Our sriptures take us through the season of Advent almost to the edge of Lent. This journey of weeks is like a treasure hunt, in which each clue reveals a truth and points us on to the next. God is the mystery behind the puzzle.
During Advent, we wait for God to reveal God's self in human form, as one of us. In the weeks that follow, we see God as Spirit, creator, light, judge, and giver of grace. This is a season of awe, a time to rest in the amazement of having been created, loved, and redeemed by a God who defies description, yet chooses to reveal the mystery to hearts that can receive it.
November 27: Get Ready
Jeremiah 33:14-26; Psalm 25:1-10; 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13; Luke 21:25-36
The hummingbirds disappeared a month ago. This morning a family of Canada geese, including six young ones that just a few months ago were tiny yellow balls of fluff, took off in a flurry of wings and honks. Goodbye for now. On to a warmer South.
The mountains are erupting in a blaze of color. The wind chimes dance with increased fervency. Fireflies that lit up the trees like sparkling magic last summer now flicker diffidently, scattered over the ground for their dying.
It is time. Time to dust the cobwebs out of the woodstove and split the pile of logs waiting under the beech tree. Time to replenish the supply of bird seed and get in hay for the horses, while their coats turn from shiny to shaggy. Time to prepare.
The signs are everywhere. It's in the air. Change is coming. A time of portent, disruption, newness. Get ready. Don't be left behind.
The first tinge of chill in the air always brings a rush of excitement. Can Christmas be far behind? And yet we wait. And while we wait to see the face of God, we get ready.
Do the work inside yourself that can't be done outdoors. Prepare a fallow heart to welcome mystery, water a dormant soul with springs of joy. Cultivate awe. Plant a seed of hope.
December 4: For What?
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