Fuller Seminary
Reflections for the Advent Season 2012
BARBARA WILLIAMS
MDiv student, Fuller Northwest
I am the Young Adult (post-college) ministry coordinator at my church, and young adults (like many of us) have busy, hectic lives during the Christmas season . . . graduate school finals, new jobs, holiday travel, new housing, new roommates, and holiday events. Because of their fast-paced and full lives, I am leading a four-week series on waiting and being present to God during the Advent season. This is the reflection for our first meeting:
Henri Nouwen wrote, "A waiting person is a patient person. The word 'patience' means the willingness to stay where we are and live the situation out to the full in the belief that something hidden there will manifest itself to us. Impatient people are always expecting the real thing to happen somewhere else and therefore want to go elsewhere. The moment is empty. But patient people dare to stay where they are. Patient living means to live actively in the present and wait there. Waiting, then, is not passive. It involves nurturing the moment, as a mother nurtures the child that is growing in her womb." (Eternal Seasons: A Spiritual Journey Through the Church's Year).
There are many examples of saints who have waited before us. "And so after waiting patiently, Abraham received what was promised" (Hebrews 6:15). David admonishes us to "Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord" (Psalm 27:14). Simeon "was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was on him" (Luke 2:25). And all these saints waited "in the present . . . nurturing the moment."
How do we wait in the present while nurturing the moment? One way to be present while waiting is in contemplative prayer. For me, contemplative prayer is resting in God. It is different from meditation, in that the mind is not occupied with a scripture verse or story. But the mind is actively waiting, without expectations, engaged in the present where God is. We don't have to "do" anything, just respond to God's initiative. I think of it as sitting on a park bench on a warm afternoon, with no expectations, not dwelling on the past or in the future. Simply being aware of the presence of God.
I encourage you to take five minutes from your busy schedule every day during Advent to wait in God's presence. Sit quietly and wait for the Lord with no apprehension and no concerns. Nurture the moment as a mother nurtures the child that is growing in her womb.
