A Missing Christmas Tradition: Learning More about Advent

I, like most of you, have Christmas traditions I follow each Christmas season. I enjoy pulling out decorations and brightening up my home with Christmas cheer. Baking, eating good food, gift wrapping, and spending time with people I love are among my favorite activities. 

This year, a few months before Christmas, I determined to add something new to my December days. I purchased an Advent book to help me focus on the miracle of Jesus’ birth. I sat down with my book on the first Sunday of Advent, excited to begin. A few sentences in, the book instructed me to light my Advent wreath. I quickly realized that I knew very little about the more liturgical Advent tradition. Most churches I have been a part of do not light Advent candles, and this was also a personal first for me. 

On that first day of Advent, I learned about the significance of the first candle (that I didn’t have in front of me to light) – hope. In a time of turmoil and suffering, Jesus was born proclaiming hope and life. As the prophet Isaiah proclaimed, “The people who walk in darkness will see a great light; those who live in a dark land, the light will shine upon them.” (Isaiah 9:2 NASB)

I don’t know many people who don’t need hope. Like when Jesus walked the earth, we experience darkness, pain, and suffering. We are tired, weary, and unsure. 

We look forward to something better. 

The light shines against the backdrop of darkness and proclaims Hope has come. And that same Hope, born many years ago, is coming again.

The book of Hebrews introduces Jesus to us with these words, “In these last days [God] has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world. And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power.” (Hebrews 1:2-3)

Jesus, the newborn in a manger, was the Creator of all things. He is the ruler of all the world and holds all things together. Nothing exists without Him. He came and walked the earth, showing us God. 

While Hebrews chapter 1 opens with a proclamation, chapter 2 begins with a warning, “For this reason we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard so that we do not drift away from it.” (Hebrews 2:1) Over and over, the Bible warns us not to take our faith for granted. We are instructed to know the Word of God, meditate on it, grow in it, and live it out. 

How can we pay attention to something if we don’t slow down enough to see it, hear it, observe it, and absorb it? We can’t. 

While I am confident that you don’t need to light an Advent wreath to reflect on Jesus’ birth, I was struck by how, in a season with so many traditions, I have very few centered around my faith. I have since added a makeshift Advent piece to my coffee table. Each morning, I light the appropriate candles and reflect. 

This year, I am working to amend my missing Christmas traditions. Moving forward, I aim to take the month of December not just to celebrate Christmas but to remember Christmas – to reflect on God’s coming to earth and to look forward to when He comes again. I want to not just be aware of the “reason for the season” but to allow the season to change and shape me.