Advent calendars start with December 1; Advent starts when it starts regardless of the calendar, or maybe in spite of it. Already Christian observance of the season is at odds with the culture that we are soaking in, so for December one and two this year, as Advent starts tomorrow, I’m recycling a couple of readings that were for dates this month which had two readings.

December 1, 2023. T -2 days–an Advent address Advance Advent– Waiting to be waiting. The reading is Romans 15:8 to 13.

Before I actually begin, I made this list and calendar of advanced readings to support our Advent bags staircase that I first attempted in the year 2013, but often haphazardly executed.

Our daughter was asking if we had an advent booklet for a big felt advent calendar that we used to use with them when they were kids. This would’ve been perfect except that I have no idea where, or if, we have it I figured I would just have to sketch out my own calendar with a few favorite verses. How hard could that be right?

I searched online for quote Advent Bible readings,” “daily adventure readings,” and similar topics. A couple of websites were helpful but what I was left with was a free offer a 90 day free offer to trial during Advent with CS Lewis, or Liam Neeson.

I appreciate the work of both of these people but it wasn’t quite what I was wanting.

I noted how some of the websites followed a pattern of selecting verses from old Testament prophecy, the Psalms, the Gospels, and the Epistles; different sections of the Old and New Testaments of the Bible. I made a few notes and moved on.

I thought about it. There are some events that I needed in my advent observance:

• the Annunciation the angel talking to Mary 
• Joseph’s dream – don’t be afraid to marry Mary 
• Zechariah’s silence 
• The Creation 
• The flood 
• Stuff from the whole arc of Christendom from Genesis to Revelation; from the Garden of Eden to the Holy city coming down from the clouds 

I opened a December 2023 calender in Microsoft word. I renamed it Advent 2023 and began filling in passage citations. Then I realised that I knew what the 24th would be; The Main Event! (spoiler alert: Jesus is Born) Before that, they would have to do the Christmas road trip, etc. Then I knew what would come before that so I just work backwards: 24 nativity; 23, travel to Bethlehem. It would’ve taken, how long? to get to Bethlehem?; 22, Joseph’s dream; 21, Mary and Elizabeth; 20 the Annunciation, etc., and so it went. I could do this stuff in my sleep right?; 19th Zechariah shuts up; 18th… well, people waiting in darkness? The 400-year silence of the prophets? Hoping? The remnant? 

For some reason I was reminded about King Nebuchadnezzar’s humiliation– His dream of a stump bound with iron and bronze in the ground in a field–but that is a digression. 

For the rest of the days, I just kind of backfilled until I got to December 3, the start of Advent.  

Then I printed off the selected verses, Cut the strips for each day’s reading, put them in the bags, placed them in the bannister spaces, adding five nails in the molding above the kitchen door because we didn’t have enough banister spaces visible from the front hall for the whole 24 days.