Advent

Advent begins on Sunday.  It ‘s a little late this year.

Advent is a season of waiting.
We are waiting in a broken and struggling world for God who will come close.
Close enough to touch our lives, to hear our struggles, to heal our sorrows, to show us hope.

Advent is often a lost season on campus.  Who has time for Advent calendars and wreaths with end-of-the-semester deadlines and preparing for finals week?  There is barely time to pack for semester break and do some Christmas shopping before heading home.

Advent is often a lost season in our culture.  Who has time for waiting when there are so many Christmas parties to arrange and attend?  It seems nearly impossible to wait, to watch, to prepare for the coming of God in the rush of celebrations.  It seems nearly impossible that God will bother with the quiet, the powerless, the lowly.

Yet, Advent comes, whether we notice it or not.  In the quiet of long, dark nights.  In gentle music about our longing for God to come at long last.  In the growing lights of candles on the wreath . . . one, then two, three and finally four.  Advent comes in places we never expected.

Advent also comes in our prayers for healing of this broken world.  In our prayers for justice and care for the poor and downtrodden.  In our prayers of thanks for God’s favor for the lowly and the lost.

Surprisingly enough, in the midst of the chaos and clamor of our holiday season, Advent comes.