I. Advent

1. Week one

• Advent begins four Sundays before Christmas, which is often the Thanksgiving weekend.  After the leftovers are put away and you're finished moaning about how good it hurts, it's time to get out the Advent box. This box should contain:
• An advent calendar or other means of marking the time, if you wish to use one.
• An electric light made to look like a candle.
• An advent wreath: anything that will hold five candles and can be decorated with holiday greens without the greens being ignited by the candles.
• Five candles: three purple (hope, joy, peace), one pink (love) and one white (Christ).
• Advent devotional book or other readings for the weekly candle lighting and daily devotions.
• Christmas cards to send.
• Creche or manger scene.
• Set up the Advent Wreath and also the creche (but leave the figure of Jesus out of it for now). Place the single light (the one that looks like a candle) on a front window sill, turn it on and leave it on until Christmas Eve.
• Plan a shopping trip for a weekday morning, if at all possible. It's less crowded and a lot more fun.
• On Sunday, light the first candle in the wreath, (purple: hope) read and talk about Luke 1:26-38. Sing verse one of "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel". (Different folks have different traditions for what order to light the candles. I suggest doing what has meaning for you.)

• Sign and address Christmas cards to send and then put them aside. It isn't time to mail them; it isn't Christmas yet.
• On Sunday, light the first and second (purple: peace) candles. Read and talk about Luke 1:39-56.  Sing verse two of "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel".

• Clear out your closets. Take the things you don't need to a charity.
• On Sunday, light the first, second and third (pink: love) candles. Read and talk about Matthew 2:10b-25. Sing verse three of "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel".

• Make breads and cookies and other homemade goodies to give to neighbors and friends. Wrap them and label them for specific people.  Make sure to have a few wrapped and ready to give at the last minute. Take the labelled treats to neighbors and friends.
• On Sunday, light the first, second, third and fourth (purple: joy) candles. Read and talk about Luke 2:1-5. Sing verse four of "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel".

• Turn off the single light on the front window sill. Get out the Christmas decorations, put up the Christmas lights, set up a tree if you want to, sing carols, exchange gifts, gather with family, go out carolling, worship at church. Now it's time to mail those Christmas cards!
• Light all the candles, including white, for Christ. Read and talk about Luke 2:6-14. Place Jesus in the creche and sing "Silent Night".

II. Christmas

Continue the celebration. Share a thermos of coffee, some Christmas goodies, and some carols with folks shivering in the park.

Consider what it is that makes the day special for you. Reflect on ways to keep that going throughout the year.

2. Between Christmas and Epiphany

By the church calendar, Christmas begins December 25 and continues for about two weeks, until Epiphany begins.  New Years falls into this time frame. Instead of getting drunk and rowdy, why not spend the day and evening sober, playing board games with family and/or friends, watching family movies, or walking or playing outside (weather permitting).

Remember the frenzied shopping you "missed" during the secular Christmas season? Now it's your turn. Everything's on sale. Need Christmas decorations and wrappings for next year? They're at least 50% off now. Many calendars are less now too, as well as a lot of other things. You'll notice they've stopped playing Christmas carols on Musak; most of the world doesn't know that Christmas has just begun. Hum carols to yourself and thank God you don't have to listen to those dreadful electric singing lights while you shop!  Wish the clerk a Merry Christmas and welcome the question, if it's asked, "But isn't Christmas over?"

III. Epiphany

Spiritually, this is a good day to read Matthew 2:1-15. It is the start of the next season of the church year. During epiphany, we consider the light that guides us and awakens us to truth. It is a time to consider where our personal courage is needed in a world that wanders in darkness.