Today (Dec 1st) marks the beginning of the traditional Christian season of Advent.
Advent is a time of anticipation, of looking forward to the coming of redemption. It references the redemption that comes in Christ’s birth (which is fitting as Advent finishes on Christmas Eve) but also the final fulfilment of that redemption that will come with his return on the last day. Advent is a time of stoking our hunger for that redemption by reflecting on what it entails. At St Mark’s we don’t make a big deal about the traditional church calendar, but at a time of the year when every advertiser is screaming out at us to hunger for indulgent food and unnecessary gifts Advent can be helpful because it reminds us to hunger for something far more significant; the blessed life of the new creation that Christ brings.
If you want to stoke that hunger this Advent, you might benefit from a free ebook of daily Bible readings and reflections by an American pastor named John Piper that you’ll find here.