One of the things I
greatly appreciate is to sit in front of an open log fire in winter.
The secret to being
able to enjoy a log fire in winter is to take the time to split logs throughout
the rest of the year. It is a slow,
careful process of making sure you have the resources you will need to get
through the lean time. Not long ago, an
older local man showed me the log-pile at the side of his house; I wonder
whether a younger man would have the patience?
It strikes me that this
time of year we have a tendency to combine a flurry of additional activity with
the peak in coughs, colds and man-flu, thus making ourselves susceptible to
illness. We run ourselves down.
Perhaps our pacing is
somewhat out. Yes, there are certain
activities which by definition belong to this season. But perhaps if we find ourselves fitting-in
too many Christmas dinners, socials and parties, it is an indicator to us that
we are connected to too many communities at once.
Jesus told his
disciples, go to one village at a time, and look for one person who will
welcome you through serving you.
You can only fit so
many people around a fireplace. Perhaps
Advent is rightly a time to slow down, not speed up. To ask, who are the people who have helped me
stock the log-pile this year – who have put in the time investing in our
relationship over the course of many months – and to prioritise spending time
with them over other invitations and opportunities.
That is not to deny the
place of networking – of connecting people who have you as an acquaintance in
common. But it is to attempt to address
the hectic nature the approach to Christmas has built up around it.
In this way we make room
for Jesus at the fireplace, by taking time to honour those who have ministered
to our physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual needs.
Advent:
making room for Jesus – at the fireplace.
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