As we have emphasized this year at TWI, Advent is traditionally a season of waiting. Traditionally, the Christmas hymns, the celebrations, the parties—they all waited until the beginning of the twelve days of Christmas. Instead, Advent songs were songs of longing, waiting and longing for Christmas to come. And the point was to remind Christians...
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If there were ever a season for the believer to recognize his or her worth and focus on the dignity of his or her fellow human being, it is the Advent season! Advent is a season of waiting, preparation and expectation for the incarnation of the Savior, Jesus Christ. The word is literally defined as...
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In a piece titled “2020 broke Christmas music. Here’s what I’m listening to instead,” Michael Brodeur, the classical music critic for the Washington Post wrote this last week: “What if the songs of the season didn’t demand a mass emotional pivot, the obligations of cheer? What if they let in some of the cold? I’ve...
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October 1962. The world was on the brink of nuclear war. The Soviet Union was stockpiling missiles in Cuba and the U.S. government responded with a military blockade. The world watched in fear as the U.S. Navy prevented a Russian freighter, loaded with armaments, from approaching Cuba. Hindered by mistrust and poor communications, John F....
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I hate this place. How is it possible to hate what you’re thankful for? I haven’t worked out all the details yet. Some questions are better after caffeine anyway, so I pour a cup of coffee so piping hot, it requires coursework in advanced thermodynamics. I sip with trepidation, a squint-eyed geologist exploring bitter...
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Advent. It’s a season of more than just waiting for the Christ child. It is a season of cultivating our longing for his coming. Wait… Cultivating our longing? I generally want to satisfy my longings, not cultivate them! {I begin to feel the deep rumblings of panic in my soul.} If I cultivate a longing,...
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