I am looking forward to celebrating Advent and Christmas at CPC. It is such a special time of year when the air turns crisp, lights fill the night, and our hearts are full of anticipation. For some, that anticipation is the excitement of opening a long hoped for gift. (When I was a kid, the only thing I wanted for Christmas was a BB gun. It was not the famous Red Ryder one from the movie, but I still hoped for it with everything in me.) For others, it is the anticipation of being reunited with family: a son or daughter coming home, a sibling you have not seen in far too long, or a parent whose presence matters more than any present under a tree. And for many of our students, it is simply the joy of a break from school.
But we also know that this time of year can be painful. For some, it is a season when grief is heavy and the empty chair is impossible to ignore. For others, financial burdens make it difficult to buy the gifts they long to give to their children. For many, the darkness of sadness, loneliness, uncertainty, or anxiety feels sharper against the brightness of Christmas lights.
This is why Advent is so precious to me - it is a season of anticipation. We anticipate real things like gifts and time with loved ones, but even more, we anticipate the return of Jesus who will make all things new. He is the One who will wipe away every tear, heal every wound, end every form of suffering, and restore peace to all creation. Our hearts ache for a world without cancer, without addiction, and without death. Jesus has promised to bring that world.
We have real confidence in this promise because we remember His first coming. God took on flesh and lived among us. Jesus bound up the brokenhearted, healed the sick, fulfilled the law perfectly, lived a sinless life, and then died on the cross for us so that we might receive His righteousness. And He rose from the dead in victory. Because we can trust His first coming, we can confidently trust His second.
So, as we celebrate Advent at CPC, let us fix our eyes on Jesus. Let us look back with gratitude to His first coming and look forward with hope to His return. Throughout this season we will light the Advent wreath candles, hear sermons that help us behold our God who took on flesh, enjoy special concerts and gatherings, and sing songs that celebrate His coming while crying out, “Come, Lord Jesus.”
Advent is also a wonderful opportunity to invite friends, coworkers, neighbors, and family to join us. Many are spiritually open in this season in ways they may not be at any other time of the year. Let’s pray about whom we might invite and how we might welcome others with warmth, hospitality, and the love of Christ.
May the Lord richly bless us as we celebrate Advent together. And may He deepen in us the longing of the Church through the ages: Come quickly, Lord Jesus.
David Stephenson, Senior Pastor
