Skip to main content

Advent Listening

I know halfway through Advent is a little late to be recommending things to listen to in Advent.  But I had to listen to it before I could recommend it, didn't I?  Anyway, even if you haven't got organized for the first half of Advent, there's nothing to stop you giving these a try for the second half.

The first recommendation is a book, but you can also listen to the author reading a chapter each day.


I can't remember where I picked up Penelope Wilcock's The Hawk and the Dove trilogy, but it came into my life from somewhere, and I enjoyed it.  Then I discovered she has a blog, where she writes about simplicity, and living with less, and little anecdotes about her home and life.  And then I bought Into the Heart of Advent, subtitled Twenty-five conversations with Jesus.

This book laps you with peace and tranquillity - the calm of a winter's morning, sitting by an open fire, standing out under the stars - yet it never lapses into sentimentality or wishful thinking.  Jesus has opinions about Christmas cards: "'Stick with the robins,' he suggests. 'Those [nativity scenes] are awful.'" and electric tealights versus real candles: "It's always better not to set anybody on fire."  

But the conversations include much deeper topics, like judgement, vulnerability and homelessness.  At the end of one chapter, Penelope muses, "I can't figure out if he's just made this easier or twice as hard."

You probably won't want to buy the book at this point in December (unless for next year), but go and have a listen at Kindred of the Quiet Way.  I recommend Chapter 3: What it means to be with us, if you just need ten minutes to be still and breathe.


I've mentioned the Lectio 365 app a few times before on this blog.  Clearly I'm not the only one who finds it helpful, because they've expanded from morning prayer to evening prayer, and now a brand new app, Lectio for Families.  It follows a similar format to the regular Lectio app, but the language is simpler and it includes a weekly memory verse.  The boys have engaged with it really well, and it's been nice to stop and have a few moments of quiet, snuggled together on the sofa.

Lectio for Families launched at the beginning of Advent, but as far as I know, it is scheduled to continue.  So you can start at the New Year, for Lent, or just dip in whenever you like.


Edit to add: I belatedly realised that this post needed some music, too.  This is beautiful:


And I've just discovered Annie Lennox's Christmas Cornucopia album (only 11 years behind the times!).  I particularly like God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen:


Of course, we still have our Advent candle at dinner each day, with a verse from the Christmas story.  And the chocolate Advent calendars from Grandma!  Those are non-negotiable traditions.

It strikes me that my Advent reading and listening has emphasised quiet and stillness, this year.  Jesus' comments about people being "harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd" still feel true today, don't they?  Peace seems hard to find, whether we are frantically arranging activities, cancelling them again, or stuck at home isolating.

May we all hear the voice of the true shepherd, and find rest in him this Advent.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Mr White Watson of Bakewell

Once upon a time, back in 1795 or so, lived a man who was always asking questions.  The kind of questions like, "Why is glass transparent?" or "Why do fruit trees grow better in that place than in this place?" or "What does the earth look like underneath the surface?"  This last question was one that he was particularly interested in, and he went so far as to work out what the rock layers looked like where he lived, and draw little pictures of them.  Now he was a marble sculptor by trade (as well as fossil hunter, mineral seller, and a few other things) so he thought it would be even better to make his little pictures in stone.  That way he could represent the layers using the actual rocks they were composed of.  Over the course of his lifetime he made almost 100 of these tablets, as he called them. Then he died.  And no one else was quite as interested in all those rocks and minerals as he was.  His collection was sold off, bit by bit, and the table...
Post a Comment
Read more

Baby Language

For some reason baby equipment is an area in which American English differs markedly from British English. As well as learning how to care for a baby, we had to learn a whole new vocabulary! Fortunately we are now fluently bilingual, and I have compiled a handy US-UK baby dictionary for you. Diaper n. Nappy Mom says if you can read this change my diaper. The first time you change one of these you will be all thumbs and stick the little adhesive tabs to yourself, the baby and probably the changing mat before you get them where they ought to go. A few years later you will be able to lasso a running toddler and change them before they even know what's happened (yes, I have seen it done). You will also get through more diapers than you ever thought possible, creating scary amounts of expense and waste. Hence we are now mostly using: Cloth diaper n. Reusable nappy Cool baby. No longer those terry squares, the main drawback is that there are now so many types it can be qu...
5 comments
Read more

Portway: Alport Heights

I'm climbing into the southern reaches of the Peak District on this walk, and it's all about the views. I am threading my way along the triangle of land between the River Derwent to my right and the River Ecclesbourne to my left. The rivers define broad sweeping valleys, while in between, the smaller streams of Black Brook, Lumb Brook and Shipley Brook have carved out their own dips in the landscape. Grassy meadows are draped over all these voluptuous curves like green velvet, with trees in pompom clumps. It's the perfect weather to appreciate all this springtime beauty. From the moment I step out of the car, I know it's going to be a good walk. This signpost is where I got to last time . I carry on past the Bluebell pub in Farnah Green, and turn left to find the Lumb Brook, which is down in a particularly steep, tree-lined valley. The path runs along the top, and you feel as if you are up in the canopy of a forest. Lumb Valley trees The next field is noisy with sheep...
Post a Comment
Read more