Tag Archives: Advent

Dec 4

Hindsight is 2020

As we wake up, bleary eyed, on January 1, many of us will do so with relief…relief that 2020 is hindsight. And with hope…hope that 2021 will bring more peace, joy, and hugs. 

There’s no way around it; 2020 was rough. Each family rode out the storm facing a variation of gusts, in a variation of boats. But we all felt the impact of the storm – and are coming out the other side feeling a little (or a lot) battered. 

But now, we are in the homestretch. And we wait. We wait, with anticipation, for a time when work and education are steady, hugs and high fives are plentiful, and we can pack out a basement to watch a Chiefs game.

This year, particularly, the Christ Child is born into a world in desperate need of comfort and hope. A world that is weary. A world where rejoicing feels just out of reach.

As we wrap up the first week of Advent – one that focuses on hope – we anticipate the coming of a better time. As a matter of fact, that’s what Advent means. Advent is a time of hopeful, expectant waiting.

We anticipate the birth of Emmanuel, God with us. And we wait, not just for Christmas, but for the Kingdom of Heaven to come in fullness. We are living in the “already, but not yet.” Jesus is born and died on the cross. But we still await His triumphant return and the realization of His perfect Kingdom. Advent is a microcosm of our hopeful waiting in faith.

Weary and burdened, we wait for the Lord, Emmanuel, with our whole being and put our hope in His unfailing love. (Psalm 130) Our hope is an anchor for our souls. (Hebrews 6:19) And even in the midst of a difficult year, we are called to be joyful in hope and patient in affliction. (Romans 12:12)

So this Advent season and the year 2020 AD, “may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him…” (Romans 15:13) And may we all feel ‘a thrill of hope as the weary world rejoices.’ If we listen carefully, we might just hear the angel voices sing.

Romans 5:3-4 reminds us that that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope. Maybe that’s our silver lining to this pandemic. After all, hindsight is 2020.

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Dec 2

Wait Right There…

pregnant-mary

These days, if I like a song, I download it immediately. There’s no waiting to go to the mall to buy the cd. We watch shows on DVR or On Demand. If I’m ordering an item online, two days seems like a reasonable delivery time…any longer of a wait is quite pesky. If I miss a loved one, I can instantaneously exchange words via text or even Facetime. I am quite thankful for these wonderful technologies that make life easy and on-demand. But, my need for instant gratification is only being fed more and more. Instant gratification rules the lives of my children. We don’t have to wait long for much of anything anymore. But waiting is good for the soul. Waiting builds anticipation and increases appreciation.

Advent is a precious season of expectant waiting – a time ripe for longing for a God who was made man, in the form of a helpless babe. In the sixth month of her pregnancy, the Angel Gabriel appeared to young Mary and told her that she was pregnant with the Son of the Most High. Can you even imagine what those last three months of her pregnancy must have felt like as she waited for this mysterious God-Child? What would the God-Baby look like? How can God even become human? She must have worried about how she could ever live up to expectations as His mother?! Then, Jesus was born. Shepherds and Wise Men (Magi) visited. They spread the word that, truly, the Savior…the Messiah…the Lord had been born to an unwed virgin in a manger. No pressure, Mary – you just have to raise this God-Child to adulthood.

Then, thirty plus years pass as she waits to see how her son, the Son of God, is going to be a Savior. Oh my, can you imagine the waiting? Do you think she ever nagged him? “Jesus, it’s wonderful you are a carpenter like your dad and all, but aren’t you ready to step it up? You’re almost thirty now.” I can’t imagine her wait, her anticipation.

Each Advent, we have the opportunity to wait. We wait for the celebration of the birth of Christ. I was recently struck by this particular version of “O Come Emmanuel” by Allen Levi, Ed Cash, and Bebo Norman that I have loved for almost twenty years now. The lyrics and the slow, almost hopefully somber tune capture our desperate need and hopeful expectation for the arrival of our Lord – Emmanuel, God with us. This hopeful waiting captures the essence of Advent.

“Oh, come, oh, come, Emmanuel.”

And even though we are still waiting during advent, we sing:

 “Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel. Shall come to you, O Israel!”

In this first week of advent two thousand and sixteen years after Christ was born, we still wait. Because waiting is good for the soul. Yet we also rejoice; for the Light of the World has come to shatter the darkness. I think I might wait until Christmas Day to belt out this fabulous version “Joy to the World” this year. It’s going to feel good. Because some things are just worth waiting for.

We wait in hope for the Lord;
he is our help and our shield.
In him our hearts rejoice,
for we trust in his holy name.
May your unfailing love be with us, Lord,
even as we put our hope in you. –Psalm 33:20-22

*You can download these beautiful versions of “Oh, Come Emmanuel” and “Joy to the World” on iTunes here.

Dec 17

Wait Here to be Called

 

Mary and Gabriel

I don’t like to wait. I don’t like to wait in lines at amusement parks. I don’t like to wait in the carpool lane at school. I don’t like to wait to be seated at restaurants. Our kids can’t wait to open their Christmas presents. I can’t wait for the magic of Christmas Eve. And to be completely honest, sometimes, I can’t wait for all of the holiday craziness to be over, so we can get back to our routine.

Yet, the Christmas season, particularly Advent, is a season of waiting. The focus of the Advent season, of course, is to prepare for and celebrate the birth of Jesus…and anticipate Christ’s return. Advent reminds us of the importance of waiting.

This past Sunday at church, we lit the third Advent candle, symbolizing joy. Yet, our pastor acknowledged all of the pain in this world. Friends are grieving the loss of loved ones. We are heartbroken by the inexplicable violence and terror in our society. We feel the darkness when lives seem broken beyond repair. In the midst of this season of both joy and pain, we were reminded by our pastor of the words of David, who faithfully sang to the Lord, “You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, that my heart may sing to you and not be silent…” Psalm 30:11-12.

During Advent, we are waiting on the birth of Emmanuel – ‘God With Us’…A God who not only lived and died among us, but a God who promises to be with us in the middle of our joys and our pains. We wait with a spirit of hope. We wait, with faith, for a God who brings peace to our hearts in the greatest times of pain and can even turn our wailing into dancing. When we wait on the Lord, we ultimately put our hope in something greater than our circumstances. Psalm 27:14 encourages us to wait in hope: “Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD!”

We also wait for God to guide us throughout our lives. I once saw an airport sign that said, “Wait Here To Be Called.Wait Here To Be Called”  I chuckled to myself thinking it would be nice if it was that easy. We wait for our calling – to be a spouse, to be a parent, to find the right job or career – to be used by God in some unique way. We wait, not knowing how or when God will answer. Psalm 37:7 reminds us to be patient, “Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him…”

Whether or not we like it, we spend much of our time waiting – waiting for the next stage of life, waiting to feel God’s call, waiting for the pain of death and the pain of sin in the this broken world to lessen. We wait for heaven. We wait for Christ’s return.

The airport sign made me think a lot about waiting on God.

But perhaps instead waiting to be called, our calling is to wait!

God asks us to wait patiently in hope and expectation because He can heal our hearts, give us peace beyond understanding, and clothe us with great joy. So, this advent season…enjoy the wait.

The Angel, Gabriel, rocked young Mary’s world with inconceivable news of an unplanned child. The life she had been waiting for would look entirely different than she could have ever imagined. Gabriel told her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; God loves you dearly.” (Luke 2:30 PHILLIPS).

And the same is for you as we celebrate Advent.

Do not be afraid; God loves you dearly.