As a season, Advent lends itself well to the arts. I think it’s because Advent embraces tension—between the now and not yet, celebration and anticipation, despair and delight. That’s what art does too. It thrives in the tensions and dynamics of life: up and down, loud and soft, light and dark. The spectrum of emotions captured in Advent (“the hopes and fears of all the years”) are so wild, so complex, so contradictory, that sometimes a song or a painting or a poem captures it better than words

All of this is amplified in 2020, a year in which fears are scarier and hope is more crucial than normal. That’s why we are making a big deal of Advent this year at TGC, including a 100-song playlist of Advent music and our first-ever virtual Advent concert—premiering this Sunday night.

You won’t want to miss the concert (and don’t worry if you are busy Sunday night—you can watch it anytime after it premieres). The artists involved will beautifully contemplate—through song and spoken word—Christ, the incarnation, and the visceral anticipation we feel in our weary souls for Christ’s second Advent. Join us Sunday night, and be sure to watch till the end. The final song is one of the most beautiful renditions of “O Holy Night” I’ve ever seen.