Posts with the category “advent-2024”

Today, as I write this, I spent half an hour working on the bathroom door knob. The spring had grown weaker over the last few months and it finally gave up latching at all. Now we’re interrupted in our morning routine by an inquisitive dog. Knowing that family and friends will be visiting for Christmas, I knew that I had to fix the latch for them.Do you have necessary repairs at your home? It’s ea...  Read More

What makes a gift that you receive valuable? It could be solely the purchase price, though most people will also factor in other factors. The effort it took to find the gift. Something that has been handmade gains value from the effort that went into its construction. The usefulness of the gift can increase its perceived value.There is a lot of thought that goes into the costs of gifts. It could b...  Read More

People often talk about their mindset, which is their default mental attitude or mental response to something. We talk about having a good mindset or one that holds you back. People try to change their mindset to be more adaptable to situations. Building mental flexibility is great, but I also think we should consider our heartset.Rather than mental, this is a default emotional attitude towards li...  Read More

It’s a common saying that no two snowflakes are exactly the same. Math and science say that this is true for complex snowflakes, even though around a septillion of them fall each year. Though large patterns repeat, there are microscopic or even molecular differences in each flake.The same can be said for moments in our lives. Yesterday was our annual Service of Lessons & Carols, during which there...  Read More

I will sing of your steadfast love, O Lord, forever.- Psalm 89:1aAdvent is a preparation for Christmas. The celebration and rejoicing are especially obvious this morning at our Service of Lessons & Carols. Through the season, we celebrate the birth of Jesus by singing joyful songs, eating delicious food, and enjoying the company of our friends and family. It can be easy to forget that Jesus was se...  Read More

Every year during the first week of Advent, I go down into the basement and haul up the large cardboard box with the artificial tree in it. Once the three pieces are stacked together and the branches are spread out to look nice, then it is time for me to do my part: I am the only one that can put the lights on the Christmas tree.Now, this is a sort of self-imposed rule. I have a specific way of ru...  Read More

Over the next two days, Magnus slowly got back to work. Christmas was on Saturday and several orders needed to be finished. He worked in a daze, mindlessly completing memories, not noticing the movement of his hands.Alvis stopped by at one point, ostensibly to invite Magnus to his Christmas Eve party, but Magnus knew he’d heard about the argument with Val. Magnus gave a few noncommittal responses ...  Read More

Magnus finally caught up to Val outside of Mr. Dakken’s place. The two were talking in the front step when Magnus arrived, breathing heavily through clenched teeth. “What do you think you’re doing?” He snatched the memory from Mr. Dakken’s hand. “What’s going on with this?”Val stood there, too stunned to speak.Mr. Dakken cleared his throat. “Now, Magnus, I quite like-”Magnus held up his hand, sile...  Read More

Magnus ran his hand over the sling again. His fingers bounced against the pebbled outside of the cast. He cautiously flexed his muscles. Though his wrist did not move, a string of ache wound its way up from deep within and along the inside of his arm.He scowled at the injury. He should be working. Instead, his stupid wrist was holding him back. He cursed his luck again and imagined what he could b...  Read More

Magnus Stonhart shuffled through the chill, dark night while the knapsack slung over his shoulder glowed and thrummed and emanated sweet smells of all varieties. He preferred to work at night, when the world stilled and the crowds dispersed. Alone, he roamed the empty streets to gather sensations wherever he could. On summer nights it was pleasant, but the warmth of summer had waned. Christmas was...  Read More

What is your favorite part of receiving a Christmas present? It may seem like an odd question but there are actually several steps to getting a present, each of which has its own merits. It could be researching and considering what to put on your wish list. Maybe the time before you receive the gift when you imagine what you’ll do with it. The moment when you open the gift and the wide range of po...  Read More

In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was ruler of Galilee, and his brother Philip ruler of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias ruler of Abilene, during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness. He went into all the region around the Jordan, procla...  Read More

The Advent wreath is an excellent symbol for the annual cycle of Advent into Christmas. We place this evergreen circle topped with five candles in the sanctuary. Each of the four Sundays of Advent we light another one of the candles along the outer edge. The already lit candles each week remind us of how far we come through this season of waiting, while the remaining candles remind us that there i...  Read More

This past Tuesday, I went to one of our Inspired Life events where Erinn Frees, a board certified music therapist, talked about music therapy and how she uses music in her job to care for people. It was a fantastic talk where we didn’t just hear about her work, but also got to experience some techniques ourselves.One idea that stuck with me was the power of music to resurface nearly forgotten memo...  Read More

Isn’t it odd that snow can be cozy? It’s frozen water that is sometimes soft and fluffy, sometimes hard and stinging, and sometimes slick and greasy. It hits the exposed skin of your face and melts into a cold liquid that runs down your neck. It only falls when the temperatures are at or below freezing. Sometimes well below!Yet on a winter evening, as the flakes swirl around in the warm light cast...  Read More

I think everyone who feels the weight of the world on them should try journaling. Writing words down is an excellent, and healthy, way to work through strong emotions, positive or negative. You might already be saying that it is not for you, but let me give you a few tips before you reject it outright.How do you keep a journal? You could write out your reflections longhand in a notebook. The first...  Read More

Have you ever had a string of Christmas lights go out on you? In my experience, the two times it happens is right after you finish decorating the tree or ten minutes before the guests arrive for a party. It can be incredibly frustrating when those beautiful twinkling lights suddenly go dark. You want to take the whole string and toss them in the trash. After all, they don’t work any more, so why b...  Read More

If you’re like me, you’ve already been inundated with Christmas ads for a month. Emails, catalogs, pop-ups, TV commercials. You may have had an involuntary shudder just from reading the title of this post and thought I was trying to shill something at you. Each of these ads promises, explicitly or not, that their product will solve all your problems, improve your life, and finally give you real ha...  Read More

The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will fulfill the promise I made to the house of Israel and the house of Judah. In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David; and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. In those days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will live in safety. And this is the name by which it will be called: “The L...  Read More

Advent begins this Sunday, and the Word Workers are presenting their fourth annual Advent Calendar. Every day there is a post of a short piece created by the Word Workers and All Saints members.There is still room for you to contribute a favorite Christmas memory or tradition. If you have a story you would like to share, please email Aaron Achartz or leave it in his mailbox.If you are more of a re...  Read More

Advent is quickly approaching, and the Word Workers are presenting their fifth annual Advent Calendar.   Read More