Advent

Growing up in the Baptist church Advent candles were a huge event. We lit one every Sunday and a different family in the church would light it and read the verse. I kind of wanted to be that family, but it never happened. Probably for the best.
I don't know what it was about the lighting, but I got so excited. The anticipation of counting down to Christmas? Another way for me to mark off something from a list?
A few years ago I started my own lighting of the candles because the church we attended didn't do it at the time. It was a little janky, but it got the point. I would look up random advent verse readings online but this year John Piper came out with a free ebook just for December 2012. I thought I would share for those of you who are lighting candles or moving a paper doll around a calendar. http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-library/books/good-news-of-great-joy

I want to get focused on why I am celebrating Christmas. Sometimes I can just "do" tradition for the tradition of it and not the meaning. I love this excerpt from the book that reminded me of why:

"What I want most for Christmas this year is to join you (and many others) in seeing Christ in all his fullness and that we together be able to love what we see with a love far beyond our own half-hearted human capacities. This is our goal in these Advent devotionals. We want together to see and savor this Jesus whose first “advent” (coming) we celebrate, and whose second advent we anticipate.

This is what Jesus prays for us this Christmas: “Father, show them my glory and give them the very delight in me that you have in me.” Oh, may we see Christ with the eyes of God and savor Christ with the heart of God. That is the essence of heaven. That is the gift Christ came to purchase for sinners at the cost of his death in our place."