Well, today is Black Friday! The craziest shopping day of the year! Did you go and brave the crowds for all those insane deals? I could never get up at 4 a.m. and wait in line just to get a better price on a Christmas gift. Just of thought of the crowds, the lack of order, and crazy moms fighting over the newest toy (this year its some robotic hamster). Just check out all these people waiting in the cold:
Did you notice the throngs of store employees standing there to keep order? We have all heard the stories of people getting injured, trampled, and even killed by mobs of angry shoppers. Crazy! From the looks of this video, it is an orderly procession of people waiting for that great deal on that perfect gift for Christmas. From the shouts of joy in the video, I can only imagine the excitement, adrenaline, and hope that people experienced. They are excited about the deals. Their adrenaline is pumping because they know they have to run to be the first. And, they hope that their Xbox or Wii will be there for them to buy.
Why is it so exciting to wait and line at 4 a.m. to get the “best” deal? Why all the excitement?
People enjoy excitement, even if they have to wait for it. Part of the fun of something is experiencing the waiting and anticipation before the thrill.
Despite the fact that there are 28 shopping days left until Christmas, we are now in the season of Advent. Advent is the season before Christmas in which Christians prepare for the celebration of remembrance of the coming of the Christ child. Advent comes from the Latin word adventus meaning “coming.” We wait with joy and excitement for the celebration of Jesus’ birth. The birth of Jesus signaled a change in life of the world: salvation for all who accept Christ. Christmas can often be tied up in the secular observance of giving, but this is the time of preparation for Christmas… not just preparation for buying gifts, but a preparation for the celebration of Christ coming into our midst.
Advent is also an anticipation of Jesus’ second coming. Head for the hills you say? Not so fast. Even though end time prophecy is all around us (2010 the movie, the “Left Behind” books, popularity of Nostradamus’ predictions, and 9/11 fears) people have been predicting the end of the world for thousands of years and people have been getting it wrong. People thought the end of the world was coming in Europe when the Black Plague killed 1/3 of Europe. We get scared when we see a movie about the end of the world, but imagine a 1/3 of the world dying? That would really freak you out!
The season of Advent is a hopeful and joyous time for us. We expectantly wait to celebrate Jesus coming into the world to offer salvation to both Jews and Gentiles. Advent is the time when we wait for Christ to come with excitement, joy, and celebration. We wait for the celebration of Christmas Day in which we remember how God gave us a great gift. In the meantime, let’s prepare for Christmas by fulfilling the message of Christ: to love God and to love each other. It is my prayer that you will experience all the joy, excitement, and thrill that comes in the season of Advent.
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