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Following
Thanksgiving we enter the season of “Advent,” which
means “coming.” It is a time of preparation for the
birth of God’s holy child, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Advent is a time to get ready, to become aware of
the true meaning of the Christmas celebration event.
This time of
preparation is much, much more than a frantic,
secular observance which focuses on shopping,
sending cards and parties. It is a time to remember
God’s greatest gift to us. The main point of
Christmas is Christ and we as Christians should
insist that it remain so.
The first
Christmas was a startling event. The shepherds were
on the Judean hillside, “keeping watch over their
flocks by night” when the heavens were filled with
angels announcing God’s gift to the world. They were
frightened.
Yet it was a
time of great joy, for the message of the angels was
“Behold, I bring you tidings of great joy for all
people, for the savior, Jesus is born.”
The shepherds
were given a specific place, Bethlehem where they
were to go to behold God’s great gift—to be found in
a lowly manger. They left that stable to share the
Good News with others.
During this
time of Advent let us prepare our hearts to again
receive the love and glory of God. Let us pull away
from the frantic pace of the world, that we too will
be overjoyed with the impact of God’s great gift to
us. And that we too would share the Good News to all
people.
~Pastor Bill
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