Advent is not the season of Christmas the way we typically view it. Jesus has not been born yet, we are expectantly awaiting his arrival. We are sitting, waiting for the contractions to start that will change the world. Jesus did not just appear in the manger. Mary still had contractions and had to birth a breathing child, and survive the process! The risks of pregnancy and delivery were so much greater some two thousand years ago. That's why it's so absurd that Mary rode the donkey. Could you imagine being 9 months pregnant, knowing that any day was going to be the day your water broke? And here you are on a donkey in the middle of nowhere with nowhere private or comfortable to go if/when it started?
Do we ever think of those hours that Mary was laying there in a stable, surrounded by animals, Joseph by her side, and him saying "breathe!!! breathe!!! Come on, Mary, you've got this! breathe! Just a little more!" I expect in his head he was thinking "O my gosh, what do we do now? What's next?" It's not like they could call 911 or anything of the sort. They were probably lucky if there was a midwife anywhere around. But maybe they were lucky; maybe they brought their own midwife on the road with them. Maybe she was there the whole time.
But that doesn't negate the pain she had to go through to bring Jesus into the world.
And not only was she bringing her son into the world in a stable, she was bringing the savior of the world onto earth. I wonder if that comforted her, or made her more anxious about the successful delivery.
Do we ever think of that?
I approach this season with a different perspective this year. I'm in a season of expectantly awaiting news that will change my life. I am waiting knowing that more pain is probably on the way before that joyous moment that peace, hope, joy, and love enter into my current situation. I am sitting here, knowing that seasons of waiting are often the hardest. Knowing that there are singular moments that can change everything.
But, we can't rush the waiting. Waiting is part of life. And when the next moment comes that turns everything on its head, it is made that much sweeter. Waiting isn't easy, and it sure doesn't come without its moments of uncertainty, but surely the moment of arrival is sweet. Isn't it the build-up to Christmas that kids are so worked up about? After the presents are opened things start shifting back to normal.
It's all part of the seasons of life.
The same way we can't skip the cross during Lent and into Easter, we can't skip Advent and jump to the arrival of Christ in the world. Christmas only comes after the waiting. We wait mere weeks; weeks where Mary was having braxton hicks contractions, feeling Jesus move in her stomach, and probably just wanting to rest a little while on the road to Bethlehem (I can hear her yelling at the donkey she was riding, and subsequently at Joseph: "Can't we go just a bit faster!! Speed this donkey up!!!"). Mary waited through 9 months of confusion and being ostracized.
We can wait a couple weeks.
Sit and wait.
Jesus is coming.
Do we ever think of those hours that Mary was laying there in a stable, surrounded by animals, Joseph by her side, and him saying "breathe!!! breathe!!! Come on, Mary, you've got this! breathe! Just a little more!" I expect in his head he was thinking "O my gosh, what do we do now? What's next?" It's not like they could call 911 or anything of the sort. They were probably lucky if there was a midwife anywhere around. But maybe they were lucky; maybe they brought their own midwife on the road with them. Maybe she was there the whole time.
But that doesn't negate the pain she had to go through to bring Jesus into the world.
And not only was she bringing her son into the world in a stable, she was bringing the savior of the world onto earth. I wonder if that comforted her, or made her more anxious about the successful delivery.
Do we ever think of that?
I approach this season with a different perspective this year. I'm in a season of expectantly awaiting news that will change my life. I am waiting knowing that more pain is probably on the way before that joyous moment that peace, hope, joy, and love enter into my current situation. I am sitting here, knowing that seasons of waiting are often the hardest. Knowing that there are singular moments that can change everything.
But, we can't rush the waiting. Waiting is part of life. And when the next moment comes that turns everything on its head, it is made that much sweeter. Waiting isn't easy, and it sure doesn't come without its moments of uncertainty, but surely the moment of arrival is sweet. Isn't it the build-up to Christmas that kids are so worked up about? After the presents are opened things start shifting back to normal.
It's all part of the seasons of life.
The same way we can't skip the cross during Lent and into Easter, we can't skip Advent and jump to the arrival of Christ in the world. Christmas only comes after the waiting. We wait mere weeks; weeks where Mary was having braxton hicks contractions, feeling Jesus move in her stomach, and probably just wanting to rest a little while on the road to Bethlehem (I can hear her yelling at the donkey she was riding, and subsequently at Joseph: "Can't we go just a bit faster!! Speed this donkey up!!!"). Mary waited through 9 months of confusion and being ostracized.
We can wait a couple weeks.
Sit and wait.
Jesus is coming.
