advent
Each year, as Advent begins, we enter a sacred season of waiting. We do not wait in the same way we wait at the DMV or in traffic — frustrated, impatient, counting the minutes — Advent waiting is a holy practice. Advent invites us into an expectant hope and longing for God’s promised renewal.
We light candles, sing familiar hymns, and re-tell stories of prophets who spoke of light breaking into darkness. We wait with Mary, whose “yes” to God opened the way for Christ’s birth. We listen with shepherds and angels, hearing again that wondrous announcement:
“For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”
But Advent isn’t only about waiting — it is about preparing. In our worship and in our lives, we prepare by making room for the greatest gift… God’s gift of Messiah (or the Greek translation “Christ”). We prepare our hearts through prayer, repentance, and generosity.
We seek reconciliation where there is division,
simplicity where there is excess,
and peace where there is anxiety.
Preparing for Christ’s arrival means shaping our lives so that when the gift of God’s love arrives, the home within our hearts are ready to receive it.
Advent’s waiting and preparation happens, and then Christmas comes, the celebration of God’s taking on flesh and breath. Our waiting on God gives way to wonder. Yet, the story doesn’t end there.
Receiving the gift of Christ calls us to live differently. The One we have been waiting for now sends us out — to love as Jesus loved, to forgive as Jesus forgave, to bring light into the shadows of our world. Advent shapes us to become people who live as if Emmanuel — God-with-us — is more than a story, but a reality transforming our everyday lives.
We are invited as we move through Advent, to deepen our faith as we wait, to prepare to open our hearts, and to reflect the joy in our living of those who have received the greatest gift of all: God’s own self, given to us in Jesus Christ.
Come, Lord Jesus.
We are waiting.
We are ready to live as your people.
~ Rev. Jonathan Murray
We light candles, sing familiar hymns, and re-tell stories of prophets who spoke of light breaking into darkness. We wait with Mary, whose “yes” to God opened the way for Christ’s birth. We listen with shepherds and angels, hearing again that wondrous announcement:
“For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”
But Advent isn’t only about waiting — it is about preparing. In our worship and in our lives, we prepare by making room for the greatest gift… God’s gift of Messiah (or the Greek translation “Christ”). We prepare our hearts through prayer, repentance, and generosity.
We seek reconciliation where there is division,
simplicity where there is excess,
and peace where there is anxiety.
Preparing for Christ’s arrival means shaping our lives so that when the gift of God’s love arrives, the home within our hearts are ready to receive it.
Advent’s waiting and preparation happens, and then Christmas comes, the celebration of God’s taking on flesh and breath. Our waiting on God gives way to wonder. Yet, the story doesn’t end there.
Receiving the gift of Christ calls us to live differently. The One we have been waiting for now sends us out — to love as Jesus loved, to forgive as Jesus forgave, to bring light into the shadows of our world. Advent shapes us to become people who live as if Emmanuel — God-with-us — is more than a story, but a reality transforming our everyday lives.
We are invited as we move through Advent, to deepen our faith as we wait, to prepare to open our hearts, and to reflect the joy in our living of those who have received the greatest gift of all: God’s own self, given to us in Jesus Christ.
Come, Lord Jesus.
We are waiting.
We are ready to live as your people.
~ Rev. Jonathan Murray
winter accesories drive
The mission committee is collecting new hats, gloves, and scarves during the month of December. Collection bins are at the Windermere entrance and in Chandler Hall.
