Hello families,
Each class continues to do Advent activities along with their weekly lessons. Please help the younger students do good deeds at home. The younger grades were introduced to “Abel in the Stable”. Abel is a very curious donkey who is in search of the answers to Christmas. The younger classes have heard the story of how Abel shares the good news of Jesus with the students. For each good deed the students do, they can add a piece of straw to his stable. If you are having difficulty convincing your child to give up toys still in good condition or outgrown clothes, here is a suggestion; tell the children they can pack up their things in bags and leave them under the Christmas Tree. Santa will take them back to the North Pole to brighten them up and give them to children next Christmas.
The theme of the season of Advent is sometimes described as a period of waiting for the birth of Jesus. However, today’s Gospel reading suggests something different. John the Baptist did not tell the crowds to wait for the Messiah. He told them to prepare for the Messiah through acts of repentance. If Advent is a time of waiting, it is not the sitting in the doctor’s office kind of waiting. It is a busy time of preparation, more like the waiting we might do when preparing for dinner guests. Our challenge is to not make this season a frenzied time, but rather a time of joyful anticipation and making ready for God who comes to dwell among us and changes our lives with the gift of salvation.
As you gather as a family, talk about the preparations your family is making during the season of Advent. Reflect together on these activities, not only on what you are doing but why you are choosing to do these things. Read together today’s Gospel, Luke 3:10-18. Consider how Advent is a time for making ourselves ready to receive Jesus in our lives. Could your family make some changes in your Advent activities so that each person is well prepared to celebrate the gift of salvation at Christmas? Conclude in prayer together that your family will be able to live the spirit of Advent. Sing together an Advent song, such as “O Come, O Come Emmanuel” or pray together today’s second reading, Philippians 4:4-7, as you light the third candle on your Advent wreath.
Partners in Faith,
Phyllis Chudzinski
Wednesday 12/18/24 – Class 5:30-7pm, Last class until January 15th