Exploring {{Advent}} In the Everyday— March 2023

It’s that time again when we meet up over at Lisa’s place to share how we’re progressing with our Word of the Year. Hop over to Lisa’s to learn more and read how others are doing with their Word.

Lisa does a great job of offering us some monthly exercises to develop our interaction with our words. 

Since I didn’t do this in January, I first have to tell you how I came up with Advent as my One Word. Let’s begin by going way back to March 2022. Nevertheless came to me, and it stuck for months, I thought it was the one. But it wasn’t. Come July 2022; two more words came to me: Wait & Still. So I prayed and thought about which one to choose. Never mind. Now we were in September 2022, and Listen popped up. So that’s the word I chose. Or so I thought. Now we’re up to November & December 2022.

Many friends began writing about Advent. And as the season went on, I was so touched reading the articles by those of you who wrote about Advent. Here’s the game-changer part. I became excited, uplifted, encouraged, and exhilarated. Your articles stirred my soul, and I was so joyful and still am. I just had to know more. So here we are.

I’ll be referencing Advent articles this year for resources along the way. Also, I had wanted to order Mary Geisens The Advent Narrative: The Life You Didn’t Know You Were Already Living, so I did that too. And boy, I’m so happy I did, as her words make my soul feel warm, lighthearted, and excited. Check out Mary’s website HERE for a compilation of many articles about Advent.

March Exercises

Dictionary.com describes Advent (n.) like this— a coming into place, view, or being; arrival: the Advent of the holiday season. Usually Advent. The coming of Christ into the world. Advent, the period beginning four Sundays before Christmas, observed in commemoration of the coming of Christ into the world. Usually Advent. Second Coming.

Synonyms include— Arrival, onset, approach, occurrence, coming, appearance, entrance, and visitation.

Antonyms include— departure, disappearance, decamping, departing, exit, farewell, going, leave-taking, parting, end, leave, absence, conclusion, and going away.

Quotables

“Advent marks our own arrival into God’s story”

— Mary Geisen The Advent Narrative: The Life You Didn’t Know You Were Already Living.

“The word advent means “expectation.” What Advent can do for us is create a sense of hope.”

— Louie Giglio

“The Lord is coming, always coming. When you have ears to hear and eyes to see, you will recognize him at any moment of your life. Life is Advent; life is recognizing the coming of the Lord”

— Henri Nouwen

 “It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God. God chose him as your ransom long before the world began, but now in these last days he has been revealed for your sake”

1 Peter 1:19-20— NLT

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