing dude who was going to save us all? Had God forgotten us?
Centuries passed. But Isaiah promised that the Lord himself would sign that this man was here (Isaiah 7:14). And God did just that. In the form of a tiny, helpless baby, he gave the world his one and only son, Jesus, to give us his living hope and a continuing faith that lives within us.
And now, we know this hope. We know it deep in our hearts. Sometimes this hope gets covered by worries and anxious thoughts, by comparing our Christmas to someone else’s, letting days and weeks go by without a conversation with God. And we need reminders that he’s truly here. That he really is Immanuel: God with us.
So, in this 2020 Advent season, I hope you will rediscover the solace that knowing Jesus brings; that you will pour out your hurts and worries to God so that he can carry them. And I pray that “in view of such great tidings of love…[you will be moved] to praise and celebrat[e] in this Christmas season” (Douglas McKelvey, Every Moment Holy in SheReadsTruth Advent 2019 study).
**The nativity featured above in the picture was a gift bought from a children’s home and school in Kazakhstan. This school teaches widows or divorced women to sew the nativity scenes and other projects to make money for themselves and for the home. To support them and check out their nativity scenes check out the link –> Ranch Kazakh Connection
