   
My Dear Friends,
When Jennifer and I were looking at the Advent readings and thinking about a "theme" that would be easy for us all to remember during this busy time, I looked up from the scriptures and just blurted out, "We're waiting." We'd been thinking about how Advent is a time of preparation but I shrugged off the idea of preparing. It seemed too close to the stressful type of preparing we do this time of year- spending lots of money on gifts and food, spending time in the hustle and bustle whether we enjoy it or it produces anxiety in us. Maybe the details and extra work that ministry demands during Advent made me want to avoid the word prepare...but here's the truth:
Waiting and preparing go hand in hand. Far be it from me to lead anyone to think that our Advent waiting--or any of our waiting-- is just about warm blankets and hot chocolate and zoning out in a Zen state. By all means, take those moments when they come as gifts along the way, but remember that real waiting--once we know what we are waiting for--requires the work of preparation.
The prophets will speak to us this weekend: Malachi, Zechariah, and John the Baptizer will all talk about preparing the way. Images of crooked roads being straightened, mountains leveled, and valleys raised are metaphors for the deep work of preparation in our hearts as the object of our waiting becomes clearer...as we begin to understand, even just a little, what our prayer means, "all of our waiting is a waiting for God."
So how do we prepare? What are practical ways in our very real lives that we can make use of the gift of waiting-time by preparing? We will explore this on Sunday and my deepest prayer, with St. Paul, is "that our love may overflow more and more with knowledge and full insight to help us to determine what is best."
Keep going. Stay the course. The path will straighten that leads to all we long for. We're waiting. We're human. We're in this together. If it's been a while, please join us. See you Sunday.
Peace,
Gabe
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