Anticipation and Accomplishment

I am sitting in the chair that my family has named my “prayer chair,” on the Saturday morning before the third Sunday of Advent, and my mind is filled with thoughts of how quickly we are heading toward the celebration of Christmas day. I am reflecting on what this season has brought so far.

Through the days of late November and December, I have bounced between anticipation of an event or a task and the accomplishment of that event or task. The ebb and flow of working towards a goal and fulfilling that goal have been my rhythm.

In these days of Advent, I prepared for singing after experiencing some vocal fatigue, and then breathed a sigh of relief after getting through the solo. I have worked with children through the excitement of presenting a Christmas concert and have arrived at the moment of performance. I have purchased gifts that sit ready for wrapping. My almost daughter-in-law, who has studied and worked so diligently towards her goal of becoming a nurse, graduated with her BSN this week. (I am so proud of her!) Together, my family and I have celebrated birthdays and prayed with friends who are dealing with health issues in hopes of healing and wholeness.

Advent has been a series of anticipations and accomplishments. Each event or task has brought with it the work of preparation followed by the outcome.

Mary, the mother of Jesus, knew all too well the feeling of anticipation and accomplishment. Her expressions of anticipation are written for us in Luke 1: 46 – 55, in the passage we know as Mary’s Magnificat – her canticle of praise.

"My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant.

Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name. His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty. He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, according to the promise he made to our ancestors, to Abraham

and to his descendants forever."

Mary not only anticipated the birth of the baby that she was carrying, but she also looked toward what would be fulfilled through his coming. He would scatter the proud, bring down the powerful, and send the rich away empty. He would lift up the lowly, fill the hungry, and help his servant.

The cycle of anticipation and accomplishment that Mary experienced continues in our day. We walk through Advent with quiet prayers that Christ will continue to scatter the proud and fill the hungry – not just fill them but fill them with good things.

We live in this cycle because we know that Christ dwells in it with us. Christ comes to fullness in us when we surrender to his presence, and he fills us with good things. It is only when we do this that we can love and live in the ways of Christ.

Mountains and Valleys

I have to admit that I am not much of a traveler. I do love a good adventure and experiencing new things, but it is the process of getting there that trips me up.

Put me in a car – particularly on the passenger side, and I am happy. It’s boarding one of those big jets and taking off into the skies that gets my pulse racing and my prayers flowing.

Despite my flight anxiety, my husband and I decided this was the year to take a big trip. There are many places on our travel bucket list that we are longing to see, so this past summer we decided to check one off of our list.

Northern California with its beautiful coastline and enchanting wineries was one of the places we wanted to experience. We made plans to travel there with some good friends and headed out on our adventure.

Even with my flight fear, I tend to enjoy looking out the window at the landscape below. This being my first flight across the country, I was excited to catch a glimpse of the Rocky Mountains and the desert all in one flight. They did not disappoint. There were snow-capped mountains out my window one hour and the next hour the flat sandy desert appeared. It was beautiful to see these formations from above.

I am reflecting on the flights we took to and from California as we arrive on this second Sunday of Advent. It was the first time that I experienced deserts, valleys, and mountains all within a period of a few short hours.

Isaiah 40:3-5 says, “A voice cries out: ‘In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all people shall see it together…’”(Isaiah 40:3-5)

Advent arrives and says to us, here is your God! Wake up and see that God has come to you. God has come to make the rough places smooth, to reveal the glory of God, to feed the flocks, to carry the lambs, to lead the sheep, and to offer comfort for our weary souls.

Then the instructions come; to climb to the highest mountain and proclaim this good news - to do as the old song says, “Go tell it on the mountain, over the hills, and everywhere.” We are to declare that despite our failures and shortcomings, God has bent down to hold us and bring us comfort.

What is your Advent proclamation? And what mountains will you climb to proclaim it?

Rocking Into Advent

My first moments of Advent were spent in our leather rocker recliner with my grandson, Ryder.

Ryder and his parents were getting ready to head back to their home after spending the Thanksgiving holidays with us. I told his mom to let me have Ryder when he woke so I could spend a couple of hours with him before they hit the road.

Snuggled up with me in his Christmas pajamas, Ryder and I began to rock, and then we began to sing. Okay, I did most of the singing, but he cooed along. As we rocked and sang, I began to think about the irony of me holding this precious baby on the same day we prepare for another baby's coming into the world.

Away in a Manger was our first carol. It really is a lullaby itself.

Be near me, Lord Jesus,

I ask Thee to stay

Close by me forever,

And love me, I pray.

Bless all the dear children

In thy tender care,

And fit us for heaven

To live with Thee there.

Advent reminds us that God showed up for us in the form of a baby. God became a tiny life held by human hands – small and vulnerable.

While I held and rocked Ryder, I took in every detail of his face, hands, and toes. I soaked in his smiles and listened intently to his coos, and I wondered if the Baby Jesus looked the same – small, sweet, and cuddly when he was three months old. Did his parents and grandparents marvel at him in the same way that I marvel at Ryder?

How can a baby bring so much love and hope to the world? I believe that is the gift – that God brings hope from the simplest of life forms. That “out of a stump would grow a shoot…and the Spirit of the Lord will rest upon him – the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.” (Isaiah 11:1-2)

Christ comes to us in this small, tender way – as a baby. He comes as a shoot from Jesse’s branch ready to bear fruit in the world. Ready to bear fruit in you and me.

God begs us to pay attention to the small things – the infant, the shoot, the least, and the lost. Those are the places where God shows up. Emmanuel – God is with us.