Call to Worship
How shall we prepare this house for the King?
With branches of cedar, the tree of royalty.
How shall we prepare this house for the Christ?
With garlands of pine and fir,
Whose leaves are ever living and green.
How shall we prepare this house for the Savior?
With wreaths of holly and ivy,
Telling of his passion, death and resurrection.
How shall we prepare this house for the Son of God?
By hearing the words of the prophets,
Who foretold the saving work of God.
For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son,
That whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
Glory to God in the highest!

Unison Prayer
May our hearts be filled with hope;
may our communities be filled with hope;
may our world be filled with hope,
until every cup overflows. Amen.

Words of Assurance: Romans 5:5, NKJV
Now hope does not disappoint, 
because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts
by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father,
who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil;
for thine is the kingdom,
and the power,
and the glory forever.
Amen.

Opening Song: Bing Crosby, “White Christmas”

Scripture: Isaiah 40:28-31, NIV
Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
and his understanding no one can fathom.
He gives strength to the weary
and increases the power of the weak.
Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men stumble and fall;
but those who hope in the Lord
will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.

Sunday Sermon: “Adventing”

Tucked between Black Friday and Cyber Monday is a much humbler day, the first Sunday of Advent. Many people don’t even notice it; it’s quiet and unassuming, and doesn’t call attention to itself, but holds more power than we can possibly comprehend.

The louder the outside world gets, the more it pushes us toward Advent. Here are the billboard events of the past week, not all of them bad: “Wicked For Good.” “Zootopia 2.” “Stranger Things.” Football on Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday. Black Friday sales: last chance for savings! 30% off! 50% off! Up to 70% off on selected styles, while supplies last! And in the news: murder! Corruption! War! Winter storms! Glenn Close has a new haircut! Dua Lipa has a new dress! (I have new sneakers, but I didn’t make the news.)

Is this how we want to live our lives, jumping from entertainment to entertainment, anxiety to anxiety, fear to fear? It’s not good for us. This is how Christmas approaches: like a tsunami of ads and emails and decorations and colors and savings and promises and pictures of people simply having a wonderfulChristmastime. To paraphrase a famous Christmas song, do they know it’s Advent time at all?

One good things about Advent is that we can only find it in churches. There are no Advent sales, no Advent commercials, and as far as I can tell, no Advent cards. There are, however, Advent candles, Advent services and Advent hymns. We might consider this adventageous.

When Christmas becomes too loud, Advent offers quiet. When Christmas becomes too commercial, Advent offers holiness. When Christmas becomes too secular, Advent offers the spiritual. When Christmas becomes too shallow, Advent offers depth. When Christmas seems to forget Christ, Advent remembers him in a soft and serene way, like Mary pondering everything she has seen and heard and storing up these treasures in her heart. Most importantly, the way we approach Advent can transform the way we receive Christmas when it finally arrives.

Advent is not a verb and adventing is not a word, but I think they should be. So let’s talk about adventing.

Adventing is the practice of living Advent to the fullest. Let’s start with a few simple words: reflection, nature, homemade, connection.

The first word is reflection. Advent lends itself perfectly to this practice, because every week, there’s a new blessing to reflect upon. This week’s blessing is Hope. Hope seems to be in short supply these days, while there’s no shortage of disillusionment. This makes hope all the more important. Ask a kid what they are hoping for Christmas, and they are likely to yell “Toys!” Ask what they are hoping for Advent, and they will likely give you a blank stare. (Hopefully – word intended – Megan is working on this right now in Sunday School.)

We would all like to feel hopeful again, and in order to do so, it helps to connect our hope to spiritual things: to the ways in which our lives can be better, more meaningful and purpose-filled. If these ways are hidden from us, the answers can be found in Scripture and in prayer, as we take the time to ask God directly, “how can I be more hopeful? Is there anything I can believe in? Is there anything I can look forward to?” and perhaps most importantly, “God, why do you believe in us?”

The second word is nature. This should be self-explanatory by now, but just this week I heard one person say, “I don’t go outside unless I have to.” So my response is, “You have to.” Specifically, you have to go outside if you want to receive a blessing. If you don’t want to receive a blessing, do nothing! No salesperson will contact you. God will not text you or email you. He will simply offer a massive reminder outside every window of your home until you respond. My advice to those with cellphones: if you’re taking a 20-minute walk, leave your cellphones at home. You won’t need them. The chances that you will die and that no one will find you are very small. Or at the very least, turn your cellphone off. When you’re outside, take the time to talk with God or to notice the small things, like which leaves are down and which remain, or what the animals are doing, or where the wind is coming from, or the angle of the sun, and wonder at the amount of things that are happening so very close to where we live. (And don’t take a selfie of yourself taking a walk!)

The third word is homemade. Here’s how to make an Advent wreath: gather small pine branches. Put them in a circle. Add whatever you’d like! Cook some food for yourself or for others. Cookies are always a good idea. Do you know anyone who likes cookies and might not have any? There you go. Cook a meal for HiHi. Write Christmas cards that include more than just your signature. Maybe include a Christmas recipe. The more digital our lives become, the more homemade things mean.

The fourth word is connection. We are better when we are together. This Thanksgiving I gave a toast-prayer that started, “Thank you for inviting me. I could have stayed home and had snacks and watched nine hours of football, but this is better!” If you’re invited somewhere, go if you can. If someone calls you, call them back. If no one calls you, call someone. If no one invites you to do anything, invite someone. If you don’t feel that God is speaking to you, speak to God. If God is inviting you to a better life – and God is – accept the invitation.

Let’s go Adventing together! May God bless this season for each of us, and may we feel the presence of the Spirit as we await the arrival of the King. Amen.

Closing Song: Enya, “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel”

Benediction
May your Advent be filled
with the blessings of the season:
hope and love, joy and peace.
May Christ shine his light on you,
and illuminate your path.
Amen.