If you attended Good Shepherd this Sunday, you saw Talbot light the first Advent Candle. Advent is a season of waiting, longing and hoping for the return of Christ. The Church has a history of celebrating advent four weeks prior to Christmas day using five candles that represent love, hope, joy and peace. The center candle is the Christ candle and will be lit at our Christmas eve service. Each candle reminds us that Jesus is the light of the world.
One of the issues I have with so many people who celebrate advent is that they see this waiting, longing and yearning for Christ to return as a passive endurance. Like they can sit back, do nothing, be nothing, become nothing and God will take care of everything. Its the reason so many Christians are ineffective (the phrase "ineffective Christian" should be an oxymoron).
If you have become this type of passive and ineffective Christian in advent seasons of the past, I challenge you to be different this year. One way to get involved in God's work is to ask yourself this question: If I could make one change in the world around me, what would that change be? The follow up action is to become that change. May this advent season be your time to let the life and power of Christ live through you by waiting and yearning for His return with active effectiveness, instead of passive endurance.
Stay tuned for Part 2 of the Advent blogs where I talk about the first candle being lit, the love candle.
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