Becky Crenshaw

Happy New Year!

Wait, what?

Yes! Did you know that Advent is the first season of the Liturgical year? It is! And the first day of Advent is the New Year’s Day of the Christian calendar!

But the good news is, there are no fitness plans or resolutions associated with this New Year’s Day! Nope. Just an invitation to prepare your heart and celebrate the human incarnation of Christ.

I was so excited to end our Thanksgiving season on this first day of Advent. Today, let us skip skip ahead, just a bit into the Christmas story and take a peek into Matthew 2 – the moment when baby Jesus is met by the “visitors of the East”…. (aka, The Three Wise Men).

After listening to the king [Herod], they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. Matthew 2:9-12

Talk about entering “entering His gates with Thanksgiving!!” What an instinctual response by the Magi. Do you see what they do? When we encounter the living God, there is really only one way about it…. we fall down and worship. We open our treasures and lay them bare before Him. We come into His courts with praise. With song. With hands open wide and offering all that we have to our Lord and King.

The Wise men were soooo Psalm 100. Do you see it?

Psalm 100 is your daily invitation. And my prayer is for you is the past month has set you up for the most meaningful Advent season to date.

I pray you will embrace Advent this Christmas season with a renewed excitement. It begins today!

So here is my encouragement to you. Find an Advent devotion online, or grab a book like this from Amazon. – Shadow and Light by Ash Oxenreider has become my personal fav. You can also go back to our Advent journey last year…. taking a peek into the lives of Mary and Martha and how they chose Jesus in the midst of a chaotic moment… all of these posts can be found in the search bar (look right) by typing in “iRev Advent”.

Oh friends, I adore you. Thank you for journeying with me in this season of gratitude. I have learned so much. And on that, let us give thanks for our time by reading together…..

Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth! Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into his presence with singing! Know that the Lord, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name. For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations. Psalm 100