Passage: lyrics to hymn The Advent of Our GodThe advent of our God/Our prayers must now employ,/And we must meet Him on His road/With hymns of holy joy.
The everlasting Son/Incarnate deigns to be;/Himself a servant's form puts on/To set His people free.
Daughter of Zion, rise/To meet thy lowly King,/Nor let thy faithless heart despise/The peace He comes to bring.
As Judge, on clouds of light,/He soon will come again,/And all His scattered saints unite/With Him in Heaven to reign.
Before the dawning day/Let sin's dark deeds be gone;/The old man all be put away/The new man all put on.
All glory to the Son/Who comes to set us free,/With Father, Spirit, ever One,/Through all eternity.
Words: Charles Coffin, 1736ad·vent (ād'věnt'): The coming or arrival, especially of something extremely important.
Today is the first Sunday of advent, marking the beginning of the "Christmas" season to the rest of the outside world... and the beginning of the church's wait for Christ's coming.
The advent wreaths come out... 
each candle being lit to represent a Sunday of Advent and the centre candle lit on Christmas day, white for Lord Jesus' purity.
The Christmas tree is set up...
decked out in gold and white and the Chrismons: special decorations that are symbolic to the church, from the Alpha and Omega to the Holy Triune: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
The hymnals are marked for the seasonal songs...
Advent and occasionally Christmas.
Everyone eagerly awaits the Christmas Eve and Christmas day services, two of the most beautiful ones in the whole year. Christmas Eve is often a candlelight service, where the only lighting in the building is from the flickering flames.
Advent is far too often overlooked by people, and I have even made the slip-up of referring to it as "Christmas season". Advent is filled with haunting melodies and beautiful words, sung and read in anticipation for the birthday of the King.
Finally it feels like the right season... one where the love of God fills most everyone's hearts, and people walk around with big grins on their faces.
~Godspede
each candle being lit to represent a Sunday of Advent and the centre candle lit on Christmas day, white for Lord Jesus' purity.The Christmas tree is set up...
decked out in gold and white and the Chrismons: special decorations that are symbolic to the church, from the Alpha and Omega to the Holy Triune: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.The hymnals are marked for the seasonal songs...
Advent and occasionally Christmas. Everyone eagerly awaits the Christmas Eve and Christmas day services, two of the most beautiful ones in the whole year. Christmas Eve is often a candlelight service, where the only lighting in the building is from the flickering flames.Advent is far too often overlooked by people, and I have even made the slip-up of referring to it as "Christmas season". Advent is filled with haunting melodies and beautiful words, sung and read in anticipation for the birthday of the King.
Finally it feels like the right season... one where the love of God fills most everyone's hearts, and people walk around with big grins on their faces.
~Godspede
d'you know, i never really knew what advent was all about.
ReplyDeleteThis however does shed some lighting on the siuation :)
Tis indeed the season to be jolly non? the Saviour King has come.
i want to try this year to actually really get it.
To really get the joy of Christmas.