Advent

I love this time of year as each day my excitement for Christmas grows. As a child, my grandmother gave me an Advent Calendar. It began the first day of December and each day had a very special surprise attached to it. The gifts went from candy to ornaments to small toys. Every morning I would run into the kitchen to see what treasure I would find. This is one of the happiest memories from my childhood. As I recall, my Advent Calendar continued until I graduated high school. Now that I am an adult, the meaning of advent has evolved. Our church has a special advent program this year that I have found incredible. The word advent refers to the "coming arrival." It is a season filled with great anticipation. The advent is the four weeks leading up to December 24. Each week, a candle is lit, representing light spreading out into the darkness. The church has created a gift envelope to open each week. The envelope contains a scripture reading, an activity, a theme and a chance to write out a prayer surrounding that week's theme. Last week, I lit a candle for hope. This week, we light the candle for truth. A dear friend of mine and I agreed to open our envelope and light our candles at the same time each week.

One of the questions about hope asked if I have ever had to wait for something. Oh yes, yes, I have. Waiting is hard for me as it often symbolizes unknown and quietness. I am now in a season of waiting. I have found it increasingly frustrating and difficult. Countless times I've raised my hands toward the heavens, asking God to reveal the next step for me. His revelations have been faithful, but I have been upset that they aren't what I was hoping for! Last night as I prayed and opened this week's envelope, I was reminded that God is in the waiting. Surely, as He is the beginning and the end, he must certainly be all of the in between. The space between my ears has been a symphony of chaos to say the least. My hope today is that I can be quiet enough to know the presence of something greater than myself, to sense the needs of those I love, and to wait...patiently or otherwise, on the faithful leading of one who has only the best for me.

My advent calendar now is even greater than when I was small...the gifts in store must be beyond all my imagination.