Day 24: Here

“Rejoice, that the immortal God is born, so that mortal men may live in eternity.”

—Jan Hus

Each advent season brings an ebb and flow of reflection and emotion as we welcome Immanuel and peer out towards His return. We’re reminded of the simplicity of our faith by the meek and humble baby in manger, while dipping our toes into the infinitely complex well of God’s paced revelations. We’re drawn into joyous simplicity and confounding mystery. As I gaze at the Son of God, the infant wrapped, I look ahead to the Son of man, His body racked, who bled and died for a sinner such as me. I’m confronted with the depth of my own depravity and hopeless estate, so that I might be given a hope to replace all others. My person and purposes are wrapped up with Christ.

And then I am confronted with the multitude problems and burdens I bear. My spirit is simultaneously lightened, but no less entangled in the hindrances which have nevertheless wrapped my ankles fast. They do not disappear with the rising of my hope. My faith, while so often strong and sturdy, is also worn thread-bare and ragged. The contrasts of flesh and spirit are perhaps no more laid bare, than at Christmas, when the thrill of hope crashes headlong into the desperation of daily trials. Transcendent and entangled, helpless and hopeful, fragile yet fortified. If nothing else, the advent of Christ reveals ourselves as we truly are. Maybe our gifts and gatherings and pageantry only truly serve to conceal from ourselves the soul’s exposure. Better the busyness than to be left alone in stillness with our heart’s broken hopes and battered faith. 

Yet, Immanuel. We are not alone, never alone. The great gift given by Messiah, notwithstanding all of His many accomplishments in overcoming sin and death, was that He would never leave us. He is here. Wherever advent finds you, whether stumbling in darkness through the deepest of valleys, cresting the peaks of victory, or mired in the consequences of sin, He is here. Hope is not a nebulous thing or state of mind mustered. Hope is a person. The baby in manger is a Savior, a King, a Lord. But He is something more to each of us, something far more terrific and terrifying; He is everything we need.

Cari and I hope you’ve been in some way blessed by our advent ramblings as much as we are blessed in writing them. 2023 will look a lot different than previous years as we transition into a new role and season of life in a new location.

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Please send your prayer requests or personal updates to: wendel@abwe.cc