An Advent of Yearning: Reconciling Loss With Gain
Honestly, is it really beginning to look a lot like Christmas? Methinks not, as Charles Dickens might have said. These days, the calendar and the commercials remind us. And we may be getting our decorations up. And for those of us who prepare our hearts for the Christ Child’s arrival, we can look for cues in carols and readings. Yet our hearts long for so much more. Because we are, in this, an advent of yearning, reconciling loss with gain.
Preparing Our Hearts Means Inventorying Losses and Gains
This reckoning is twofold. Advent is indeed a season of anticipation. It consists of the four Sundays preceding Christmas. Generally defined, it means the arrival of a notable person thing or event. Within the confines of the Christian church, it refers to the initial coming of the Christ child. And it even refers to the second coming of Christ.
This “double advent” got me all excited! In this, the time of Covid, some people shrug their shoulders, look out the window and anticipate swarms of locusts and other end-time signs. So the notion of a “two-fer” advent looks like a great holiday “revamp” to me! We can look forward with great anticipation to the return of the One who is Faithful and True, and the only one worthy to open the scrolls as we are reminded in John’s book of Revelation. Indeed, those are both “advent-tures” I can wrap my jolly around.
But I’m currently unable to get stoked right now. Why? This season’s current restrictions. Cancelled annual events and parties. Refunded plane tickets. Loved ones out of the loop on December 25th. Christmas shopping, holiday lunches with friends, and afternoon hot cocoa with friends – many of these things won’t be happening. But when it comes right down to it, none of these now-sidelined activities embodies the true meaning of Christmas. And so we soldier on, moving in ever closer to the Babe in the manger. Because this arrival is not dependent on the activities surrounding Christmas, we are uniquely poised to focus on that light in the imposed stillness that feels like a darkness.
Contemplating Light in the Darkness
Before Jesus was born, God’s people lived in complete darkness. Mired in their sin. But in Isaiah 9:2, we read that “the people walking in darkness have seen a great light. For those who live in a land of deep darkness, a light has dawned.” The prophet Isaiah wrote that about the arrival of the Christ child. In Matthew 2:9-10 we read about the wise men following the light of the star. We can only imagine the brilliant light this celestial body gave off the night Jesus was born.
Even as that image forms in our minds, we anticipate the arrival of the Messiah. We reflect on that dark night in Bethlehem. What a night that must have been, when the Light of the World arrived! And as Jesus grew in stature and spirit and began to shine His light in His earthly interactions, those who met the Messiah as a man embarked on new “advent-tures.” Jesus brought sight to the blind. He illuminated the minds of the disciples with the light of His teachings. And the darkness of men’s hearts was exposed to His inimitable truth and goodness.
Of course, that light of the world “became flesh and dwelt among us” as we read in n Acts 26:18 the people are told to “open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God in order to be saved.”
And so they did.
And history was forever changed. We learn from the despair of darkness what the light really means for our lives. It starts with a prompting from God who calls us “out of darkness into His marvelous light.” (1 Peter 2:9.) In Psalm 146:8 we read that the Lord “opens the eyes of the blind.” Because of our sin nature, that process is accurate. We know that God’s light exposes dark deeds and dark hearts. Darkness cannot thrive in the presence of light. And the mere presence of darkness can never extinguish a light source. Yet even the smallest amount of light illuminates the darkness. That’s true in nature and in our spiritual lives. And that sanctification process, though painful, is necessary.
In some ways, waiting periods are also a kind of darkness. Because so many outcomes on earth are unknown. Our futures are unpredictable. Of course, we wait out the pandemic. And we trust a vaccine will bring a close to these uncertain times. And we wait for the Christ child at Christmas and our returning Messiah in that uncertainty some call the “messy middle.”
Reveling in Expectation As We Wait
But the messy middle can also bring clarity about what’s really important. In an Advent devotion called “Watch for the Light: Readings for Advent and Christmas” the contributing essayists wax eloquently on the awe and wonder of the holy birth. And they encourage us to do some deep thinking about all Christ’s coming means for our lives.
In one essay, entitled “The Light of the World,” writer Evelyn Underhill movingly speaks about trying to “Learn a little of the height and breadth and depth of His love – and then apply it to our own lives. ” Indeed, this endeavor is sure to bring what God intended to be the greatest Christmas blessing of all – His perfect love. After all, this unique characteristic possessed only by Him is what both separates imperfect man from God and ultimately, miraculously reunites us at the same time.
But, as Underhill reminds us, we can’t remain at the foot of the throne in awe alone. She reminds us of this important fact: “Beholding His glory is only half our job. In our souls, too, the mysteries must be brought forth.” Join me in accepting the challenge to ponder the mysteries of God – His divinity as God and as the Son of Man – not just with our minds but with our hearts. The richness of that experience, when relentlessly pursued, is enough to squelch the earthly disappointments we may face in this holiday season.
Join Christian encourager/blogger/author Cindy LaFavre Yorks as she sojourns alongside you in your faith walk. Partner with her as she shares her travel tips for navigating life’s most challenging detours. Through personal storytelling and Bible application, Cindy cheers you on as you raise your white flag and deepen your trust in Him to develop an unshakeable faith to help you go the distance.
