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1st Week of Advent Devotions: Saturday, 12/09/06

Hallelujah!

How good it is to sing praises to our God!

how pleasant it is to honor him with praise!

The Lord rebuilds Jerusalem;

he gathers the exiles of Israel.

He heals the brokenhearted

and binds up their wounds.

He counts the number of the stars

and calls them all by their names.

Great is our Lord and mighty in power;

there is no limit to his wisdom.

The Lord lifts up the lowly,

but casts the wicked to the ground.

Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving;

make music to our God upon the harp.

He covers the heavens with clouds

and prepares rain for the earth;

He makes grass to grow upon the mountains

and green plants to serve human beings.

He provides food for flocks and herds

and for the young ravens when they cry.

He is not impressed by the might of a horse;

he has no pleasure in the strength of a person;

But the Lord has pleasure in those who fear him,

in those who await his gracious favor.

(Psalm 147:1-12 BCP)

I have one of those little Advent calendar trees with 25 doors. I am supposed to open one door each day in anticipation of the birth of Christ, take out the little ornament, and hang it on the tree. I have good intentions but I fail. I plan to savor the days until Christmas one by one. In reality “life comes at me fast.” I realize that three or four days have gone by with nary a door opened. Then I have to quickly open all the catch-up doors. What happened? I guess it was work, family, pets, computer, shopping, decorating, writing Christmas cards, cooking…

You know what? I’ll bet God doesn’t really care about me opening the doors of that little Christmas tree on time. But I think he does care about me preparing myself for Christmas on time by opening the doors of my heart.

So this year I will get out my little tree. I will make the same promises to myself that I will take the time to open each door on the right day. I probably won’t always succeed. I think God will be okay with that.

Ann Calandro

O God, as our lives become holiday-hectic,

remind us that your birthday isn’t celebrated in stores

or while battling traffic or by racing around at the last minute.

When we forget that your coming is more important than material things,

let the scent of evergreens, the vivid red of poinsettia

and the fragrance of feasting

remind us that your coming is at hand.

We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Schedule for December 24

9:30am, Advent IV worship, followed by hospitality and Hanging of the Greens

7pm, Christmas Eve Candlelight Worship (The Christ Mass) followed by hot cider and cookies