Let’s talk about Advent. Correction: Let’s listen to Kate RANT about Advent.

[I wrote this blog late last night. It is long, and kind of angry. Sorry. To break up the angry paragraphs, I am putting pictures in between them. They have nothing to do with this blog. I just went out on a photo shoot today and I can't help but think that winter is beautiful. Something about the natural greys and how every photo looks black and white even though I didn't take them in black and white. Oh, and the frost! So anyhow, let blog reading commence.]

I’m in a dilemma this year. Why does Advent always result in so many dilemmas?

I believe many things about Christmas. I believe that it should be a joyful celebration. I also believe that even if nearly every American Christmas tradition comes from an ancient pagan one, the main idea behind Christmas is worth celebrating (if the main idea is to celebrate how God sent his Son to live on Earth with us crazy humans and die and rise so he could save us from our crazy human sins.) I believe that Christmas is a beautiful representation of God working together everything for HIS glory. If you want to see God’s orchestration of things, read the Christmas story. But first, read all the prophecies about Jesus’ birth. I have to tell you that if I were a first century Jew, and I had to read all those prophecies and figure out what God meant, I would have been clueless, and then I would have imposed my own meaning on all those prophecies, and then I would have been totally proven wrong when Jesus came and did his whole “Kingdom of Heaven,” “The way, the truth and the life” bit (which reminds me, I’ve been thinking lately that we probably can’t really be so presumptuous as to say we know a whole lot about what the end times will look like… I gather that God will probably surprise us then too. But that’s a whole other blog).

Here’s what I don’t believe about Christmas. I don’t believe that it should be limited to one day. It should always be celebrated, by the way we live and breathe and talk and pray and eat and dance and so on. I’m just as bad at keeping the celebration going as the next guy, but that’s really beside the point. I don’t believe that it should be stressful. I don’t think God wants us to be stressed about much of anything, let alone the day that commemorates his son’s birth. And I don’t think it should be materialistic. I have been thinking a lot, and I think that gift-giving on Christmas is one of the worst things about Christmas. I heard someone say that we give gifts on Christmas because the Magi gave gifts to Jesus on Christmas. First of all, check the bible. The Magi gave gifts to Jesus after Mary and Joseph took Jesus back to Nazareth. And considering they couldn’t hop a train, and Mary had just given birth, I’m going to guess they didn’t start heading back the day of the birth. So, those gifts the Magi gave, they weren’t birthday presents, or Christmas presents. They were king presents. Those gifts were saying, “Hey Jesus, Immanuel, we believe that YOU are the King, and here are some things that kings should have. Merry Christmas.” (Paraphrased) So the Magi aren’t why we give gifts. I’m not really sure why we do actually. It doesn’t seem like Jesus really wanted us to have a lot of stuff lying around. And most of us already do… so why more? And why in the name of Jesus?

I would like to say, for the record, that I am finished with my Christmas shopping. Almost everyone got clothes. Except for my grandpa, who is getting a book on wine making, because he is retired and is finding new hobbies, and my Grandma, who is getting a china relish tray, because she gets excited about things like relish trays. Well, I was fairly happy with all my selections. I work at Old Navy, and while I’m working, I see things that remind me of members of my family, and I joyfully bought them those things. I bought my dad a sweater. Then, about a week ago, my dad and I were in the car. Out of the blue he says, “You know what I really don’t wear much of anymore? Sweaters.” Seriously? So now I have this big problem. Do I return this sweater? Do I keep it and give him the gift receipt? Do I throw in the towel and give up on presents all together?! Because that sounds really nice right about now… It sounds like a small thing, but you all know the Christmas present dilemma. How much is too much to spend, but how much makes me too cheap? Do I try to surprise people or just get them what they asked for to be safe? Well, I vote to get rid of it all together. Of course, that will never happen. It’s expected. My cousin (the crazy one) recently announced that he doesn’t want to receive presents anymore, which of course sent everyone into a tizzy about how offensive that is. So asking to stop receiving presents is out, because that offends. But if you’re going to keep receiving them, then you have to give them, because otherwise, other people are spending money on you that you didn’t spend on them, and we have to be fair about this business. And the sad thing about this whole dilemma is that I actually do like giving gifts. I like picking things out for people. I like making things for people. But something about the gifts being an expected, burdensome thing makes it less special, and less significant.

But you know the real problem I’m having? Working in retail this Christmas season has been sickening. A coworker told me the other day that she’s working so many hours this Christmas season that she’s not even going to have time to see her family and friends, and she can’t wait for Christmas to be over. I see people every day come in and split their huge bills between credit cards, because almost all their cards are maxed out with presents. What is wrong with us?! Why do we think that stuff will make us happy? Why has Christmas turned into a day about wrapping paper and sprinkles on cut-out cookies and new electronics and piles and piles of presents? It’s so frustrating, and I have no idea what to do about it.

On the up side, I am learning a ton about God this Advent. I’ve been helping teach this Sunday school class for the junior highers, and the prep-work I’ve been doing has been giving new depth to some things in scripture that I had glazed over in the past. And I’m finding out more about how to rely on Him, even when his plan isn’t completely evident to me yet, because I know that He already has the plan, and it is great, and I can’t wait to find out what it is!