Advent

Happy New Year! In the Church year, this is the beginning. This is when we wait. We wait, some say obviously, for Christmas. It's a time of preparation and building joy as we come closer to that wonderful festival.

But we also wait for the Second Coming. In church, we'll hear about the end times, about that mysterious and misunderstood time when Christ will come and take His faithful to Himself. It's a time of penitence, of renewal, and of hope.

And we sing really great hymns. Some of my most favorite hymns are Advent hymns. Yes, Christmas hymns are beautiful, and I have a list of Easter hymns that I hope someone will sing at my funeral. But Advent hymns. Ah......

Like this one.

(If you're interested, this is not a bad explanation of the liturgical year, especially in the Lutheran church.)