Come Learn Rest Ministries

I have been on a lot of journeys this year; so I thought it appropriate to approach Advent as a journey. Every journey requires waiting to reach a destination. The journey of Advent requires waiting on God.

In Watch for the Light: Readings for Advent and Christmas, Henri Nouwen writes:

Waiting is not a very popular attitude. Waiting is not something that people think about with great sympathy. In fact, most people consider waiting a waste of time. Perhaps this is because the culture in which we live is basically saying, “Get going! Do something! Show you are able to make a difference! Don’t just sit there and wait!” For many people, waiting is an awful desert between where they are and where they want to go. And people do not like such a place. They want to get out of it by doing something (pg. 27).

And so I have several Advent calendars this year to remind me that waiting happens one day at a time. I cannot rush the journey, I wait like you for the birth of Christ.

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us,
and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son
from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:14 ESV)

Each of us is invited on the journey of Advent to experience the fullness of the Father’s grace and truth. One day at a time, may you and I find ways to be counter-cultural by wasting time, simply waiting.