Unwrapping Advent Part 4: A Journey Filled with Love

Tara reflects on the theme of love, sharing personal stories and encouraging listeners to connect meaningfully with others through acts of kindness. Discover how a childhood memory of olives on a relish tray transformed into enduring acts of love and friendship. Delve into the Gospel of Luke, embrace your love language, and learn how to spread love through simple, heartfelt actions this holiday season.

Listen to our Advent Playlist HERE

Transcript

S6 E4 Unwrapping Advent Part 4: A Journey Filled with Love

Pastor Tara Lamont Eastman: [00:00:00] Welcome to Holy Shenanigans podcast. I'm your muse, Tara Lamont Eastman, pastor, podcaster, and practitioner of Holy Shenanigans. I'm so glad to have you with me to discover the sacred showing up in everyday life, especially in this season of Advent. As we begin the fourth week focused on love. Speaking of love, I wonder what you love about the holiday season.

Is it the music? Is it the people? Or perhaps, is it the food? One of my favorites is the relish tray. Specifically, the olives. Yes, the olives. As a young child, I remember [00:01:00] peeking up over the edge of the holiday table And reaching my hand up to that relish tray to pluck the olives, pop them on my fingers and enjoy.

I'd run into the kitchen and say, Hey mom, the olives are ready. It's time to eat. As I ate the olives from the end of each finger, my parents would laugh at my excitement and remind me. That it's important to share the olives. To this day, whenever I see a relish tray overflowing with olives, I can't help but feel the holiday spirit, as well as the power of love, especially when it's shared.

In this fourth week of Advent, we're focusing on love with the Gospel reading from Luke 1, featuring the Magnificat. Mary's song. [00:02:00] My soul magnifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God, my Savior.

For God has looked with favor on the lowly state of his servant. Surely from now on all generations will call me blessed. Mary, the mother of Christ, sings a song that lifts up God's love and care for those in need and is a reminder that love must be shared. Several years ago, I met a gentleman at church and he had recently lost his spouse of over 50 years.

In our conversation, he longed to talk about everyday things. Hoping for a momentary distraction from his grief. We discussed the weather and other mundane things, and he mentioned he would be shopping for [00:03:00] groceries later that day. Randomly, I asked him, What's on your shopping list? What's your favorite thing?

And he replied, Oh, every day I have a sandwich for lunch, but that sandwich has to have a side of pickles, or black olives, dill pickles. and black olives are my favorite. How delightful! My new friend also loved dill pickles and black olives. A few days later, when doing my own grocery shopping, I remembered his love of pickles and olives, and I picked up an extra can.

That Sunday, during the passing of the piece, I made a beeline to my new friend. And said, the peace of the Lord be with you as he put out his hand, I passed him God's peace [00:04:00] and something extra, a can of black olives in the weeks and months to come this game of sharing olives and pickles. Continued, sometimes he would be sharing them, and sometimes it would be me.

But just when I thought this game had ended, I found a jar of pickles or olives waiting for me. As he passed me the piece, or placed on my chair at the chancel, And even wrapped up in Christmas paper with a bright bow, sitting outside my office door. This game of pass the olives continued for the days and weeks and years to come.

This game of passing the olives.

I've [00:05:00] lost count of all the ways kindness has shown up in this friendship with Mr. Rowland. But I think this story of sharing olives is the perfect way to encourage all of us to share the love. One act of love leads to another. And another and another, your way of saying I love you is probably different than Mr.

Roland and I sharing pickles and olives, but I encourage you to embrace the Advent spirit and share some love actions of shared love given and received. Offer unexpected friendships and much more. You never know what holy shenanigans can come when you share a jar of olives in the name of [00:06:00] love. If you are in a pickle as to how to share, love, hear, or some questions to help recall a time that love was shared with you, what happened?

Did the love stop there or did it just keep on going? I wonder. What is your love language? Gifts? Words of encouragement? Physical touch? Acts of service? Or quality time? What are the love languages of the people you care about? And how do you plan to share love this week? A poem for week four of Advent.

Love stuck.

The greatest of the four weeks of advent waiting is love. With all the hope waking, peacemaking, and joy breaking, I need the glue of love [00:07:00] to make this stick. Please stick. I don't want the gifts of love to disappear like grandma's frosted sugar cookies, but in that case, I At least they would be eaten, consumed, and used to empower the making of many snow angels, building tall Lego towers, or playing marathon rounds of Scrabble while sipping hot cups of tea.

 Love, I need you to stick. I don't want you to melt like snow drifts above 35 degrees. Or be crumpled like old gift wrapping or abandoned on the curb like a used Christmas tree. One candle for hope. Two candles for peace. Three candles [00:08:00] for joy. J O Y. Four candles for love. Light has grown. Four candles are lit.

Illuminating the way forward with hope, peace, joy. And the greatest love this advent may hope, peace, and joy be emboldened, empowered, and eternally stuck in our hearts by the power of love. Love you are the super glue we need. Please stick. Help us to share love with laughter, olives, voice. and energy. As we round the corner on this fourth week of Advent, [00:09:00] here's a list to help you share some love.

One, think about the five different love languages and determine what is most important to you. Ask your family and friends to help you. What their most meaningful love language is. Consider how knowing each other's love language can help holiday gift giving. Be more meaningful. Call a friend you haven't seen for a while and ask them what they love about the holiday season.

Set up a time to join them in their favorite holiday activity. Three, remember how we've been creating a music list over the past three weeks of advent. This week's assignment is to search for and add love songs to the list. Number four. Once you've created this playlist of songs of hope, [00:10:00] peace, joy, and love, send an email, a card, or a text message to a loved one.

That includes a link to your Advent 2024 playlist. If you're looking for some inspiration for your song list, Be sure to check the show notes of this episode for the Holy Shenanigans podcast, Advent Songlist. I can't wait to hear what songs you've chosen for this Advent season. I am your Holy Shenanigans Muse.

Tara Lamont Eastman. Thank you for joining us for holy shenanigans that surprise, encourage, redirect and turn life upside down all in the name of love. This is an unpredictable spiritual adventure that is always sacred and never stuffy. Thanks to our listeners for joining us throughout the whole of Advent.

[00:11:00] As we traveled through hope, peace, joy, and love next week, be sure to listen in for a special Christmas episode of holy shenanigans podcast as some very special guests share their holiday wishes.

For you until next time may advent love stick around and remind us that we are always beloved.