Let the holiday "fun" begin...

with today's annual stampede to buy more stuff we don't need.

Now if engaging in Black Friday nonsense floats your boat who am I do stand in your way (which would be very dangerous.)

Following closely on today's madness is the annual tradition of hauling out a gazillion totes full of Christmas decorations.  This tradition is universally hated by husbands everywhere.

Many years ago I too had numerous storage boxes stacked in the tool shed and barn.  But something happened that made my life so much better.  I loaded up 90% of that stuff and sent it off to thrift stores.  My rule became "if it didn't fit in the trunk in my bedroom it had to go." Part of that was driven by acquiring a smaller Christmas tree.

That's right. Everything Christmas related, included the vintage nativity figures, tree ornaments, and window decor lives happily in one trunk.  Now I'm not trying to be all scrooge here and suggesting that you erect a bare branch as a Christmas tree, banish gifts, and skip the parties.  But taking some time to think about what's really important may bring some added peace to your life.

So do yourself a favor and when the storage boxes come out get rid of a whole bunch of that stuff.

Advent

This Sunday is the first Sunday of Advent - a time of preparation for the coming of Our Lord. The epistle for the extraordinary form of the Mass is Romans 13:11-14.

And that, knowing the season, that it is now the hour for us to rise from sleep. For now our salvation is nearer than when we believed. The night is passed And the day is at hand. Let us, therefore cast off the works of darkness and put on the armour of light. Let us walk honestly, as in the day: not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and impurities, not in contention and envy. But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ: and make not provision for the flesh in its concupiscences. 

Sounds like pretty good advice to me. 

More:

Uncluttered Simplicity:  How to Have A Simple Christmas This Year

Understanding Compassion:  Clutter Is A Trigger Of Stress And Anxiety, Psychologists Say

Becoming Minimalist:  The Helpful Guide to Simple Christmas Links

First Sunday of Advent...

it begins.

Just for today let us set aside everything vexing and start our preparations for the coming of our Lord.

The following is from Creighton University's Online Ministry.  Please bookmark and visit every day for the daily prayers for Advent.  It's free and a wonderful resource for all Christians.  

From: Creighton University's Online Ministries

As we begin Advent, we light one candle in the midst of all the darkness in our lives and in the world.  It symbolizes our longing, our desire, our hope.  Three “advents” or “comings” shape our desire.  We want to be renewed in a sense that Jesus came to save us from our sin and death.  We want to experience his coming to us now, in our everyday lives, to help us live our lives with meaning and purpose.  And we want to prepare for his coming to meet us at the end of our lives on this earth.

So, we begin with our longing, our desire and our hope.

When we wake up, each day this week, we could light that candle, just by taking a few moments to focus.  We could pause for a minute at the side of our bed, or while putting on our slippers or our robe, and light an inner candle.  Who among us doesn't have time to pause for a moment?  We could each find our own way to pray something like this:

“Lord, the light I choose to let into my life today is based on my trust in you.  It is a weak flame, but I so much desire that it dispel a bit more darkness today.  Today, I just want to taste the longing I have for you as I go to the meeting this morning, carry out the responsibilities of my work, face the frustration of some difficult relationships.  Let this candle be my reminder today of my hope in your coming.”

Each morning this week, that momentary prayer might get more specific, as it prepares us for the day we will face.  And as we head to work, walk to a meeting, rush through lunch, take care of errands, meet with people, pick up the phone to return some calls, answer e-mail, return home to prepare a meal, listen to the ups and downs of our loved ones' day, we can take brief moments to relate our desire for the three comings of the Lord to our life.

If our family has an Advent wreath, or even if it doesn't, we could pray together before our evening meal.  As we light the first candle on the wreath, or as we simply pause to pray together our normal grace.  Then, as we begin to eat, we can invite each other, including the children, to say something about what it means today to light this first candle.

Perhaps we could ask a different question each night, or ask about examples from the day.  How am I getting in touch with the longing within me?  How did I prepare today?  What does it mean to prepare to celebrate his coming 2,000 years ago?  How can we prepare to experience his coming into our lives this year?  What does it mean for us now, with our world involved in so much conflict? How are we being invited to trust more deeply?  How much more do we long for his coming to us, in the midst of the darkness in our world?  In what ways can we renew our lives so we might be prepared to greet him when he comes again?  Our evening meal could be transformed this week, if we could shape some kind of conversation together that lights a candle of anticipation in our lives.  Don't worry if everyone isn't “good at” this kind of conversation at first.  We can model it, based on our momentary pauses throughout each day, in which we are discovering deeper and deeper desires, in the midst of our everyday lives.

And every night this week, we can pause briefly, perhaps as we sit for a minute at the edge of the bed.  We can be aware of how that one, small candle's worth of desire brought light into this day.  And we can give thanks.  Going to bed each night this week with some gratitude is part of the preparation for growing anticipation and desire.

Come, Lord Jesus!  Come and visit your people. 
We await your coming.  Come, O Lord.

Prayers for the First Sunday of Advent 

Entrance Antiphon:  

To you, my God, I lift my soul,
I trust in you; let me never come to shame.
Do not let my enemies laugh at me. 

Collect: 

Grant your faithful, we pray, almighty God,
the resolve to run forth to meet your Christ
with righteous deeds at his coming, so that, gathered at his right hand,
they may be worthy to possess the heavenly kingdom.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever .  

Today's Readings

Daily Meditation: 

Judah shall be safe and Jerusalem dwell secure.
We begin Advent coming to the Lord who promises to keep us safe. In awe we say:

“To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul!”
Psalm 25 

Let's begin this week with a deeply felt prayer.
Even if we don't know exactly what we need or long for,
today, let's try to express our desire for God's help and assistance. 

The days are coming, says the Lord, when I will fulfill the promise I made to the house of Israel and Judah.   Jeremiah 33

He guides the humble to justice,
he teaches the humble his way. 
Psalm 25

Today's Daily Reflection

Intercessions:

To God our Father, who has given us the grace
to wait in  graceful hope for the revelation of
our Lord Jesus Christ, let us make our prayer:
Show us your mercy, Lord.

Sanctify us in mind and body,
- keep us without sin until the coming of your Son.

Make us walk this day in holiness,
- and live upright and devout lives in this world.

May we be clothed in our Lord Jesus Christ,
- and filled with the Holy Spirit.

Lord, help us to stand watchful and ready,
- until your Son is revealed in all his glory.

Closing Prayer: 

Lord God,
I sense your power, your might
and I stand in awe, painfully aware
of how poor and weak I am before you.

As I begin this Advent journey,
teach me to turn to you in my fear and sorrow.
I don't want to keep making my heart hard against you
turning a deaf ear to your invitation.

Only you can help me to soften,
to be like the clay in your gentle potter's hands. 

First Sunday of Advent...

prepare, for He is coming.

Advent is a period of spiritual preparation in which many Christians make themselves ready for the coming, or birth of the Lord, Jesus Christ. Celebrating Advent typically involves a season of prayer, fasting and repentance, followed by anticipation, hope and joy.

Many Christians celebrate Advent not only by thanking God for Christ's first coming to Earth as a baby, but also for his presence among us today through the Holy Spirit, and in preparation and anticipation of his final coming at the end of time.

When my mother was a girl she told us Grandma put up the Christmas tree on Christmas Eve after they had gone to bed and the first they saw it was Christmas morning.  When I was a girl, it was put up probably about a week before Christmas, a custom I've stuck with over the years.  Our tree was always left up until Epiphany.

With the advent (oh gosh - another pun?) of artificial trees which are unlikely to burst into flames, people put their trees up earlier and earlier and take them down earlier.  It's not uncommon to see people take their Christmas decorations down the day after the celebration of the birth of Christ.

This year I'm breaking with custom and putting my tree up next weekend.  However, it will remain up until Epiphany on Jan. 6th.

What Advent customs do you have?  Perhaps an Advent wreath or a Jesse tree?  Special prayers? Tree - real or fake?  I've had fake for over 50 years.  I'm super paranoid about fire and wouldn't want my fur kids to be trapped in a burning house.  Besides, real trees are super expensive now. 

Gospel for the First Sunday of Advent

Extraordinary Form

25 “There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea.

26 People will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken.

27 At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.

28 When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”

29 He told them this parable: “Look at the fig tree and all the trees.

30 When they sprout leaves, you can see for yourselves and know that summer is near.

31 Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that the kingdom of God is near.

32 “Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.

33 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.




 

First Sunday of Advent...

Gospel  Lk 21:25-28, 34-36

Jesus said to his disciples:
“There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars,
and on earth nations will be in dismay,
perplexed by the roaring of the sea and the waves.
People will die of fright
in anticipation of what is coming upon the world,
for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
And then they will see the Son of Man
coming in a cloud with power and great glory.
But when these signs begin to happen,
stand erect and raise your heads
because your redemption is at hand.

“Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy
from carousing and drunkenness
and the anxieties of daily life,
and that day catch you by surprise like a trap.
For that day will assault everyone
who lives on the face of the earth.
Be vigilant at all times
and pray that you have the strength
to escape the tribulations that are imminent
and to stand before the Son of Man.”