First of Advent 2009
November 2009
Advent is here again. As you all know it is a time of preparation. Preparation for the birth of Jesus Christ at Christmas.
If you are anything like me it does cross your mind occasionally to do some quiet spiritual preparation for Christmas. But that is as far as it goes. I am reasonably preoccupied as Christmas approaches but anybody with a family, especially with young, or not so young children, are obliged to enter a state of frenetic activity whether they like it or not. A quiet time for spiritual preparation becomes a pipe dream.
But don’t let that worry you. All the rush and bustle of Christmas, all the planning and preparation which keeping family and friends happy entails, is itself a spiritual preparation. It is service to others. It is wearing yourself out for the wellbeing and happiness of others. It is a big part of what Christianity is about.
So as Christmas approaches and you get busier and busier just remind yourself from time to time that you are busy in the service of others.
‘Jesus called his disciples to him and said, …… whoever wishes to be great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be your slave; just as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.’