Advent for our family has had a different appearance this year. Since we are not living in our own home, due to a lengthy renovation project, our Advent and Christmas belongings remain safely tucked away in storage.
Normally, I have our Advent wreath and Nativity sets displayed by the first Sunday in Advent. Even though our children are growing up, they still like our Advent calendars and take turns changing the dates in anticipation of Christmas. Around the Feast of St. Nicholas, we usually start to put up outdoor lights, indoor garlands and our Christmas tree, gradually preparing our home to welcome Jesus.
This year, without the accessories, it is hard to believe that Christmas is upon us. It sometimes feels a little sad to know that symbols of our family and faith traditions sit, as if abandoned, in boxes.
Just after the American Thanksgiving holiday, I read the following Instagram post from author, Danielle Bean. “Here’s a shot of the Nativity scene in our living room. But let’s be clear: it’s only there because [my daughter] brought it down from the attic … I’m exhausted … But it’s ok to be exhausted. It’s ok if you have no lights and no tree and won’t for a while yet or maybe barely will at all this year. It’s ok.”
Bean’s reasons for not having Advent accessories may be different from mine; however, her words were just what I needed to read. Bean went on to say, “You see Baby Jesus there in this scene? He doesn’t much care about stuff. He doesn’t want you to look at beautiful things on Instagram and tense up with anxiety or envy or shame. Jesus cares about YOU. He cares about your heart and all the places you might find yourself wanting or lacking or falling short this year. He wants to come into those spaces and fill them with His love. This Advent is about inviting Him in.”
The “stuff” referred to by Danielle Bean is physical; however, I realize that our minds too can become preoccupied to the point of cluttered distraction. For example, one night, as I was trying to say my prayers, I found myself simultaneously thinking of three things at once. While I visualized the people of my intentions, to-do lists for work and the lyrics to one of my choir songs continued to interrupt my prayer. I felt anxious – unable to relax and focus.
The next morning I reflected on what had happened to me and took the time to focus on the lyrics that had played “on repeat” in my brain: “Now sleep, Little One, while Mother is rocking You. We’ll sing you to sleep ’til the night is through” (from Sleep, Little One by Mary Donnelly and George Strid).
Of course, this song was written as a lullaby for the baby Jesus; however, I realized that in those moments, the song repeated in my mind as consolation for me. It was as if God was saying, “Calm down. Focus on the Christ Child of whom you sing. Pay attention to your purposes in life. Leave your worries to me, my child, and ‘sleep, little one.’”
I may not have a Nativity on display in my home this year, but I have one prominently visualized in my heart. I may not have an Advent wreath to light on my living room table, but I am blessed with access to Advent wreaths at church and even in the school in which I work. Furthermore, the removal of extra cleaning and decorating from my Advent has afforded me more opportunity to focus on my prayer life and my Christmas music.
Danielle Bean’s post encouraged me with the following words: “Prepare your home if you like to or want to or can. But more importantly, prepare your heart. Open your heart. Let Him in.”
Even without Advent and Christmas décor in my home, Christmas is on its way. My job is to prepare myself in the most important ways. To quote Saint Teresa of Calcutta, “If Mary and Joseph were looking for a home for Jesus, would they choose … your heart, and all it holds?”
Prepare the way for Christ this Christmas.
