Adventous action

I recently went in to see my SD and he asked me, "What does Christmas mean for you?" He had asked me the same question just at the start of Advent and was enquiring how I had been spending the weeks thus.

We had previously discussed the visitation and how Mary must've been encountering the darkest moments of her young life even as she uttered the words of the lovely Magnificat.

I had entered Advent in darkness myself for I had questions about my health (I feel like my body is in the worst state it's ever been due to abuse and neglect) and my fidelity to Jesus (I have not been writing lately but have instead sought the mind-numbing state of TV inertia).

I felt beset by my own weaknesses and human imperfections.

Despite the self-imposed darkness, there have been moments of light, insight and gratitude during this period of Advent as I have tried to keep in mind what SD had said about focusing on prayer and Scripture in attempting to decipher my own interpretation of Christmas.

During this latter meeting, I shared about how I felt challenged to do something this Christmas that was uncharacteristic for me and required quite a bit of psychic energy to muster the courage to carry through, he commented that this season of the liturgical calendar is a time for coming out of our comfort zones.

Just as Joseph and Mary had travelled far from home and family to Bethlehem, with Joseph probably having to stop on the way to seek work as a carpenter in order to finance their arduous journey, the couple would have found themselves far outside their comfort zones.

Alone, homeless, with a child on the way, what was supposed to be a joyous occasion with friends and relatives present to celebrate was instead a sojourn in a strange place marked by a singular lack of support.

And yet, because of their faith and acceptance of the situation, the willingness to be led by the Spirit, the eventual momentous occasion of the birth of Christ in a humble manger was witnessed and welcomed by lowly shepherds and their flocks, a celestial guiding light and and the otherworldly beauty of angels' voices.

The "coming" of the Lord does indeed happen in ways unimaginable and surprisingly joyous despite the strangeness of the situation.

One recurrent thought this Advent has been to let God be God and as I follow the dictates of my heart, led by the Spirit, I await the coming of the infant Jesus in taking the unusual action of coming out of my comfort zone to glorify Him in ways novel and creative.