Anticipation

There’s a noticeable shift every year. The moment Thanksgiving leftovers are packed away, the noise begins to rise. Ads grow louder. Shopping carts grow fuller. Black Friday turns into Cyber Monday, which turns into weeks of scrolling, clicking, comparing, and buying. Our culture tells us that this season is all about anticipation—but most of what we are told to anticipate can be boxed, wrapped, and returned.

Yet the very heart of this season was never about the anticipation of gifts. It was about the anticipation of a Gift.

Long before malls were crowded and wish lists were written, God’s people lived in deep expectation. They waited, not for sales or packages, but for a Savior. “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14). Their waiting was filled with longing, hope, and faith — not transaction, pressure, or debt.

The danger of our modern rhythm is not that we celebrate. Celebration is good. The danger is that we become so busy anticipating things that we forget to anticipate Him.

Paul reminds us what the Christian heart is truly waiting for: “Looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:13). Not the next delivery truck. Not the next purchase. But the return of our King.

Advent literally means “the coming.” It is a season of holy waiting. It teaches us to slow down long enough to remember that before Christ ever arrived in a manger, God’s people learned to live on promises. And in a world that constantly screams, “Buy now!”, Advent gently whispers, “Wait on the Lord.”

Christmas is not built on what we buy, but on what God gave: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son…” (John 3:16). Every wrapped gift under a tree is meant to be only an echo of that greater gift.

As you shop, as you plan, as you prepare — don’t just build anticipation for what’s under the tree. Build anticipation for what came down from heaven. Teach your children not just to count presents, but to celebrate the Presence of Jesus. Let the lights on your house point to the Light of the world. Let the joy in your home flow from the greatest news the world has ever known: “For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given” (Isaiah 9:6).

This season, may our hearts be more stirred by hope than by hype, more moved by grace than by gifts, and more focused on Christ than on carts.

Let’s not just prepare for Christmas — let’s prepare for Christ.

“Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 15:13)