HE COMES TO US IN OUR WAITING

Today is the beginning of Advent. 

Every December, long before we unwrap gifts or gather around tables, the season of Advent invites us into a quieter rhythm. It does not push or pressure. It does not demand. It simply asks us to wait and to prepare.

Waiting is not something our world celebrates. We rush. We hurry. We fill every day before it even begins. And if we are honest, the world around us can rattle our souls without much effort.

Take Black Friday, for instance. “Don’t miss this once-in-a-lifetime-deal that will absolutely change your entire life forever!”  Nothing pulls me out of spiritual preparation faster than a countdown clock on a toaster I was not even thinking about buying. 

In South Africa, the land of my birth, the country I love, Advent falls in the warmth of summer holidays. Long days. Beach towels drying in the sun. Children running free. There is a slowness to it, a kind of ease. But even then, the peace of a summer’s day is not the same as the peace God gives. One rests the body; the other steadies the soul.

Advent’s peace is different.

It is not seasonal; it is sacred.

It is not a break from work; it is the slow forming of anticipation.

It is not found in the perfect atmosphere but in the opened heart.

Advent’s peace is not just a restful vacation or a quiet moment tucked between shopping. It is deeper. It is quieter. It is almost stubborn in the way it insists on finding us right in the middle of everything else.

Advent whispers to our hurried hearts, “Prepare, for the Holy is coming (1).”

When we lean into that invitation, even a little, the preparation begins to change us. The waiting begins to calm us. Our thoughts soften. Our breath steadies. Our souls rest a little deeper as we anticipate the coming Christ. 

Not only the Christ of the nativity we cherish, but the Christ who steps into our lives today, bringing peace where we worry, joy where we feel empty, light where shadows lay long.  Advent teaches us to welcome Him again, not out of duty, but out of longing. Real, human, everyday longing.

In this season filled with gatherings, traditions, beautiful songs, and sparkling lights, Advent gently pulls our attention back to the heart of it all. It reminds us that the joy we celebrate is rooted in a promise that God comes close.

He comes to us in our waiting.

He comes to us in our preparing.

He comes to us when our hearts finally grow still enough to notice His presence.

May Advent be a sanctuary for you this year.

May it remind you that slowing down is not a waste; it is a holy practice.

And as we light candles, wrap gifts, listen to carols, and gather with loved ones, may our hearts stay attuned to the deeper story beneath the season. The story of divine love drawing near, of hope awakening, of Christ coming again into the everyday moments of our lives.

This, then, is the beauty of Advent.

We wait.

We prepare.

And in the quiet, Christ comes.

May we think on these things!

1 “But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.” Luke 2:19