I am reading a collection of writings from Henri Nouwen and there is a section that deals with Advent. It was in my reflections of his writing that I was inspired and challenged to consider more deeply the meaning of the Advent season.
“The word Advent comes from the Latin words, ad venire (to come to) & adventus (an arrival), and refers to Christ's coming into this world. The Advent season is a time of joyful expectation and preparation for Christmas, the day upon which Christ's birth is celebrated and His first coming into this world. The focus of Advent is upon the centuries of waiting and preparation by God's chosen people which preceded the coming of the Messiah. As such, it is a time marked by expectation, hope, preparedness and penance. The later being mindful of John the Baptist's cry to prepare for the coming of the Lord with repentance. (Matt. 3:3, 11:10; Mark 1:2-3; Luke 1:17, 1:76, 3:4).
Also, while Advent is the season before Christmas, the focus of Advent is by no means limited to just Christ's first coming. An equal, if not more important, theme found in the Advent Liturgy is the Second Coming of Christ when He comes again to judge the world. (Tempus Adventus, Michael Martin)
It takes work to grasp the concept of Advent in a culture where we don’t wait for anything. This last year has proven that an economy that has people scrambling to hold on to their investments can help to redirect our focus to the things that have lasting value. I know for me it has always been easy to get caught up in the ‘American dream’, that affirms the idea that I am entitled to certain things and it is my right to have those things. Thus, the ‘American dream’ fosters a spirit of impatience and greed and can quickly become a misleading lifestyle. It is in direct contrast to the spirit of Advent. Advent, a season designed to heighten our sense of anticipation has been turned into a season of heightened impatience and frustration.
We are constantly bombarded with mixed messages of what we “must have” from money, to cars, to houses, or the latest gadget promising to make my life easier. Not that those things are bad, but we often find them adding to a long list of distractions. Material possessions often separate us from the voice of the oppressed and direct our attention to things that have little lasting value. It isn’t an easy task to refocus our attention because these distractions get into our heads and seep into our hearts drowning out our sacred longings that call us, plead with us to sift through all of those distractions in search of what it really means to be alive.
There are certain things that we can do on a daily basis to combat the constant bombardment of distractions that try to force there way into our lives. We must discern what has lasting value. The longings of the heart can easily be temporarily filled with things that will be gone tomorrow. In the spirit of Advent we must pause in the chaos of our everyday routines and search for Emmanuel, our lasting hope. Do what you must to stop the noise, if only for a moment. Go for a walk. Reflect with a cup of coffee. Sit under a blanket and look out the window as the snow falls. Build a fire with a loved one and just sit together and talk. If all your possessions and all the “things” that make you feel alive were taken away…what would remain?
How can we act upon the lasting hope that gives us our real value? It doesn’t have to be something so big that the story will reach the front page of the New York Times. It doesn’t have to send you to a third world country. It is by caring for the needs of others that we will find Christ and what brings life. We need to ask ourselves, what is the needs that are right in front of us? God show us the people right here in our community that need our help and your love. Is there someone who needs a listening ear? Is there someone who needs a ride to the grocery store? Is there someone who needs their driveway shoveled, or someone that needs a coat? Our prayer is God, that you would open our eyes that we may see the needs of those around us.
“I find this to be a hopeful message. Somehow, I keep expecting loud and impressive events to convince me and others of God’s saving power; but over and over again I am reminded that spectacles, power plays, and big events are the ways of the world. Our temptation is to be distracted by them and made blind to the “shoot that shall sprout from the stump.” When I have no eyes for the small signs of God’s presence-the smile of a baby, the carefree play of children, the words of encouragement an gestures of love offered by friends-I will always remain tempted to despair.” (Henri Nouwen)
I love you all very much and I am honored to be a daughter, sister and friend to each of you. My prayer is that Christ grabs your full attention and reveals to you what has true value and brings life to you and to those around you and that as you act upon those things, that He will continue to prod your spirit with new ways of serving until His return.
In Celebration of the King of Kings,
Annalisa
“Hope is trusting that something will be fulfilled, but fulfilled according to the promises and not just according to our wishes…It was only when I was willing to let go of my wishes that something really new, something beyond my own expectations, could happen to me.”
Henri Nouwen
