The mind of the wise is in the house of mourning, while the mind of fools is in the house of pleasure.
- Ecclesiastes 7:4
Solomon, the king of pleasure, points us to wisdom in the book of Ecclesiastes when he teaches us that wisdom dwells in the house of mourning. But is our pursuit of wisdom bringing us toward mourning and away from celebration? Not likely. God set up multiple festivals for the Jewish people to remind them of what He had done for them and to bring Him glory. In some cases, the ancient Jewish festivals would put our modern day Christmas party to shame. More the likely, there's a balance. Every Jewish festival starts from a trial, which was overcome, and points to salvation. Our celebrations should do the same.
This month, we enter into a time of advent. The latin meaning behind the word implies that we are looking for something to come. We mourn our state on this earth, and yearn for redemption and deliverance from the Lord. Advent is the time we are reminded that we are waiting for the second coming of Jesus. This serious examination and longing can be hard to find amidst joyful Christmas jingles, shopping, and parties. Do we then ban all celebrations for Christmas until after advent?
How do we balance the longing for the second coming, our "advent", with our celebration of "Christ's mass", the first coming of Christ, which ushered in our salvation?
There are many ways to do this, here's a few:
- On advent Sundays, spend some time reading a story and reflecting on the longing for the second coming of Christ
- During advent, walk through a calendar of activities designed to focus on the process of mourning and yearning for the coming of Christ.
- On Saturdays, Join friends in celebration that God's promise to the Jews was fulfilled in Christ, and Jesus, as God, will fulfill His promise to us by coming again.
- After Christmas, celebrate the twelve days of Christmas, which start on Christmas morning, as a time of celebration that Christ has come!
How ever you choose to balance the longing for Christ and the celebration of salvation through His birth, remember to not lose focus of both. Even as our jingles may sound and parties will commence, our hearts shall yearn "Come, Lord Jesus, Come".