I. Love. Advent.
I've probably shared it before (if not here than definitely on Instagram) that Advent is my favorite liturgical season and possibly my favorite time of the year.
There is something so incredible about preparing for Christ's birth while already knowing that Jesus has come. That beautiful tension of the already, but not yet, is a mystery that I love leaning into and journeying with as I anticipate the coming of Emmanuel - my favorite name for Jesus.
God is with us, friends. Maybe not always in the flashiest, most clear of ways, but God is here and what a gift the Incarnation is to the world.
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This year, to prepare for Christmas (cue Godspell music), my plan is to do the following:
1) Read and journal through this year's Blessed is She Advent AND Christmas Devotional.
If you haven't gotten a copy yet, you can still purchase one from the Blessed is She shop. The digital download might be the way to go if you want to start right away, but you could wait for a hard copy too.
(Cyber Monday there will be a site-wide sale of 25% off!)
2) Read the Gospel of Luke.
The book club I am a part of decided to read this book of Scripture for December with the intention of reading a chapter each day from Dec 1 - 24 (Christmas Eve) since there are 24 chapters. I also ordered two commentaries on Luke from Amazon ( 1 | 2 ) in hopes of digging a little deeper because I'm a Theology nerd lol
3) Recite the St. Andrew Christmas Novena with Michael each day.
I've done this for the past 3 years or so and always find helpful in prayerfully entering into the season. Here's a post Blessed is She shared last year about it if you're interested. It's never too late to start!
Erica from Be A Heart designed this gorgeous print of the prayer. It's sold out now, but there are a ton of other beautiful pieces in her shop, and maybe it will be restocked in the future :)
4) Do a sort of "Reverse Advent Calendar" with Michael.
Each day of Advent, M and I plan to choose something from our closet to donate to a local charity. So often the Christmas/Advent season focuses on getting and we are looking for small ways to remind us of our call to give. Our hope is that this will just be a starting point. There are so many other ways to support our brothers and sisters in need, but we need to begin somewhere.
(I'm not sure if this is even how you are supposed to do one, but this is our plan.)
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As with most of my planning, I am flexible and open to changes and adjustments. Sometimes multiple to-do's shrink to one solid one. Other times I have found something else I like and decide to add it partly through the season.
No matter how this particular Advent turns out, my one hope is to remain focused on the reason for the season (as absolutely cheesy as that sounds).
God is with us friends.
I pray we all are able to notice this more during this season of Advent and the rest of the year too.
Peace,
Sarah
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