What exactly is "Advent"?

Research into the traditions of Advent will reveal a wide variety of approaches. The word "Advent" means "coming." The season of Advent refers to a four-week period that prepares us to welcome the birth of Christ on Christmas Day.

Throughout the world, Advent is observed by hundreds of thousands of people. Advent always begins on a Sunday and always four Sundays before Christmas Day. Most people who observe Advent do so with some kind of candle-lighting ceremony and the reading of Scriptures. Observing Advent, year after year, not only prepares people to meaningfully celebrate Christ's first coming, the holy festival of Christmas, but it points us toward Christ's second coming as a way of renewing our anticipation of that great day. Understanding Advent can help us develop the habit of recognizing the coming of Christ into our everyday lives all the rest of the year.

"Concerning how the birth of Jesus Christ came about, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said to him, 'Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give Him the name Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins.' "
(Matthew 1:18-21)

That phrase, "He will save His people from their sins" has troubled many people over the years because they do not understand the awesome concept of 'redemption'. It is my belief that in history, humanity has moved from a state of wellness, soundness of health (physical, emotional, psychological & spiritual) to a state of unwellness, where our health has been affected substantially. That being the case, the primary issue would appear to be whether God will leave us in that state of unwellness or does He have some kind of a plan, a strategy, by which humanity can be rescued from that state to where we can begin to experience substantial wellness. I understand the difficulty that many people have in admitting that they are in some kind of need of having to be rescued! But in reality, humanity needs help! And God has indeed ACTED! 

Whether we choose to believe it or not, the truth is that God loves each of us to the point where He became willing to become our Ransom - He has become our HOPE, our assurance, our guarantee that the consequences of our trespassing into territory that had signs clearly marked, "NO TRESPASSING" would be overturned - our HOPE is that through Christ we have moved from a state of death (our former position) to a new position where IN CHRIST, we have NEW LIFE! This new reality has positive consequences both in this present life and in the life hereafter! This becomes our basis for HOPE!