My Advent

"You, Lord, are our father. . . . Why do you let us wander, O Lord, from your ways, and harden our hearts? No ear has ever heard, no eye ever seen, any God but You, doing such deeds for those who wait for Him. Yet, O Lord, You are our father; we are the clay and You the potter!  We are all the work of Your hands." [Isaiah 63: 16-19; 64:2-7].

Advent begins on the Sunday nearest to November 30. And so, once again, the season of Advent is upon us.

Advent means "arrival" and it signals a new beginning in the Christian calendar. We begin a new Christian year with this season of hope and joy, as we wait for the arrival of the baby Jesus.

I have had many seasons of Advent in my life. In our lives, there are seasons of incredible energy and action. Then there are seasons of waiting. We humans cannot "see" God at work and so, we think nothing is happening. But God is there, preparing a Way for us, and we need to prepare ourselves for Him!

My childhood was topsy turvy and upside down. As with a House of Mirrors, nothing was as it seemed. My family judged others, yet detested being judged themselves. We had plenty of food but many nights, I was not fed a proper dinner. We called ourselves "Christians" but we stopped going to church when I was 14. Our health was of paramount importance to my family; in fact, one of the things that my mother feared the most was ill health. And yet, treatment for my chronic lung condition ceased when I began high school. I heard poetic rhetoric about the love of a mother for her child, but no one ever hugged me or said "I love you."

Even when I was very young, I longed for something, or Someone, who was more loving, more peaceful, more gentle, more compassionate, than the people I had been given. I did not understand it at the time, but I was really longing for God!

I knew in my heart that instead of strife, I was meant to have peace. I knew that instead of the cold withholding of affection, I was meant to receive love. I knew in my heart that instead of judging others for something they could do nothing about, I was meant to show mercy to others.

I underwent a prolonged period, waiting for God. In the meantime, my family believed that I was a piece of clay that it was their responsibility to shape and mold. They told me what to eat, how to wear my hair, what colors to wear, what to study in school, where to go to school, what profession I would pursue, whom to date, even what company to work for. I felt a failure sometimes, because I could not be the person they told me to be.

I did not know about this Scripture from Isaiah, that it is God who is our One True Father. Our parents only borrow us for awhile, and if you are lucky, your parents guide you, not in worldly ways, but in the ways of God, in the path towards Christ.

If you believe that it is your job to mold and shape someone in your own image, you are playing God. Only God can truly lead you. "We are all the work of His hands."

And so I waited. But I did not simply bide my time. I did not wait passively. I studied hard in school. I had to get A's so that I could leave my father and my mother, and become independent. I started a babysitting business and saved all my money for my future.

Most importantly, I did my best to keep peace in my childhood home. I tended to my mother's garden. I sewed and mended the family's clothes. If the strife became too much, I simply walked away. I went to my room and sang songs. Or, I left the house and sat under a fragrant pine tree.

After I finished my undergraduate and graduate studies, I moved to a nearby city and rented an apartment. I bought curtains and a quilt. I purchased furniture and acquired cooking utensils. I worked hard at my job and received a nice raise. Finally, I was ready ---and God sent the man who was to become my husband.

I had made all my preparations, meeting hard times with peace, with love, with hard work, with the patience and faith of  expecting a better future. And God finally came to me, when I was ready for Him.

There is God in my mate. My husband is gentle, kind, patient, slow to anger, compassionate and merciful. He loves me for myself, AND despite myself (for we all have our many faults, being only human).

God is preparing  a loving, peaceful Way for all of us through the Way of His Son. But, as the parable in Mark 13:33-37 says, we must "Be watchful! Be alert! . . . . May he not come suddenly and find you sleeping."

I waited 26 long years for my husband to come along. I waited 26 long years for someone to hug me and say, "I love you!"

What is your Advent? And how long will you wait -- lovingly, patiently, peacefully, even joyfully for the coming of God, and Christ, into your life?

Or will you be too busy to notice; too angry to reap the rewards; too asleep to even recognize God when He comes into your life; too self-absorbed to discern the path in following the Prince of Peace?

God, we are all the work of Your hands! Your Ways are not our ways. But we seek Your ways in waiting joyfully for the coming of Your Son!

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