Advent is a season of preparing: preparing to celebrate Jesus’ birth and preparing for Jesus’ second coming that will usher in the commonwealth of God.
The first Sunday in Advent is Nov. 27. In this season of preparing, you are invited to share stories and photos of the ways in which you are preparing for the long-awaited reign of God to come among us. We’re calling it #AdventAction.
You know what disciples of Jesus are called to do: feed the hungry, give something to drink to the thirsty, welcome the stranger, give clothes to the naked, care for the sick, visit those in prison. (See Matthew 25 for the full details.)
These are the ways we proclaim the good news of God in Christ, serving all people, following the example of Jesus, striving for justice and peace in all corners of the earth. These are visible signs of God’s presence among us.
We are called to do these things always, but especially during Advent we put a special focus on them. We’d like to collect up your stories and photos—signs of God’s presence among us—and create a montage of #AdventAction.
Are you preparing food baskets for those in need? Collecting up cereal for children home from school (and won’t get breakfast at school) during the winter break? Maybe you’re making fleece blankets for the homeless? Or figuring out ways to provide fuel assistance to those needing help on cold nights? Your #AdventAction might support the thousands of children who came across the U.S. border alone earlier this year, a modern day welcoming of the stranger.
[bctt tweet=”Post on social media using @WomenoftheELCA and the #AdventAction hashtag.” username=”womenoftheelca”]
Collecting up and distributing mittens, hats and scarves to those in need might be your #AdventAction. Perhaps you’ll organize and carry out a prayer vigil, praying for those who keep the peace, those filled with pain, those without shelter, those without food for the body or food for the soul. The possibilities for #AdventAction are endless because the needs are so great.
So, post your photos and stories to Twitter, Facebook, Instagram or your social media of choice, tag @WomenoftheELCA and use the #AdventAction hashtag. We’ve created a tagboard where we’ll collect up all the photos and stories, a visual representation of love in action in this season of preparation.
And while you are in the season of preparing, check out our free, downloadable Advent resources: A Different Kind of Journey: Advent as a Walk, not a Sprint and Advent: A Season for All Generations.
Linda Post Bushkofsky is executive director of Women of the ELCA.