Advent Resources

This past Sunday was the first of the season of Advent; the "New Year's Day" of the church calendar.

The Latin, "adventus", simply means "coming" or "visit". In Advent, we spend four weeks recapturing the anticipation that was felt by followers of God for generations as they longed for the Messiah. Longing for righteous King who would come and undo the pain, suffering and loss of this world – and to usher in a new Kingdom, a new and better way.

In the same way, for us this is a season where we acknowledge our world's ongoing brokenness and need, and look forward in hopeful anticipation to the promise set before us by Jesus: that He is coming back again to wipe away every tear and makes all things new. The good news of Advent is not that we are faithful in our waiting (we often aren’t) but that God is faithful in his coming.

"This season is a recognition of the current state of life here on earth, acknowledging the fraught tension of living between the ALREADY of the first Advent of God and the NOT YET of its full, redemptive completion... Advent is also a realization of our daily, ongoing preparation - the work of inviting the Holy Spirit into our lives and making room for Christ to do a good work in us." - Tsh Oxenreider

As we have in past years, in partnership with Sarah Cowen Johnson and Sanctuary Church, our sister community in Providence, RI, we have put together a number of resources to help us walk together through this Advent season, together. These include daily devotional resources, suggested spiritual practices, and some guides for household worship. These can be accessed through our website at churchofthecommons.org/advent . I hope and trust that these tools will be a blessing as we journey together as a family of faith over the weeks ahead.

Come, Lord Jesus!

- Pastor Chris