A Few Resources for Advent
“Advent begins in the dark.” - Fleming Rutledge
Does anyone else feel like Advent (December) crept up on them earlier this year than in years past? I was planning the Thanksgiving menu with my wife, and the next day, I woke up to a text from a friend asking what Advent devotional I would recommend.
If I’m honest, I wasn’t ready for Advent. These past several months have been a bit challenging for us. Initially, my Dad was dealing with some health issues that turned out to be nothing to worry about when my Mom went in for a routine checkup that landed her in the ER. After a battery of tests, we learned that my Mom has Multiple Myeloma Cancer. In addition to all of this, my wife’s Mom decided to sell their childhood home, the only home where my wife has lived besides ours. The house she grew up in, the backyard we were married in, and the home where her Father passed away.
You might be thinking, “David, what has this got to do with Advent?” and my answer would be, “Everything.”
Episcopal Priest and author Fleming Rutledge is perhaps best known for the quote, “Advent begins in the dark”- a statement I completely agree with, but one which needs context to be understood. Here it is in its entirety…
“Advent is superficially understood as a time to get ready for Christmas, but in truth, it’s the season for contemplating the judgment of God. Advent is the season that, when properly understood, does not flinch from the darkness that stalks us all in this world. Advent begins in the dark and moves toward the light—but the season should not move too quickly or too glibly, lest we fail to acknowledge the depth of the darkness. As our Lord Jesus tells us, unless we see the light of God clearly, what we call light is actually darkness: “how great is that darkness!” (Matt. 6:23). Advent bids us take a fearless inventory of the darkness: the darkness without and the darkness within.”1
Cancer. Fear. Loss. Grief.
Those are just the dark things we are experiencing in our family; turn on the news, and you’ll see even more darkness. If you’re like me, you don’t need to look outside to see the darkness; all you need to do is look in the mirror and the dark ‘thoughts, words, and deeds we have done and by what we have left undone”2 come to mind all too quickly.
With the darkness we all face, you might be tempted to jump immediately into Christmas, avoiding it because it’s too painful. That’s like a wedding without the engagement or Easter without Lent. Advent is designed to deepen our appreciation for what we long for so that when it arrives, our hearts have rightly prepared him room, and we can truly sing with heaven and nature.
What follows is what I sent my friend with a few additional resources that Megan and I have found helpful over the years. I pray that it blesses you as it has blessed me. And I would love to hear what resources your family is using.
P.S. This post is not meant to guilt you into doing more or trying harder this year, nor is it meant to be a theological treatise on the importance of Advent.3 Guilt rarely works, and there are better theological writers elsewhere. Instead, I want to provide a few resources that I am using that might be helpful for you as well.
Books & Devotionals
First, I’d encourage you to pick up a good book or devotional. Use it personally, with family, or even with your small group. You could even get some friends together and start a text message thread to share meaningful insights, questions, and prayer requests. There are many options out there, but here are a few I’d recommend.
Books I’m reading (or re-reading) in 2024:
O Come, O Come, Emmanuel: A Liturgy for Daily Worship from Advent to Epiphany by Jonathan Gibson - I have greatly enjoyed Jonathan Gibson’s Be Thou My Vision and expect this to be more of the same, but with a particular focus on Advent. Personally, I love his inclusion of Advent Carols to sing or meditate on daily.
Advent: The Once and Future Coming of Jesus Christ by Fleming Rutledge - Perhaps the most important book written on the topic of Advent. This book is primarily a collection of sermons and writings spanning roughly four decades. Rutledge’s introduction alone (37-ish pages) is worth the price of admission. Endlessly quotable and will help you truly appreciate both the darkness and light of Advent.
Advent: The Season of Hope (Fullness of Time) by Tish Harrison Warren - A short introduction to the meaning of Advent and the three (yes three) comings of Christ.
Christmas: The Season of Life and Light (Fullness of Time) by Emily McGowin - This is the companion book to the Warren book above and is apart of a series called The Fullness of Time edited by Esau McCaulley.
Books I’ve enjoyed in previous years:
On the Incarnation: Saint Athanasius - This is a must-read for me and I’ll probably pick it up again sometime in mid-December.
Come, Let Us Adore Him: A Daily Advent Devotional by Paul David Tripp
The Dawning of Indestructible Joy: Daily Readings for Advent by John Piper
Hidden Christmas: The Surprising Truth Behind the Birth of Christ by Tim Keller
Music
Second, listen to really good music, music that stirs your affection for Jesus. I love the classics like Nat King Cole and Frank Sinatra just as much as the next person, but I would recommend spending some time listening to some classical music and advent hymns, even if that wouldn’t be your first choice. Trust me, the Christmas hits are even better when you’ve waited to play them.
In our home, this season sounds like Chanticleer, Handel’s Messiah, and Sufjan Stevens. If you’re unfamiliar, I hope you grow to love them the way I do. They bring me great joy.
Finally, here is a playlist that I am currently working on, adding to regularly and tweaking. Give it a follow. It will be sure to evolve throughout the season. What songs would you add?
Products
Finally, here are a couple of products we have that we might recommend for your home too.
Minimal Nativity Set - Yes, I own this and yes I love it.
Lutheran Liturgical Calendar - Will be ordering one of these for my office. Haley, thanks for recommending these a few years back.
Advent Wreath - Buy one of these and spruce it up (literally) with trimmings from your tree, succulents, pine cones, etc. Scroll up a bit and you’ll see photos of ours from last year.
Fleming Rutledge, Advent: The Once and Future Coming of Jesus Christ (Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2018), 251.
The Book of Common Prayer’s Confession of Sin
There's a great ‘tongue-in-cheek’ post over at Theopolis entitled “5 Reasons I Don’t Like Advent” that is worth the 3 minute read, especially if you’re like me and you’re still not sure about this whole Advent thing.
Such a good round-up & post!