On Christmas Eve, after our candlelight service, I ended up in conversation with someone who was visiting Advent for the first time. I was saying hello to a friend but, since the visitor was new, I made sure to say hi, introduce myself, and welcome her to Advent. I was robed up, sweating a bit, and the alb was a little uncomfortable. But we needed to talk so we did. She described herself as a seeker, knew the website, and wanted to know a little bit more about “all of this.” She asked for my elevator speech, for my Lutheranism-in-a-sentence take on things. I didn’t hesitate really; I just went for it. I said, “If I was going to narrow it to a sentence, I’d say we’re really focus on Christ – on Jesus – and on God taking the initiative on us and loving us. So since God loves us, now what? That’s what we explore.” I couldn’t get her to sign up for our mailing list, e-letter or like us on Facebook but she’s been at the last two Sunday services. She still won’t give us her email address but she did spend the afternoon at our large luncheon, meeting people, and talking. I saw her smile a bunch as well. Something is working here I think (and hope).
