Dec 10 Advent Reflection: Make straight the way of the Lord, Mark 1:1-8 

By Dr. Kathy Coffey-Guenther, senior advancement officer for alumni spirituality

It seems an almost impossible juxtaposition- to attempt to be more deeply present in the dark, still, and quiet invitations and pathways of Advent when every moment of our cultural nuance tells us that we should be decorating, shopping, eating, baking, going, and doing, and meeting every dream and need for all those we love.

Despite knowing the virtues of Love, Faith, Joy and Hope that the weeks of Advent represent, the busyness, or anxious pull to be busy, to fulfill people’s dreams, to do it all, still fills our Advent days. 

In today’s Gospel reading, however, we are called back to attention, to the pathway to the true meaning of this precious waiting time of Advent.  In this Gospel reading, we are invited to remember that these Advent days offer us an opportunity to discern, to consciously reflect on how we are called to orient our time and attention this season.  

This presence, this God-with-us, found in the invitation to make straight the pathway to our Lord these Advent days reminds us that where we are right now is simply that, a moment of time.  When we allow ourselves to pay attention and reflect on this moment and in this Advent time and presence, we are invited to consider honestly how we are waiting for the child Jesus to be born, and how we are waiting for Love to join us on this earth, and how we are preparing for Christ’s coming, his return to us once again someday.
 

These holy Advent days remind us to seek God’s help in making straight the path leading each of us to deeper relationship with God in Jesus, and through these deepening relationships of faith and love, we are called to live in a spirit of possibility, of new beginnings, of seeking and hoping, of peace and acceptance.  

In these days of Advent waiting, we can seek to become our best selves, our most holy selves, our most loved selves, right in the truth and complexity of this moment!

In our willingness to stay present to living in this Advent moment as we deeply listen to the desires of our heart and soul, we can discern whether our chosen life paths are bringing us closer to our God, closer to that sense of our vocational call, closer to that sense of using and living our gifts to serve the greater good. Many times, living into this Advent quiet and stillness offers us an opportunity to make any course corrections in our lives that we have been longing for. 

Advent is a waiting time, a hoping time, and an expectant time.  Advent offers the grace to re-remember that we are loved by a God that wants to be with us, guide us, teach us, forgive us, hold us, comfort us, and share every breath and heartbeat with us.  This is the hopeful expectant time that Advent can call within us, a time that has existed within us and around us since our very beginnings. 

By heeding the call to make straight the way to the Lord, we are called to clarity to see how we make space for this God whose deepest desire is to love each of us.  We are called to clarity to see if we have the courage to receive that intimate invitation to be loved so deeply and truly.  We are called to clarity to see if we can respond to this love of God in Jesus by deeply desiring to love others in return. 

In these Advent days of busyness and distractions, let us quiet our minds and hearts and welcome this time to remove any blocks on our own pathway to Bethlehem.  Let us make the space in our hearts and lives these holy days to welcome the savior of the world this Christmas.  Let us be truly present to this sacred gift of love this child represents…

We have a few weeks to get there!  Let’s enjoy the journey!