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I accepted Jesus Christ at age 8 and decided to follow Him.

“Just as I am”, was being sung as I walked down the aisle and a pastor met me at the altar.  He prayed with me and I felt loved and accepted.  I was smitten by knowing that I was saved from being eternally separated from God.  Now, I could and would forever be in His care.

Advent kicked off Sunday, Nov. 29 and it is something I did not learn about until later in life. It is a wonderful time of the year where we can reflect not on just the coming of the Son of God to earth, but a celebration of festivities where we remember the gift of God’s Son.  There are all kinds of ways to celebrate Advent: through prayer, confession, fasting and worship.  We can celebrate through being the giver to someone in need, pulling the plug and stopping the clock as we settle down with our families and friends to celebrate the Giver. We might watch a Christmas movie together, carol through the streets or just give someone a homemade card to tell them they are special.

Some liturgies that are done congregationally each week are the lighting of the candles.  Some use three purple candles, one pink and one white each signifying a different message and some congregations just use four candles without the white.  One is lit each week to reflect on the gospel message. This past Sunday’s first purple candle is the candle of hope. 

A passage from the Luther Seminary Devotional, “Our preparation does not cause him to come.  That was true in Jesus’ time, is true in our time, and will be true at the end of time…God came incarnate in the past, God comes to us now in word and in sacrament, and God will come again at the end of time. The only question is- “O Lord, how will I meet you?”

This week take time to reflect on the hope you have in Christ,  “But let me reveal to you a wonderful secret. We will not all die, but we will all be transformed.  It will happen in a moment, in the blink of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, those who have died will be raised to live forever. And we who are living will also be transformed.  For our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die; our mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies. Then, when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this Scripture will be fulfilled.” (I Cor 15:51-54)

Yvette Perrin is a columnist for The Charlotte Gazette. She can be reached at theword2yvette@gmail.com.