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Deacon Tom writes ©
“Waiting in Hope”
Several
weeks ago we read the Prophet Isaiah raising this prayer to God on behalf of
God’s chosen ones: “Oh that you would rend the heavens and come
down”. Today we read from Isaiah again and he is instructing the people, “Fear not to cry out and say to the cities of
Judah: Here is your God! Here comes with power the Lord God, who
rules by His strong arm…”.
These
two readings from Isaiah express a wonderful mystery of our faith, that God is
with us right at this present moment, and yet, at the same time, we have not
yet fully experienced His presence. Advent is a time to reflect on His presence
in our daily lives and to know that there is more to come…And so, we wait in hope! We look ahead to the
day when God’s fullness will totally reign in
our hearts and in the world.
We wait for that day when a new heaven
and the new earth will replace the old order; we wait for the day when the
justice, peace, and the realities of God’s kingdom replace the disharmony and
chaos that are the dominant forces at work in our world today; we wait for our
lives to be more complete and fulfilling.
Advent
is a season of expectant hope. It is a time when we dream new dreams about
becoming the person God has called us to be. It is a time when the spirit of
hope leads us to new beginnings. Who do you want to be when that new heaven and
new earth arrives? Do you want to
be a more caring person? Do you
want to be more gracious, more thankful, and more prayerful? Or, perhaps, we want to leave behind
memories of the past that are painful and full of sorrow. The beauty of Advent
is that we get to fill in the blanks… and be filled with the hope that, with
God’s help, we can accomplish all that we dare hope for. Advent is a time of
waiting, a season of hope, for God to come into our lives and fill us with the
true gifts of this season… peace, joy, love, those gifts that come from the
Holy Spirit.
Each
of us has the opportunity to reclaim Advent as a special time of hope. Each of
us can make this a spiritual season by looking inward and hoping that the promises
God holds in store for each one of us will become our reality… promises of
newness, renewal, of our well being. That’s what hoping is all about. .
May
this Advent journey be a time of new beginnings, new hopes, and new joys. May
God’s gift of new life set us free to seek
the giver and share the many gifts He
has in store for those who place their hope in Him.
Enjoy
the day and the Season!
Deacon
Tom
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