Bring 100 postcards with an invitation to Christmas Eve worship services. Be by the Advent Wreath.
Hi everyone! I’m so glad you are here today. I hope you had a great week.
Now today is a special day because it is the start of a season in the church year called Advent. Can you say Advent? Advent! Great! Advent is 4 weeks long – 4 complete Sundays – and it’s a time when the church is covered in the color…point to stole…blue. Later today, some of us will decorate the church with wreaths and a big, green, tree. Advent is a time when we’re waiting for something. In fact, the word Advent means “the arrival of a notable person, thing, or event.” So what do you think we’re waiting for? Christmas! That’s right. Advent is the season when we countdown to Christmas, to the day we celebrate Jesus being born and God choosing to live a human life to serve, love, and save the entire world.
Advent is also a time when we use this. Go over to the Advent Wreath. This is called an Advent wreath and it has space for 4 candles. Each candle represents one Sunday as we countdown to Christmas. So since today is the first Sunday we’re going to light one candle. Let’s light one candle together. Light one candle with the kids.
One of the beautiful things about candles is they burn, shine, and look pretty. What’s something that candles give off? Heat. Light. If we get close, we can feel heat because it is on fire. And if we look at it, we see light. The candle shares it’s light and it’s warmth, serving as a reminder to what Jesus is about to do: come into the world to show us the warmth of God’s love for you and all of us.
And so, when I was thinking about what the candle shares, I thought of something that maybe we can share too. We as a church are going to have a big celebration on Christmas Eve. Since Christmas Eve is on a Sunday, we’ll have one worship service at 10 am in the morning to mark the end of Advent. And then we’ll have our two worship services at night, at 5 pm and 10:30 pm, to mark Jesus entering the world. I love these Christmas services. The music is great, everyone gets dressed up, and it’s a beautiful time for all of us to be together. It’s a great service that shows just how much God loves us. And all of us are going to experience that – but wouldn’t it be great if all our friends or family members or neighbors could join us? Yeah! So why don’t we share an invitation with them to do that?
I have with me postcards and I’m going to need your help. Let’s give 1 or 2 postcards to each person and family. This way, all of you can address them to people you know and invite them to come to worship with you on Christmas Eve. With a simple postcard, we can – like this candle – bring warmth and hope to someone who might need it this year. So let’s invite and share Jesus this Christmas.
Pass out postcards. Thank you for being here and I hope you have a blessed week!
Each week, I share a reflection for all children of God. The written manuscript serves as a springboard for what I do. This is from Christ Lutheran Church’s Worship on First Sunday of Advent, 12/3/2017.