But I want to talk about our advent.
We each have a story. It begins with our birth and ends with the closing chapter. Through the pages of this story are words that reflect our life. Each page chronicles the choices we make and the legacy that we will leave. All to often this story is full of white noise. Countless pages of fuzz that make no distinction and define no character. We are hamsters turning the same wheel in endless rotation.
How many remember the mobile bookstore that always came to school with the "fun" books that all of us really wanted to read? No more boring library books that told stories we didn't particularly care about. My personal favorite was the Choose Your Own Adventure books. The appeal to these books is that we got to choose the direction the story went. I mean how cool is that?! Who wants to read a book that always has the same ending?
You may have heard the Choose Your Own Adventure analogy before. But what's interesting to me is that we continue to choose the safe route, "The hamster jumps into the wheel: Go to page 34". We may make slightly interesting choices to mix things up, but how many times do we take the "The hamster jumps from the moving train: Go to page 52" choice? Probably not often enough. Sure it's easy to take risks when it doesn't involve us. But when it's our own lives that are in question, the choices become much more calculated.
Without risk, there is no distinction.
As we begin the Advent season, our thoughts are usually restricted to Christmas. Mr. Claus, his little pointy eared minions and all the gifts that we share. But for some of us, our thoughts steer towards those of a small baby, born in a barn. And although this birth was in less than ideal circumstances, this was typical to the time period. However, despite this simple and humble beginning, a child born of a virgin and a reluctant father, would end up changing the course of history and saving us all. The turns His life took were risky. And yet those risks created incredible distinction.
Am I the only one that draws a parallel here? Sure, we were not born to save the world, but were we not created in God's image? I don't find it a coincidence that our lives start with a humble beginning just like Jesus. We get up and go to work, just like He did. But as His story unfolds, He begins to realize that He was created with a purpose. He makes choices that reflect risk and ultimately defines a person that is set apart. He began to realize that the pages of His book were epic. And in the end, what an incredible adventure that unfolded.
Do we have that same belief? Do we believe that our only choices are limited to what clothes we'll wear today? What route we'll take to work or what we'll eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner?
During this Advent season when we see the Advent calendar and remember the birth and second coming of the King, take a moment to think of your advent. Your life is like a Choose Your Own Adventure book. Filled with choices that create a story that could be worthy of distinction. Take risks. Live boldly.
- Be with your loved ones instead of watching the game.
- Donate $100 instead of $10 to your favorite charity.
- Go serve at a soup kitchen instead of giving canned goods.
- Be a missionary instead of reading their newsletters.
- Adopt or foster a child instead of wishing their circumstances were different.
Let your advent begin.
