Next Sunday, the Advent season begins. It is a season known to the world as Christmas, but in the church, we are celebrating so much more than giving gifts or spending time with family. We are in a season of waiting, expecting, and anticipating King Jesus to arrive on a white horse through the clouds to call us to our eternal home. We are waiting for the final victory when King Jesus will defeat the enemy of this world and restore His Kingdom, established long ago in the garden of Eden. Until that day comes, we wait and we celebrate and we worship King Jesus.

At Christmas, we celebrate the incarnation of God in the person of Jesus Christ. In the Bible, incarnation is the belief that God the Son, Jesus Christ, became human—both fully divine and fully human—in the person of Jesus of Nazareth. This doctrine holds that the eternal “Word” (Jesus) took on human flesh, was born to a virgin, lived a human life with its joys and struggles, and ultimately suffered and died for humanity’s redemption. John 1:14 is the verse from the New Testament that we gain truth on this doctrine of the church. “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

I have always loved Eugene H. Peterson’s interpretation of this verse from the Message Bible, a paraphrase of the Old and New Testaments that he wrote. “The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood. We saw the glory with our own eyes, the one-of-a-kind glory, like Father, like Son, generous inside and out, true from start to finish.”

During Advent, we welcome King Jesus into our neighborhoods, and we make room in our hearts for His love to awaken us to the story He is writing with our lives. Our theme this year is “Be Amazed”… in a season filled with hurry and busyness and traditions, it is my prayer that God will surprise you in some way and cause you to stand in amazement at His faithfulness and love for you. The “same old story” will come alive in new and exciting ways, and you will want to share it with others.

Our theme comes from one of the minor prophets of the Old Testament… Habakkuk 1:5, “Look around at the nations; look and be amazed! For I am doing something in your own day, something you wouldn’t believe even if someone told you about it.”

God is ready and able to do something new in your life; something you wouldn’t believe could happen! Begin to pray that you will see God this holiday season; that you will experience His presence in surprising and unexpected ways.

Are you ready? Are you watching? Expect the Lord to do something amazing in your life this Christmas season.

• “Be still in the presence of the Lord, and wait patiently for him to act.” (Psalm 37:7a)
• “Wait patiently for the Lord. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.” (Psalm 27:14)

God bless you and your family in unexpected and surprising ways over the next month.