Advent

Today was the first Sunday of Advent. Yesterday we got out our Christmas decorations. Our older 2 kids had fun decorating a small artificial tree that was given to us at Christmas 1998 by one of our former Wheaton neighbors, Ruth Young. My wife warmed up to her our first year in Wheaton and used to go to her apartment to help her put her eyedrops in. She died the following year and we attended her funeral. Her memory lives on with us 7 years later thanks to this tree.

My wife set up our Advent candle arrangement and we lit the first candle today. The first Advent reading was Isaiah 40:1-5 (New Living Translation):

"Comfort, comfort my people," says your God. "Speak tenderly to Jerusalem. Tell her that her sad days are gone and that her sins are pardoned. Yes, the Lord has punished her in full for all her sins."

Listen! I hear the voice of someone shouting, "Make a highway for the LORD through the wilderness. make a straight, smooth road through the desert for our God. Fill the valleys and level the hills. Straighten out the curves and smooth off the rough spots. Then the glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all people will see it together. The LORD has spoken!

I'm not sure what I'm expecting this Advent. I was challenged by Pastor Serge's sermon this morning about needing more of the Holy Spirit's anointing. That anointing and authority are certainly desired during this year of transition. How this season will play out is still muddled, so understanding the direction of the anointing would be helpful in determining ministry priorities.