Department stores start stocking up in September. The Toy Catalogs show up in October. Come November, we are bombarded with commercials, until finally the pinnacle of the holiday season arrives—Black Friday. That’s when we know Christmas is getting near, and that’s when the real stress begins. We stand in lines. We fight for parking spots. We ponder who wants what. We ponder what we want others to get us. We find a tree. We pray that tree does not dry up before Christmas or that the cat, dog, or baby doesn’t knock it down. We string up lights. We search for the missing bulb that is preventing the lights from working. We take our Christmas photo. We design our own Christmas cards. We send out our Christmas cards. We mail more Christmas cards for those people we did not expect to get Christmas cards from. We argue over who will host and debate who will bring what. We wrap, and wrap, and wrap, and then we wrap some more. We anxiously await FedEx in hopes those last minute gifts will arrive on time. We make our lists. We check them twice. But we still manage to forget something or someone, until finally Christmas is here and by then we are exhausted.

Too often the hustle and bustle of the holiday season can draw us away from what matters most. That God’s Word became flesh to save us from our sins, and that one night, in a tiny manger in Bethlehem, Jesus Christ was born—an infant, man’s most fragile form, cared for by a peasant woman, honored by shepherds and kings alike, and beginning a journey that would change the face of all mankind.

This week begins Advent, the official start to the Christmas season. And so let us take the time to pray and reflect on the true spirit of Christmas. The love of family and friends. The kindness of strangers. Good will to others. The power of prayer. The love of God. And the opportunity to open one’s heart and mind to the Holy Spirit. With every flicker of candlelight. With every song of praise. With every fond memory evoked, let the Holy Spirit fill your heart with joy and truly prepare you for the Christmas season.