Happy New Year!!!

"Remember the days of old; consider the generations long past. Ask your father and he will tell you, your elders, and they will explain to you." —Deuteronomy 32:7

At one time, we could finish digesting our Thanksgiving dinner before we heard the faintest strains of Christmas. Four weeks of Advent were sufficient to prepare our spirits for the coming of Christ! Today we’re lucky if we get through Halloween before the radio stations start playing 24x7 Christmas music. Suddenly when we have to buy gifts for everyone in our family and friends group, 4 weeks just isn’t enough time.

So it is only proper, I think, to keep with our current tradition, and take this moment to skip straight to the New Year! I think it could catch on! Christmas at Halloween and New Year at Christmas!

Actually, it is proper, and has been for some time! You see, the first Sunday of Advent is the first day of the Church Year. The church calendar provides a method for us to recall the whole salvation story of God each year. We begin, appropriately, at the very beginning. We begin at Advent, remembering the waiting that the people of God endured for centuries as they anticipated their redemption. We join with them, waiting for the return of Christ, where he will firmly establish the Kingdom of God, and redeem all of creation.

In the calendar we will reach the heights of rejoicing at Christmas, the depths of heartache at Good Friday, and return to rejoicing at Easter! We will remember the mission on Pentecost, and will celebrate the mission during Kingdomtide. The calendar takes us on a journey of remembrance that encompasses the full range of human emotion. As we celebrate this new year, let us look for the coming of Christ in our every day activities. You see, we remember that Christ came in a manger, and we await his coming in glorious victory, but today Christ comes to us when we are obedient to his call to serve. When we care for the sick, befriend the lonely, provide for the poor, and serve the least of these, we witness the presence of Christ in our midst.

Advent is that time of waiting for the redemption. We remember the way our spiritual ancestors waited for their redemption. Today we wait for Christ’s glorious appearing. But let us not forget those who live today without hope, without love, without joy, without peace, and without Christ.

This Advent, let us remember their waiting as well. Let us seek to proclaim the message of Christmas to those who still wait in darkness. Behold! Your light has come!

Homework this week: Meditate on the lyrics of your favorite Christmas Carol in light of God’s extravagant rescue mission.

Find a place to serve this Advent season to shine the Light of Christ. Restore Hope, Day Center for the Homeless, Stand in the Gap, Life Launch, and Cookson Hills are just a few places where the light of Christ within you could bring about God’s plan of redemption for someone who is still waiting.

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