"Jesus is Coming. Look Busy."

There was a cartoon a long time ago—I think it was the Far Side—that had that caption. The picture was an older guy sitting on a chair in front of a TV looking at an open Bible that’s upside down. Makes me laugh every time thinking about it.

Jesus is coming! That’s the big theme of Advent, the month before Christmas. It’s a time of preparation… Christmas decorations, anyone? And reflection… maybe not so much, given everything we do between now and Dec. 24. I’ve tried to make all the “busy-ness” that I do to be a part of that preparation. It’s hard. Some years, I wish I could go on retreat in the woods somewhere and come back on Dec. 26. However, I do love the lights, the cookies, the eggnog, and gatherings with people. I’m not an extrovert, but I like being around people. And I know and have faith that God comes to me in those times…

Jesus is coming! Does the busyness take away from that awareness? Jesus is coming! And I don’t mean in a “second coming” End of the World sense; no one knows when that’s going to happen so no point in worrying about that. Jesus IS coming in the presence of the Holy Spirit, in his Word, in and through other people. That is certain, and Jesus describes it like a “thief in the night”—surprise! Life is full of surprises, and sometimes Jesus is present in them. The world was surprised by the birth of God’s Son in a humble manger born to humble parents. And a lot of people were too busy to notice. Our “world” gets surprised and shaken in all kinds of ways—loss, heartbreak, a diagnosis, a windfall…

Is God coming into our lives through those things? That’s a tough question. Advent reminds us not to be too busy to think about it. And Advent also invites us to prepare, be awake, and attentive to how God has done that in the past, and to ultimately give thanks for what comes to birth when Jesus arrives.

Look busy!

-Pr. Christian