The First Sunday of Advent

My grandmother had five siblings: three sisters and two brothers, plus a collection of brothers- and sisters-in-law to round out the crew to a full dozen. The holidays of my childhood were highlighted by memories of them cooking meals together, sharing stories, singing by the light of the moon, and laughter—always laughter. 

Our family lost the last of them this year, and my mom and I found ourselves immersed in my grandmother’s old photo albums. There in black and white stood the Sisters, as we call them, and a simple realization startled me. These wise, lovely, larger-than-life women from my earliest memories were not the otherworldly figures I always thought them to be. I couldn’t see it as a young girl, but now as a woman, not much younger than they were then, I can imagine the longings that must have lived underneath the laughter. Longings for painful relationships to be repaired, for ailing bodies to be healed, for deeply held hopes to become reality, for mounds of uncertainty to be overcome with surety. In my eyes the Sisters were strong and sure. But they were just like me, limping toward Christmas Day with an ache for restoration embedded in their hearts. 

I’ve been thinking of them as we prepare for another Advent, how each generation is united to those before and after by a bones-deep desire for everything to be made right. We see it throughout the Old Testament as God’s people waited for the Messiah. We hear its echo in the New Testament as the early Church waited for Christ’s return. And we feel it still today as we remember the birth of our Savior and look forward to His promised return. 

This is what the season of Advent is about: anticipating the birth of the One who meets every need. Jesus is the man from heaven who came to reconcile us to God. He is the bread of life who satisfies our deepest hunger. He is the King of the nations who brings the hope of heaven to the whole world. He is God with us, the only one worthy of our worship. 

This is our twelfth Advent as a She Reads Truth community, and I’m thrilled that you’re joining us! Together we will celebrate the season with food and song. We will decorate and anticipate. We will read the ancient prophecies of the Savior and rejoice in their fulfillment. And we will look with hope to the promised day when every nation and generation will know full and lasting peace in the presence of Jesus. 

O come, let us adore Him! For He alone is worthy—Christ the Lord.