Celebrating Advent: Looking Back and Looking Forward
Inside: A devotional on looking back and looking forward this Advent, and simple ways to keep Christ at the center of the season.
Advent wasn’t a tradition practiced in churches we were in, but it is something our family was introduced to when we received an Advent devotional book as a gift. It became a yearly tradition after that, and when our children were still home, we would have a devotional time together and use Advent candles or a wreath. Even though my kiddos are grown and on their own, I still find myself wanting to embrace this season, and I do it by reading a different Advent devotional every year. I also like to revisit the Gospel of Luke in December, reading one chapter each day through Christmas Eve. I appreciate how it brings my focus back to the birth of Jesus and the promises fulfilled and what is still to come.
Advent comes from the Latin adventus, which means coming or arrival. The Latin translation of the Greek word parousia is adventus, and parousia is the word the New Testament often uses for Christ’s second coming (1 Thessalonians 4:15). Advent always begins on the fourth Sunday before Christmas, and this year (2026) it begins on November 29th.
1 Peter 1:10–12 gives a picture of what it means to look back during Advent:
Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look.
1 Peter 1:12 stands out to me because it says these saints of the past were serving us. We are on the other side now of Christ’s birth—the waiting for His arrival is over, but the reality is we are still waiting for His second coming. We are still waiting for our full and final redemption. Advent can be looked at as a season to look back and one to look forward—preparing for Jesus’ second coming.
The Christian message is that there is hope for a ruined humanity—hope of pardon, hope of peace with God, hope of glory—because at the Father’s will Jesus became poor, and was born in a stable so that thirty years later He might hang on a cross. ~ J.I. Packer
Looking Forward
Our hope rests on God’s promises. He sent His Son, and He is going to send Him again. There is so much hurt and brokenness in our world, in our churches, and even in our own homes and families at times, but there is coming a day when all will be made new and things will be as they should be. As believers, we all long for this day when we will see Jesus face to face and there will be no more sin or sorrow. I don’t want to lose sight of this in the busyness of the Christmas season, but want to keep my focus on Jesus.
Noel Piper shared in her Treasuring God in Our Traditions book a good reminder as we continue on in the 1 Peter 1 verses. In verse 13, it says, “Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”
She reminds us that Advent is a season for introspection—or pondering as Mary did. She shared some questions that I keep in my journal to ask myself this time of year:
- Am I clear-thinking and sober-minded, or are my thoughts mainly trivial?
- Is my hope set fully on the grace I will receive from Jesus at His Second Coming, or do I cringe at the thought of leaving behind the life I love?
- Am I an obedient child of my Father, or am I still shaped by the passions that drove me before I became a Christian?
I know many of us are not in churches where Advent is celebrated. Observing Advent is not commanded in Scripture, and it is a matter of conscience (Romans 14:5–6). But it can be a helpful reminder of what this season is really about, Christ’s first coming and His promised return. My hope is that we would still take time to celebrate the wonder of Christmas and, like Mary, ponder these truths a bit more deeply (Luke 2:19). You have so many options on how to celebrate the Advent season.
Setting aside time to read a good devotional book together with the Scriptures is a great way to do this. There are so many resources out there now for Advent readings for families with children of all ages, so choose one that works with your family or make your own by using the Scriptures and songs.
Families with young children may benefit from using an Advent calendar. Try to find one that has a Christ-focused theme to use. There are some cute ones with nativity scenes, so as you count down the days with your readings share maybe just bits of the Christmas story with your littles each day.
Closing Thoughts
My prayer always is that we desire to have a Christ-centered celebration for ourselves and our families, but the greater hope during this season is that our faith and hope in Jesus would be deepened and strengthened and that we would look with anticipation and joy to His coming again.
“So Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.” (Hebrews 9:28)