reflections on advent

The lateness of Thanksgiving has thrown me for a loop.  My kids had a week off for Thanksgiving, went back to school to finish the last two weeks of the semester, and starting tomorrow at 2:30pm, will be on vacation for 3 weeks.  In no way am I complaining.  The older these kids grow the more I want them home to drink hot cocoa, watch movies, and hang out.  However, the two weeks in between is a constant scurry of Hustle. 

I hate the word Hustle.  The last few years have been filled with marketing attempts to get us (and by us, I mean, us gals) to Hustle.  We need to somehow be Wonder Woman and do it all and then some.  It's a lot of pressure.  The last 10 days have been spent hustling.  I have shopped (both in stores and on Amazon), I have been regularly eating lunch after the kids get home from school, I haven't even finished decorating the house or sent out my Christmas cards.  The more I hustle, the more I feel like I am drowning.  Failing. 

I am pretty sure that's not the way this time leading up to Christmas is supposed to be. 

We need to stop moving so quickly through life trying to do it all that we miss out on the simple. 


Each evening, my husband, kids and I gather in our living room.  There is no TV, just Alexa playing some Christmas tunes softly in the background.  The Christmas lights twinkle on the tree and everyone settles in for our time to reflect on Advent.  The kids take turns reading scripture and we talk about it and we get excited for what. . . for who. . . is coming.  There may or may not be the occasional burp or fart (I live with boys. . . it happens), but there are conversations that move us closer to the day in which we celebrate the birth of our Savior. 

Douglas McKelvey wrote in Every Moment Holy, "As we decorate our tree, and as we feast and laugh and sing together, we are rehearsing our coming joy!  We are making ready to receive the one who has already, with open arms, received us! We would prepare you room here in our hearts and here in our home, Lord Christ."

I probably could be doing so many other things during this time, but there is something that happens to my heart as we gather.  I am filled with peace and joy.  I feel rest at the end of a long day sitting and listening to my boys race to find the passage first and then reading it.  The act of slowing down and reflecting on Jesus and why he came brings rest to my weary heart.  My attitude changes.  I end the day reminded that I don't need to do it all.  Those ideas that inspired me can sit on my Pinterest board until next year.  As my body and mind rest, I am filled with joy and anticipation. 

This year's She Reads Truth Advent book has beautiful quilled paper creations woven throughout it.  When describing why they chose paper quilling, they shared how it is a reflective craft that a allows for contemplation and rest.  I have stocked up on crafts for my kids and even have a few quite, slow down projects for myself, I love how we can use that time to be creative and find rest as we ponder they "why" of Advent. 

We need to exchange the Hustle, the urge to do it all, with the simple.  Jesus's birth wasn't even a glamorous event in a 5 star motel, but a simple barn because someone opened their home and gave them shelter.  He was not what most people were looking for, but he gave us the most precious gift of his life so that we could be free. Let's slow down and embrace the Advent season.  Let's fill our hearts with peace and hope.

This Christmas, I am slowing down and finding rest.  I am letting go of the hustle and trading it in for peace and joy that can only come from Christ.  Will you join me?