The emergence of John the Baptist was like the sudden sounding of the voice of God. At this time, the people were sadly conscious that the voice of the prophets spoke no more. Throughout the long centuries the voice of prophecy had been silent. As they put it themselves, “there was no voice, nor any that answered.” But in John, the prophetic voice spoke again. And his message: “The Lord is coming.”
All of life is an Advent, a waiting for something we’re not completely sure of, but which we want desperately, as much as life itself.
But we are not good “wait-ers.” We’re not used to it, with everything so immediately available and at our fingertips, Waiting has become an obsolete enterprise for so many people. But not for all. Children’s excitement builds while they’re waiting. Expectant mothers wait for nine long months and are conscious of all the changes that are going on within their bodies and within their hearts. Older people wait for Spring and often they wait to die. All of these experiences and many more can teach us something about the good that can come from waiting.
John the Baptist and this Season of Advent are meant to teach us how to wait – not with anxiety but with hope and anticipation. Advent is never a disappointment. Our expectations and our hopes are never dashed by the event of Christ’s birth. As the people of the Old Testament waited and were finally rewarded, so are we.
And for a lot of reasons, we need to know that the things we cannot achieve instantly, such as justice for all people, and world peace, are worth waiting and working for. There are times when we don’t believe it, when struggle becomes too much and the disappointments too frequent. Even today’s hero, John the Baptist sent word later in the gospel wondering if Jesus really was the Savior – or should he look for another. When we try with our lives to preach the Good News in a broken world, a part of us gets broken too. It is not difficult to recall numerous incidents where women and men give up or turn in on themselves and on each other. It happens in marriages that have become stale; it happens in prisons that have become inhuman; it happens in governments that have forgotten or ignored the cries of people who are poor, hungry, and oppressed. It happens among those who work for peace, especially if it has been for a long time. It can be frustrating to work long and hard for something that seems just beyond reach. There is no better season to appreciate the benefits of waiting than Advent. We pray: “Lord, strengthen us to wait upon you with courage and faith.”
God bless! Have a wonderful week!