December Together In Prayer Reflection
Revd David Salsbury – Synod Moderator
It starts with one or two strategically placed tins of biscuits, followed by large tubs of chocolate, not to mention the increased prominence of wine, beer and spirits; then before you know it, entire aisles are dedicated to the sale of mince pies, nibbles and other festive treats. It’s a fact that supermarkets have a not-so-subtle way of reminding us that Christmas is coming – usually sometime in mid-October!
And as we enter the month of December the signs are now unmissable – with Christmas adverts on the telly, festive lights and decorations appearing in house windows and the old Christmas favourites already playing on the radio.
Advent is, to many people, just a time to count down the days – to open one more window of the Advent calendar. As the number of days gets fewer so the excitement mounts, (or the anxiety increases), as the ‘big day’ gets nearer and preparations become more frenzied. In some ways I guess Advent is like that for us all.
For people of faith Advent has a deeper meaning too. For those who look forward to the birth of Jesus it’s not just a signal to buy presents and plan the Christmas Day menu, but a sign of real hope for us and for the world. Advent is a time to prepare our hearts as well as our homes.
If you look at the lectionary readings for the season of Advent and see how they fit together you will notice that they form pattern of increasing expectation and hope for the nation of Israel – the people who waited and longed for the coming of God’s anointed Messiah – the one who would save them.
Like our Advent candle wreaths, which grow brighter each week with the lighting of an additional candle, so is the sense of anticipation in these readings. There is a promise that God will lift his people out of darkness, and peace and justice will reign. As Christmas day approaches, we get to the parts of the story that are more familiar – with a young girl called Mary, engaged to a man named Joseph, being told by the Angel Gabriel that she will bear a son and that she will name him Jesus. This is the fulfilment of God’s promise; the celebration of the Incarnation, the Word becoming Flesh, the birth of the Christ Child.
As we journey through Advent are we able to pause a for moment and think about what Advent means to us? Are we able to make the days count, as well as counting down the days; to consider again what celebrating Jesus’ birth means for the world which, in many places continues to lie in darkness and despair? What is the sense of hope, anticipation and promise that we can share as we count the days?
My prayer is that we can hold on to this hopeful anticipation in the midst of the other pressures that Advent brings so that we might arrive at the big day rather less exhausted and rather more excited about what it is we are celebrating – God’s promise fulfilled in the face of Christ our Lord, who came that we might have life in all its fullness.
May I wish you all a Hopeful Advent, a Happy Christmas and a Peace-filled New Year.
An Advent Prayer
Almighty God, infinite and eternal,
who was born among us in the person of Jesus Christ,
As we prepare again to celebrate your incarnation
help us to look towards your light,
to behold your presence
and to live in hopeful anticipation of your coming,
that the world may bear witness to your love and your justice,
and be transformed by your grace.
In and through the One who came to save us,
Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.