2025 Advent Devotion: Day 19

Friday, December 19

2 Samuel 7:18-22; Galatians 4:1-7

The gifts we give or receive reflect the hearts of the ones who give them. Advent is a reminder that everything that God blesses our lives with is a consequence of His giving of Himself and is an expression of His love. This also means that God is interested not in receiving our gifts in return, sometimes or once a year. God longs to have deep, meaningful, eternal, and precious relationships with us that are beyond anything that we can imagine.

The Advent Season presents us with an opportunity to slow down from our sometimes-hectic routine, to review our lives, to calm down our minds, to regain or restore our focus and priorities.

However, the real question of this season is, why do we do what we do? What is it that gives special meaning and direction to our lives, our relationships, our plans for the New Year? Regaining our focus and perspective could truly transform the Advent season and Christmas into genuinely beautiful, enjoyable, precious experiences and provide us with a meaningful direction for the New Year.

Often, the Advent season tends to be even busier than normal. We genuinely want to bring joy to the people we love or care about. We try to find the best gifts, to send Christmas and New Year greeting cards, to plan spending time with family and friends, and to decorate the Christmas tree and the entire house within and without. All of these activities can be exciting, pleasant, enjoyable.

Actually, if we stop and think for a moment, we will have to admit that the gifts we give are just a reflection of our own hearts, and they speak about how much other people mean to us. So often, we focus on the gifts and not on the heart of the giver and on our relationships. For instance, the gifts that we give others represent the way we feel about them. It is not the price that matters. It is not about the gift itself or the paper and the ribbon it is wrapped in. It is the heart with which a gift is given that matters.

For instance, often we say that Advent and Christmas remind us that God came down to give us forgiveness, salvation, eternal life and genuine hope. All of this is true; however, Advent is a beautiful reminder that God did not just give us gifts. He gave us Himself. God loves us beyond anything that we could ever be able to comprehend. At every moment, He is with us, regardless of whether we are aware of it or not. God knows everything about us, our good sides and our not so good sides, our thoughts, words, intentions, actions, our efficiencies and our deficiencies, our fears and our longings, our dreams and the challenges we face. It is good to be aware of all of this. At the same time, Advent reminds us to focus on God Who is always with us and on the ways in which He blesses our lives, walks with us and talks with us, protects and provides, teaches and guides us, and the various ways in which He wants us to reflect that love towards others.

I like a quote from Mother Teresa. When asked why she was taking care of so many people in need, she replied, “I am just a little pencil in the hand of a writing God, Who sends love letters to the world.” What is also typical of pencils is that they need to be sharpened once in a while. But the real purpose is to write.

Advent provides us with a great opportunity to regain focus and to let God send His message of love to all whom we meet.




Evgeniy Naydenov
School of Divinity Student