Of all the ‘Weeks of Advent,’ this Third Week resonates with me the most. Memories of lighting the Advent Wreath come rushing back. I’m the youngest of five children, and we each had a week or so of lighting the Advent Wreath. I started it off and lit one candle during the first week. My sister, the second week; one brother, the third week; the next brother, the fourth week. For the week of Christmas, our mother changed the wreath to all white candles, and my oldest brother lit those. This youngest to oldest arrangement made sense, but for some reason, I secretly wished I got to light the pink candle. I wasn’t sure why, but I just knew it was special.
The way my parents explained it (to a young me) was that the pink candle reminded us that it was almost time for Christmas—and Jesus. If we still needed to do some things in our hearts to get ready, now was the time. Back then I wasn’t too aware of Gaudete Sunday and the joy of the coming Christ. I knew we were joyful to welcome the Christ Child, and I certainly related Christmas to the Baby Jesus. After all, we had a Nativity Scene, and we didn’t put the baby in the manger until after church on Christmas Eve. So, it added up nicely: Christmas, Baby Jesus, Joy.
In this Third Week of Advent, we are reminded to be joyful in anticipation of Christ’s coming as He promised. Though we may be a few days removed from Gaudete Sunday, we are still encouraged to find time this week within our preparations and anticipation to recognize this joy. We are invited to pause and truly live in the Joy of Christ. The Christ who was born in a manger, the Christ who saved us from the cross, the Christ who will come again and redeem us forever.
Instead of ‘almost time,’ I now look at this week as ‘we still have time.’ And the same advice applies – if we need to do some things or change some things in our hearts to get ready and prepare for Him, we still have time. And as we do those things, let’s spend some prayer and time rejoicing. That pink candle is indeed special.
Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again: rejoice! …The Lord is near. Phil 4:4-5
Journeying to Grace 