Celebrating Advent was something we had never done until we lived in Austria. The women in our international church gathered to make Advent wreaths for our use at home. Special Advent calendars, some with chocolates hiding behind the “window of the day,” became a favorite for our children, something they eagerly anticipated upon waking each morning! Advent markets sprang up everywhere selling sweets, decorations, and gift items.
There was an expectancy in the air that intensified each day. An expectancy that helped prepare us for celebrating the coming Christ Child.
For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon His shoulder, and His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Isaiah 9:6
Isaiah gives us a glimpse of who that Child would become: the One upon whom the government — a government that will have no end — would rest. The Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
BUT… He began His life as a baby.
God became man.
God becoming man is something that both overwhelms and baffles us. We can relate to the baby part, since that is something we’ve all experienced. But God… a baby??? That part is hard to explain and understand. And yet throughout the millennia God had been dropping hints regarding not only how He would enter our world, but also how the Christ Child would enable us to be restored to a right relationship with a holy God.
God’s Word is where we find these hints.
During this Advent season, when busyness can rob us of spending time with the Lord, be intentional in carving out time individually or as a family to read the story of how God entered our world. Sometimes, because we’ve read or heard this so often, the story becomes… well, kind of ho-hum. But ask God to open your eyes to see it afresh this year… and together, we’ll have joy in the journey of this thing called “Life,” this thing that begins and ends with the miracle of God becoming man and living among us.
FYI: Sunday, November 28th is the First Sunday of Advent this year!
Joy in the Journey 