Post #64- Is That It?

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And Mary said,

I’m bursting with God-news;

    I’m dancing the song of my Savior God.

God took one good look at me, and look what happened—

    I’m the most fortunate woman on earth!

What God has done for me will never be forgotten,

    the God whose very name is holy, set apart from all others.

His mercy flows in wave after wave

    on those who are in awe before him.

He bared his arm and showed his strength,

    scattered the bluffing braggarts.

He knocked tyrants off their high horses,

    pulled victims out of the mud.

The starving poor sat down to a banquet;

    the callous rich were left out in the cold.

He embraced his chosen child, Israel;

    he remembered and piled on the mercies, piled them high.

It’s exactly what he promised,

    beginning with Abraham and right up to now.

~The Gospel According to Luke, 1^st chapter, verses 45-55 (The Message Translation)

I’m well aware that Advent isn’t a term familiar to many Christians, much less seekers or persons of other faiths. For those liturgical Christians (I grew United Methodist) Advent is the time (about a month) leading to Christmas during which we “prepare” ourselves for the Christ child. As we put ourselves in the shoes of the Israelites, waiting hundreds of years for the appearance of a Messiah…a savior, Advent is most often spoken of as a time of waiting and expectancy as we too long for a day of peace, love and joy, continuing to pray as Jesus taught us, “let they Kingdom come, thy will be done on Earth as it is in heaven.”

Having celebrated Advent most of my life, I’ve recently come to the conclusion that Christians may have missed the mark a bit regarding Advent. While Advent is a time of hope and expectancy, we must recognize that it’s also a time of great disappointment. Before you accuse me of being a “Debbie Downer,” let me explain.

We must only look to the declaration above (in addition to many other prophesies and foretelling of the coming Messiah). Mary describes her bundle of joy, as the long-awaited Messiah, savior and hero of her people, the one who would bare his arm of strength, knock the tyrants off their high horses, feed the hungry, give justice to the victimized, and chastise the callous rich and care for the poor. There are a lot of images of Jesus out there, most which are so grossly distorted by European Colonialism and American Exceptionalim that they bare no resemblance to the actual person. However, let’s get one thing clear. Jesus was an ethnic minority (Palestinian Jew) living under the oppression of European Colonialism (meaning the Jewish nation was being occupied by the Roman Empire…remember the Easter story; they had no authority crucify Jesus so they had to seek permission from Pontius Pilate, the resident Roman authority).

So, for hundreds of years the Jewish nation clearly “expected” a conquering ruler, a violent warrior that would lead a great revolution, a government overthrow that would cast off the chains of the ruling class and lead their nation to independence and justice. However, what did they get instead? Jesus was a scraggly baby born in a barn into a family of working poor (and you know the local busybodies were counting the months from Mary and Joseph’s wedding to the actual birth of their first born…hmmmm). And to make matters worse, this “Messiah” would come to preach that the Kingdom would not be achieved through a violent insurrection of the government, but it was in your heart.  Talk about a let down!

I recently heard a comedian crack a joke by saying he could judge the amount of family dysfunction inside the house by the amount of Christmas decorations on the outside of the house. Funny, but it may in some way be true.  It leads me to ask, have we, like the Jewish nation of ancient times, allowed our expectations of Christmas to cloud the expectancy of Advent. Is there a difference between expectations and expectancy or am I just playing semantics? I think there’s a difference.

Christmas is an easy target because most of us have expectations of what Christmas is, and if we somehow don’t achieve or experience that we often say, “it just doesn’t feel like Christmas,” or “I’m just not in the Christmas spirit.” However, I believe this is a spiritual principle that transcends this time of the year and can be applied in all areas of our lives. Have we created some image of perfection that must be achieved before we can experience or have happiness, joy, peace, contentment, satisfaction, self-acceptance, love, etc (just fill in the blank)?

In 12-step programs it’s often said, “expectations are little more than premeditated resentments.” This simply means that every time we set conditions under which we’ll finally be happy, fulfilled or content, we’ll inevitably be let down. This is either because something (as a recent blogger I read says) in the elaborate plans we lay out will fail or — perhaps even worse — they’ll be pulled off seamlessly. And then we’re left with the lingering question: Why am I still not happy (does this resonate with anyone?).

During Advent we are challenged to nurture and sit with the mysterious, open-ended gift of expectancy. It’s the idea, that through the ages, God can reach through space and time and offer a gift beyond (and in some ways below) anyone’s expectations, while perfectly meeting our need.


May I end by offering what The Expectancy of Advent might look like:

1. ·      Hopeful without setting terms and conditions for the outcomes.  Having faith that what God has for you, you may not recognize until it’s already happening.  It says, with wide-eyed wonderment, something beautiful is happening, and whichever way you bless me Lord, I’ll be satisfied.
2. ·      Making space for God’s grace. Advent reminds us to slow down to make space and set aside time and attention to notice where God may be moving, even if it seems unlikely.
3. ·      Being present. Advent also reminds us to live into the fullness of life, here and now, as it already is, rather than requiring it to be different in order for it to be good enough. In the mindful practice of creating that space, we may become attuned enough to the sense of Advent that we carry it with us into the rest of the year.

One of my favorite quotes of the late Nelson Mandela states, “There is nothing like returning to a place that remains unchanged to find the ways in which you yourself have altered.”

I pray that, although you may find a Christmas season unchanged, you will in fact find that you yourself have been altered, leaving “expectations” behind to embrace expectancy. Welcome to Advent, there are #bigthingscoming!

NOTE: If you’re new to the site it might be helpful to read the first (introductory) post. Also, feel free to post your questions or comments here and you can always reach out to me on Twitter @raycjordan using the hash tag #bigthingscoming.

(Copyright, 2013, Ray Jordan) 

Please Enjoy this Version of my Grandmother's favorite Christmas Song! 

"Jesus, What a Wonderful Child!"