Tag: Advent

Still Chasing the Joy?

The joy candle broke a few years back. You can see it up there in the picture. And I keep forgetting to buy a new one. As if a trip to the store could simply replace the broken joy. …

Light in the Darkness

They say that the silence of God lasted 400 years; that the prophet Malachi ended the prophetic period where God’s voice was alive and active with his final words and then the darkness and the silence set in. …

Unprecedented Advent

Advent 2020 began last Sunday. And because it is 2020, I should not be shocked that it began in a bit of an unprecedented way for me. Isn’t that the word of the year? As this season of …

A Word of Peace

We lit the second candle on the Advent wreath, the one that stands for peace, this past Sunday. And my little guy leaned over and whispered the same question he asks every year during Advent. “Hey, Mom?” he …

The Music of Hope

This first week of Advent has blown through in a bit of a blur; the calendar pushing and pulling in all directions and filling the week of hope with distraction I keep trying to see through. But, last …

The thing about Joy

Dear all of you “Christmas joy makers”, these words are for you and for me. I know you’re out there. You probably don’t even think you have time to read this little post. You have Christmas joy to …

Are you missing a peace?

“Peace on the earth, goodwill to men. From heaven’s all gracious king! The world in solemn stillness lay to hear the angels sing” (Sears).  Solemn stillness. What would that be like? I wonder as that  Christmas carol plays …

Letting hope slow you down

My kids are hoping that it is going to snow; the type of Southern snow that shuts down the whole city — especially the schools. I am half listening to their predictions as I race around the house …

A letter to all of us about Joy– the kind we can’t find at the mall

Dear all of you “Christmas joy makers”, this letter is for you and for me. I know you’re out there. You probably don’t even think you have time to read this little letter. You have Christmas joy to …

When peace comes like a snowstorm

We will be talking about it for years to come. The snowstorm that blew into the South on only the second week of Advent. The storm that no one saw coming. It fell from the sky in huge …