Category: Advent
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Unexpected December
Nothing about the past two weeks has gone the way I imagined. Two weeks ago, my husband Brad complained of back pain. As his pain worsened in the ensuing days and he found himself unable to walk, to stand, and eventually, to sit comfortably, we knew this was different than previous times when he experienced…
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Pre-Advent Meditation
Hello, readers, The view out my window today is this: fallen leaves cover the ground. Only a few tenacious ones remain on the branches. Gray clouds fill the sky. It is a quintessential November day. December is just a week away and with this turn of the calendar page I know what lies ahead–the three-week…
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Advent, Week 4: Gift Giving
On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshipped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. Matthew 2: 11 The Christmas story brims with generosity. There is the long-desired child that comes to Elizabeth and Zachariah.…
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Advent: A Reality Check for Real People, Week 1
Outside, the falling rain hits the roof in varying degrees of intensity as the wind whips the bare trees. The golden leaves of a few weeks ago no longer remain. Today’s weather feels like quintessential late fall. Winter is just around the corner. I don’t know about your November, but mine has been a whirlwind.…
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Always Orange 2015 Christmas Gift List
This type of post is a first for me. I love reading the gift lists others write, but I get nervous whenever I have to compile a list of favorites, especially when it includes books. How to narrow the choices? What if I forgot something? One list that I look forward to reading all year…
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Advent Preparations
Yesterday marked the second Sunday of Advent—the halfway point in this month-long church season. Here at my house the Christmas tree lights twinkle in the window, the mantel boasts greenery and ornaments, and fragrant candles fill the rooms with their holiday scents, serving as symbols of the season. My Advent reader is close by too.…
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Second Sunday of Advent Reflections
Today is the second Sunday of Advent—a time of preparation and expectation. My Advent reader from Regent College (I am reusing one that was sent several years ago) covered the Isaiah 9:2-7 passage this morning. “The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a…
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Advent 2012
As the first week of Advent draws to a close, I find myself not in the place I would like to be. I am distracted, anxious, and juggling a list of to-dos and expectations that needs whittling. Why does this feel so familiar? My fallback excuse for the last month has been to blame Hurricane…
Alicia Brummeler 