Happy New (church) Year! Today is the First Sunday of Advent and we begin the season
of ‘waiting’.
The Gospel today has powerful (and perhaps distressing) images of
great signs that will appear. For many of us this year we saw lots of signs
that Christmas was coming, even as far back as September, which is more
distressing than any of the images in the Gospel today. Some people love that
feeling of expectancy, of waiting for someone or something to arrive. It can be
quite an exciting time or even one of anxiety. Very often we are on high alert
during such a time, and often quite creative. We are asked to enter into the season of preparation, to celebrate God in our lives and in our world. It is a
season of great joy and of hope and while waiting is not always seen as a good
thing, it can be an interesting time of growth. So, what will our preparations
be like? In the middle of the crazy, busy days in the run up to Christmas, can
we stop and invite God into our hearts and lives once more?
“As with madness we prepare for this festive
time of year, as we rush and count the days, Advent passes in a haze, So may
our feet take us to places where we will meet You” (Janet Lees)
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