RevGals & Pals,
Advent is practically upon us, that holy season of collisions and contradictions: the Not Yet interrupting the Now ... the birth of Something that already Is ... the disruption of complacency to reveal God at home among us ... the miraculous surprising the ordinary ... not to mention our contradictory preparations for the coming of Christ versus the coming of Christmas.
A sampling of insights from around our network, on the interruptions & contrasts that shape not only Advent but also our lives:
~ Elsa reflected on rocks this past Reign of Christ Sunday: rocks that interrupt our journeys, trip us up, stub our toes, make life hard ... yet the same rocks can represent possibilities, when we (with help from community & Spirit) can imagine it.
~ Deb at Unfinished Symphony shares, for our pondering, the collision between perspectives on that infamous word, "vocation."
~ Stratoz celebrates the professor who reminded him to see contrasting worldviews beyond his own world of studying biology...which just maybe opened his eyes to dating a poetry major & artist.
~ Not Fainthearted reminds us that waiting is not a mere liturgical observance; it collides with the practical, social, spiritual needs of our lives: like having a job that feels purposeful and provides income.
~ BookGirl recently experienced that very hard, very real collision of death interrupting life; prayers of grief & tears & holy comfort to those affected.
~ Katherine at Any Day A Beautiful Change celebrates blogs as a medium for interrupting our daily routines to enjoy a conversation (and she celebrates her 1000th blog post - congratulations!).
~ Bonnie offers a playful picture and invites us to be present in the Now, even as we await the Not Yet.
~ And Diane reminds us, thank God, that the One who will interrupt our lives this Advent doesn't need our decorations & preparations in order to arrive!
Blessings as you prepare (as much as any of us can) for the interruptions that come with Advent.
~ Rachel
I don't usually like what I write for our newsletter, and it's usually more announcement-y than spiritual, but I was thinking about Advent the other day as I wrote the newsletter and decided to try to share why I love Advent and really feel at home in this season. I think I might put this in the local newspaper, too.
ReplyDelete"I love the mystery and the symbolism and the darkness that is just begging for the Light of the World. I love the unknown and the desperation. It feels so authentic to me." Yes, and amen! Thanks for adding the link to your post, Stephanie.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the link back.
ReplyDelete~nfh
yes, thanks for the link, and thanks for sharing yours, Stephanie!
ReplyDeleteThanks, all, for your honest & provocative writing!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the link, Rachel. Tonight is our first Session meeting since this happened. There will be an empty space at the table for sure. --Wendy (Bookgirl)
ReplyDeleteThanks for reading!
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