Advent Expectations (1)
As a pastor, I’m fully aware that Advent is about expectations. Advent is a time of waiting for something important to happen. The challenge for the pastor has always been trying to generate the sense of expectation for a people who thought they knew the ending of the story. For many people, it is like reading a mystery after you have already been told the ending. Since people already know that Jesus was born, how do you convey a sense of mystery building up to that event?
CLERGY EXPECTATIONS
An additional problem for the clergy is that they are so busy trying to meet the demands of the Advent/Christmas season that they don’t have, or at least take, the time to consider what it is that they are waiting for. If Advent is a time of preparation for the birth of Christ, what can you do that enables you to make personal preparation and for what?
YOUR PERSONAL JOURNEY
As Advent approaches, I would like to suggest some activities or practices that you might take in the midst of this very busy season that can offer the season of Advent as a time for your personal journey, as well as a journey for your congregation. Pastors work very hard to provide meaningful programs and activities that can deepen the meaning of Advent and Christmas for their congregation. If we can also find a way to make Advent a very personal journey, I believe it might offer increased spiritual depth for our ministry.
