waiting for the light

For some reason this year, it seems to me that daylight is disappearing even earlier than usual.

I should be used to the dark. We lived in Alaska for 12 years, and I became accustomed to December’s 3pm dusk.

Maybe it’s because I’ve just not adjusted to the time change, but one rainy day last week, I felt the darkness falling all afternoon, as if the day had simply surrendered to the night.

The beginning of Advent can be much like a long, dark day.

In these weeks, we, in unison with God’s people 2000 years ago, still stumble under the cloak of darkness. We search for secure footing, taking tentative steps. We reach for concealed handholds to grasp. And we never quite gain our bearings, but we cling to the hope that the Light will reach out to us in the end.

And so, during Advent, we wait.

I think it’s a good thing to allow ourselves to feel the unease of this Advent waiting. We remember the darkness that once covered time, from the last message from God in Malachi until the birth of Christ.

However, while we know the One who is Light, who has already made His way to us, what of those who don't?

I am reminded that Advent is not something long ago. It is something now - it has the potential to happen every single day when those walking in darkness see a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light dawns (from Isaiah 9:2).

May we wait beside those in darkness, holding vigil with them, expecting that God will reveal Himself to us all. May Christ be made known both in His humanity and His radiant glory. May we, like the shepherds, walk alongside others to see this thing that has come to pass.

May we pause in patience in the dark of Advent as we wait…

for the Light of the World comes to show us the way.

Today is a GOOD day!
Natalie