Getting Ready

It seems hard to believe that on Thursday we being the month of December. Didn't it just happen last year? December is always so busy what with cards to write, presents to buy, special celebrations to go to, special services at the church, food to buy, decorations to put up, and so on. It doesn't seem possible that it is that time already. But there are the tell tale signs all over that December is almost here. Nights here in Sydney are getting quite warm and humid. The elevators have been blasting Christmas carols for weeks now. TV ads are all full of Christmas gift ideas. I may not seem ready or not, but it is here with or without me.

Maybe that is why it is good we have the season of advent in the church. We enter into this few weeks at the end of November the beginning of December and we don't barge head long into Christmas, but rather we have time to get ourselves ready. We take time to think about the gifts that Christ brings to us: hope, peace, joy, and love. We hear about Jesus' parents being told about the birth of the child. We hear about the prophets of old and how God came to them and told them about the one who is to come. We hear about John preaching about the child who was to follow after him. We hear all of this before the main event. Then on Christmas eve we hear about the child born in the manger and the angels telling us that with that babe God is here and is well pleased with us. In church we have four weeks to prepare for all this. And that is good.

I write this this week not to say that the Christmas movies, the special food, and decorations are not a part of our holiday festivities. They are ways in which we get ourselves ready. The songs, the cards from loved ones overseas, remind us of the love at Christmas. The cheer that we share at Christmas is a sign of the peace and joy foretold by the angels. And the dreams that even old man Scrooge had and the resolutions made at New Year, remind us all of hope. I think these other ways of celebrating, decorating, baking, singing, card writing, all are ways in which we prepare.

But what might be different is the effects of the celebrations. In many households, once boxing day is over everything is put away until next year. There has been little change. Oh we might add a few new things to our memories of good tidings, but that can wait again until next December. But in the church, we celebrate that we are changed. The child born in the manger means that our lives have eternal significance. With the reminder of his birth, we can never go back to just the way we are for we have been changed. This is the good news. Blessings.