In a recent blog post, Mark Roberts writes: “Why is Advent like learning to ride a bike? Because we have a very hard time learning to ride a bike if we focus on not falling down. The more we pay attention to the negative—don’t fall down, don’t fall down, don’t fall down—the more we are magically pulled to the ground. But, when we begin to focus on the positive, looking forward, moving ahead, keeping vertical, then learning to ride a bike is easy.
“Similarly, if, when it comes to Christmas, we focus on the negative—less secular, less consumerist, less rushed, less superficial—chances are, we’ll have a hard time achieving the goal of a deeper, truer and more authentic Christmas. Advent allows us to focus on the positive, on our need for God, on our hope for a better world on the first and second advents of our Savior.
“In my experience, the more we focus on the positive—Advent—the more we will be able to redeem Christmas and make it a time of drawing near to God and celebrating His coming among us. Miraculously, we’ll find it easier to let go of the consumerism and secularism that threatens to strangle the true spirit of Christmas.” (Click here to read the full article.)