I planned on writing a children's fantasy novel this NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writer's Month). Even if the novel stinks, it's a good exercise in writing on a regular basis (which I have not done much of recently). We know how plans go (particularly those of mice and men...). Instead, I will be writing an advent devotional which I will post daily on Scribblings & Such throughout the holiday season this year.
The idea of an advent devotional popped into my head last year when the church we were attending did nothing to celebrate or observe Advent or Christmas. Amy (my wife) and I desperately want to create meaningful Advent and Christmas traditions for our family. Amy read Anne Voskamp's Advent Devotional, The Greatest Gift, and I journeyed through A Different Kind of Christmas by Mike Slaughter. Both books were great, but we wanted something...more.
Both of us are from non-liturgical traditions so the idea of observing advent is still somewhat foreign (you mean you can't sing Christmas Carols until after December 25th???). Consequently, I think both of us would benefit from a devotional that was less "devotional-ly" and more "guidebook through advent". The thing is...why can't a book be both "devotional-ly" and a "guidebook" for advent "virgins? That's where the idea of the devotional/guidebook flew into my head.
The idea is to present a devotional for the advent season that helps guide readers through the season with Scripture, prose, and maybe a song or five in hopes that those who long for a season outside the hustle and bustle that we find ourselves in during December will find a monoscopic tool to spy that rumored season and experience the hope and grace that is Advent. The result, I think, will be simply advent.
I won't argue for or against Santa, Elf on the Shelf, decorations, gifts, turkey vs. ham, etc. Those are things we each have to wrestle with in our own contexts. I want us to create our own family and holiday traditions that are centered around the story of the Divine coming down to our dirty ole' planet, slipping into human flesh, and becoming Emmanuel - God WITH us. That's what simply advent will (I hope) be: an attempt to tell an old, old story untainted by what our society has made the holiday.
No clue if it will work...or if it will be any good. We'll see...we'll hope.
[Note: the word "hope" was used four - now five, times in this blog post...far too few for a post about Advent, I think.]
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