Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him Psalm 37:7

When I was a mom of youngsters, I always found the concept of Advent rather ironic. There were cookies to bake, presents to wrap, cards to write and a house to clean. Advent was anything but a peaceful time to calmly prepare my heart for the arrival of the Savior. Even before the chocolate from Halloween was picked over or the Thanksgiving turkey roasting pan was washed and put up in the top cupboard, it was GAME ON! Off the Mall! Up to the attic to pull out the decorations! Cramming in caroling!

Now that the house is quieter, Advent (Latin root Adventus which means arrival or “to come”) has reclaimed its bearing in my life as a time to calm my heart and peacefully, intentionally, await his presence. Not only awaiting his arrival as a baby in a manger, but anxiously awaiting his return as the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, claiming his bride, the Church, in power and glory. Advent has become a time to ask God to draw nearer to me, to regain the peace I felt as a child when I was allowed to be the one to unwrap the nativity set, or chosen to open the advent calendar flaps.

AN ADVENT ANNIVERSARY

This year is a very special Advent. It is the 800th anniversary of the creation of the very first nativity scene (or manger scene, or creche or presepio, or whatever you called it as a child).

It was 1223, in the small town of Greccio, Italy. The term “crèche” is taken from the name of the town.  There, for the Christmas Eve mass, St. Francis of Assisi shared the story of the birth of Christ, recreating a living nativity with people and animals and a bale of hay that was said to later heal animals that ate it.  St. Bonaventure records the story for us.

It was just a year or so after Saint Francis had returned from a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Francis went to the Holy Land because he wanted to “touch” the places where Jesus lived, where God’s love for humanity became incarnate. That Christmas, Francis recreated what he saw on his visit. He wanted bring home his experience standing in front of that little cave in Bethlehem. To recreate for his countrymen his encounter “touching” the places in the Holy Land where he felt God’s presence and let them share his experience. He wanted them to quietly wait on the Lord.

FOLLOW ST FRANCIS

Like St. Francis (well, not like him but wannabe like him!) I want to share my love of Jesus by recreating the story of his nativity. I did this by making an Advent calendar that becomes a manger scene with a short devotion that explains the characters involved in the story of the nativity. No, this is not a promotion for The Christmas Cabinet, but I invite you to have an intentional Advent this year by reading, each day, the little devotion that is found for free on the website under the ”Experience the Cabinet” tab. Just click on the book icon of each days’ figure to read the story and find the Bible verse for the day.

I hope it blesses you and your family.

For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. Phillipians 3:20