Thank you!

Thank you to those of you who were able to join me for my Advent talk last night at Holy Redeemer Church!

We had a fun night talking about how to prepare for Christmas without getting caught up in the buzz around us that too often stresses us out and leaves us exhausted by December 25th.

If you are one of those who have said to yourself (or others!) "I can't wait for Christmas to be over!" you may be "guilty" of skipping over these four weeks of Advent that offer us a time to quiet ourselves and focus on God.

One of the things we talked about last night was the fear that can come over us at this time of year as we struggle with our gift-giving.  Is my gift too cheap?  To expensive?  Wanted or needed? 

One of the highlights of the night was the question, "How can Christmas disappoint?"

When you think about it, everything pales in comparison to the coming of the Savior of the world, so it is literally impossible for Christmas to disappoint us, yet, that is something so many of us fear.

Will my children be disappointed?  What should I get for my boss?  What can I give the person who has everything?  (Maybe we should consider the gift of time, wrapped up in a nice visit.  Why can't that be enough?)

As we talked about Advent, we talked about how much more aware we become of the swirling around us when we step away from the craziness and begin to put everything into perspective.

Re-shaping family traditions and shifting our thoughts away from what Christmas has become and what it should be, can be a good start.

What do you expect your Christmas to look like?

As my understanding of Advent grew, so did our newly created traditions.  If you would like to know more about them, feel free to contact me by leaving a comment below. (As you begin planning for 2019, if you would like me to speak to your group or organization, please feel free to email me directly at johnseven38@yahoo.com.)


I hope you take time to enjoy this beautiful season of Advent so that you are READY, JOYFUL and EXCITED to BEGIN the celebration of the Christmas season on December 25th!

God bless,
Janet Cassidy
janetcassidy.com