by Kala Loptien

Waiting

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Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you, and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you. For the Lord is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for him. Isaiah 30:18 ESV

It’s the last day of November. Christmas has been in the air and on the shelves for at least a month already. Many homes are decorated. The same songs are on repeat. Calendars are filled with gatherings, parties, celebrations and shopping. Kids (and maybe adults) wait eagerly for presents to collect under the tree. Anticipation is all around. There’s something different about this season…

Indeed, there IS something different about this season. The question is: do we give it the focus it deserves? Hmmmm… I personally felt convicted as I prepared to write this. This is THE season. It’s the Advent of our Lord–a beautiful time of hope-filled preparation. The word “advent” originates from the Latin “adventus,” meaning arrival or appearance.* When we read the Bible, we see scriptures filled with anticipation. The Messiah was coming. Everything in the Old Testament points to His first arrival. Everything after? To His second.

The Hebrew word for “wait,” as it is used in the Old Testament, is “Qavah” (kaw-vaw)*. It goes a bit deeper than that, as we know the Hebrew language often does. It is a verb and therefore filled with action: to wait, look for, hope and expect. Advent allows that space to wait with hope and wonder at the arrival of our Lord. We are fortunate to have several opportunities to prepare our hearts for Jesus. Church services, Advent-centered devotions and Christian Christmas tunes all help us zero in on what’s to come. Here’s the best part: we never wait alone. Immanuel is with us always.

How will you wait this year? How will you prepare to celebrate the first arrival of our Savior? And what will your waiting look like as we continue with active hope for when He returns? This Advent season, I pray that hope, joy and peace fill your homes — and that there are opportunities to help others experience what this Christmas waiting is all about.

Copyright Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado

*https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Advent

*https://www.biblestudytools.com/lexicons/hebrew/nas/qavah.html