This calendar is neither commanded nor forbidden. And for me, it shoulders some of the burdens. It is an invitation to follow a slightly different year, not the 12-month hustle, but the rotating, repeating seasons of the church.
All tagged Advent
Longing For The Bride
This Advent I want to start longing for his bride again. You cannot have Christ without his bride, and you cannot love and serve Christ without loving and serving his bride.
Advent: The Season of Hope In Pain
Advent means a lot more when you are in pain and waiting for deliverance precisely because that is Advent. It is waiting to be delivered with the complete hope and assurance that deliverance is coming.
Christmas Communion
The deconstruction of Christmas into an individualistic event is not something I am familiar with. Communion with Christ comes with communion with the church.
A Rose of Redemption
We wait. God is at work.
Waiting in Bleakness
Let us sit here in the bleak midwinter and remember—this is where Christ comes to meet and redeem us.
Returning to Dust
There is something more devastating when the God of all creation hides His face from His creature.
Penetrating Our Darkness
The Advent season prepares our heart, mind, and soul for the darkness that occurs throughout our life. It reminds us to rely not on any extinction of existence but the Christ who penetrated our deepest darkness and conquered them in His death.
The Angelic Announcement is Ours
When Advent is celebrated correctly, the whole heart is meditating on the magnificent glory of God. "In spirit and in truth" (Jn. 4:24), we "bend before Him" and "His greatness celebrate" by His grace. After four weeks of anticipation, the Angelic announcement is once again ours.
More than Watchmen Waiting for the Morning
We wait. God prepares the city.
Idols During Advent
Advent is a time to set aside the pomp and circumstance of secular celebration. It is a time to clean house on our “speechless idols” and “silent stone[s].” Maybe that entails time away from social media or less spiked eggnog. It might mean taking less pride and confidence in our religious traditions. It is impossible to conceive of all the silent idols our hearts may create.
Mary And The Church
It is good and right to enjoy the image of Mary and Eve gathering around the promised Seed. It is right to see that in the power of the Holy Spirit and Incarnate son, the church—Mary—crushes the serpent.
When Advent Goes Awry
Can I tell you a secret I uncovered this past week? Christ’s coming is undiminished by our lack of acknowledgment and/or celebration.
John Calvin on the Perpetual Virginity of Mary
One is certainly allowed to disagree with the analysis of Calvin. But perhaps it would be wise to acknowledge his warning about those with "an extreme fondness for disputation."
Keeping Advent
While keeping Christmas and Advent as separate, although closely linked, seasons has been quite the challenge, we are embracing the path and reaping benefits already!
Anxiety & Christmas with Barth
"The Lord of heaven and earth, the eternal God who deemed it not too high and not too low to become like us so that we may become his." - Karl Barth
Christmas with Barth
"Grant today to the whole Christian church and to the world as well that many may break through the glitter and vanity of the holiday season and truly celebrate Christmas with us." - Karl Barth
The Outspoken Confession of the Faithful
That Christ is the God become man means He is the God who meets man. And in this meeting man can do nothing but confess.
Losing People For The Plot
"Where there is Christ Jesus, there is the catholic Church" (Roman Catholic Catechism) or perhaps, "Where Christ is, there is his Church" (Karl Barth, The Great Promise).