A Thrill of Hope - Week 1: Day 4

Prepare Yourself
 
What is the purpose of Advent? It is to get ready! One of my favorites books in the Bible is the book of Luke. Luke records Jesus earthly ministry, from His birth to the cross, and he writes specifically for a Gentile audience. We are Gentiles. For the most part, our genealogy is not rooted in Jewish heritage or tradition. Why is that significant at all? Because Luke informs us that the gospel is as much for gentiles as it is for Jews. Personally, I like that.

But in the beginning of Luke, we are introduced to a man with a ministry. His name? John the Baptist. His call…to prepare the people for the coming of the Lord. In Luke 1:16-17 the Bible says:
Many people celebrate Advent out of tradition or just because it sounds like something that we are supposed to do. But the truth is, Advent can do for us exactly what John the Baptist was called to do for Israel. It can prepare us for the celebration of the birth of Christ! Are you prepared to make Christmas all about Jesus?

It is quite one thing to get prepared for Christmas by baking, shopping, planning, decorating, and even attending the special services. And often that is exactly what we do, we get prepared by stressing ourselves out and trying to do all the right things for all the right reasons, then…when it is all over, just another Christmas has gone by adding a few more memories to an already behind scrap-book we could never get started on or never finish. It is one thing to get the hustle and bustle behind us, but it is quite another to prepare our hearts for the celebration of the birth of the King, who made a way for us to live a physical eternity in a physical place with our physical (saved) loved ones forever. Savor and celebrate that this Christmas and this holiday will take on a whole new meaning.

Have you ever thought about where traditions come from? Traditions originate by doing the same things repetitiously, whether annually, monthly, weekly, or daily. It has nothing to do with whether they are good or bad things. The repetition of a thing does not define the nature of the thing. The Pharisees reasoning for their response to Jesus was all about tradition, yet their response was not a good thing at all.

We all have our traditions. Whether right or wrong we have things in our lives that we do repetitiously, and we pass them down from generation to generation. Some are intentional, and some are not.

What if we became intentional regarding our traditions, and we just didn’t do Advent for the sake of Advent, but we did Advent for the sake of being prepared because it will have a greater impact on our joy and the celebration of Christmas. How can you prepare? 2 things:

• Admit your need—you need your Savior every day.
• Make Room in your heart (Psalm 139:23-24).

• Think of ways to make the holiday God-Centered
• Make Christ-centeredness exciting for your family

Christ died for you and me, but it was His birth that led to His death. No birth—no death. Christianity does not have to be dull and dreary; it doesn’t have to be an “I have to” checklist. Take a few minutes and write down a prayer of promise to the Lord, of things that you can do in preparation for this celebration.