Waiting can be hard, and not just for children. But I do love Advent: this four-week time when the Christian church prepares for Christmas.
Maybe I like Advent so much because it involves active waiting, not thumb-twiddling. It is a gift the church offers the world, to be active (which isn’t the same as busy) in ways that open our hearts — and the hearts we touch — to the true meaning of Christmas.
Mother Teresa said, “At this Christmas when Christ comes, will he find a warm heart? Mark the season of Advent by loving and serving others with God’s own love and concern.”
When I take time during Advent to remember in prayer and with gifts of money and time those who have less food than I do, those who are lonely, those without a home; when I pause to share love with a child or an elder, or gratitude for a healthcare worker, pastor or teacher; when I wait for justice to replace oppression but, while I wait, find ways to work for that result … the Spirit’s warmth fills my waiting heart. I am ready to welcome Jesus.
—Heidi Mann
from Newsletternewsletter.com
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