I absolutely love Advent & Christmastide! Yes, Lent & Easter are wonderful but I’ve always been partial to these two liturgical seasons more than the rest.
Maybe it’s because I’ve always loved new beginnings. My favorite secular holiday was always New Years’ Day. My favorite season is Springtime… & Advent is knowing as the liturgical springtime as it’s the beginning of the liturgical year.
Or maybe it’s because I’ve always loved the warm & cozy feelings associated with this time of year. The warmth of the kitchen (my favorite room in the house), the warmth of a delicious cup of tea while reading a good book, the warm embraces of loved ones at get-togethers (in small numbers, this introvert thanks you very much), etc.
I usually have a “go big or go home” mentality but this year I’m doing things differently. Instead of doing “all the Catholic things” I’ve decided to do almost none of it. At least not the big things. There will be no Advent wreath this year. There will be no Advent candles. The Nativity (minus baby Jesus) won’t be put out until Christmas Eve.
Why? Because I want a stripped down Advent — just me & my future bridegroom.
For weeks I’ve had it on my heart & mind to focus on getting to know & love Jesus deeper. I feel like my love & understanding is still a bit superficial; like there is a lot more that I have to learn. The words “spend time with your bridegroom” keeps repeating on loop for most of the day. What better time to really dive deeper than Advent?
Just like you spend time with someone to get to know them enough to know whether you want to marry them or not, I feel like I need to do the same. Not that I doubt my vocation; I’ve never felt more at peace & more like myself than when I think about being a CV for life. I simply feel like there’s a lot more that I need to discover so that when that beautiful day of consecration comes & I become His bride, my heart will overflow with more love & joy than I thought possible.
This Advent, these two books will be my companions. I’ll continue the Divine Intimacy book through the end of the liturgical year as well. I look forward to using them to help me on this journey to get to know my future bridegroom better.
2 comments:
Happy new liturgical year! This is such a beautiful approach to Advent. I have definitely found, in the past couple years since having kids, that it is very easy for Advent to grow noisy with all of the different activities we can do-so I definitely find myself seeking a simple approach to Advent as well :)
I can only imagine how overwhelming it can get. I used to dream of being a mom and doing all the fun liturgical activities with the kids but, as I’ve seen friends struggle with the pressure to be “Pinterest and Instagram perfect”, I’ve seen how much it has affected them and their spiritual lives. This minimalist approach might be best for us.
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