Waiting is a part of life.  In our society we are so impatient and very restless and anxious as we wait.  Some things we wait for are not things we look forward to.  Most of us do not like confrontation or being taken to task for what we are doing, so there is part of us that is willing to put these situations off.  We wait in traffic that is congested, in lines in the stores to check out with the items we are purchasing, in offices where we have appointments, for repairmen to come and for the mail person to deliver our mail.  When we go somewhere with our family or a group, we wait for everyone to get ready so we can leave together.

We are now more than halfway through the Advent season where we are waiting to celebrate the birth of Jesus at Christmas.  The birth of a child is a joyful experience of anticipation and waiting.  How much joy are we experiencing right now as we are moving toward Christmas? There is the expectation we feel from others who anticipate receiving a card or gift from us.  There are the gatherings where we are invited and expected to show up.  All of these expectations are placed on us because of the gift we as the human race received 2000 years ago when Jesus was born.  He is the gift of God himself to us.  The gift of Jesus does place expectations upon us.

In today’s gospel John the Baptist sends some of his followers to Jesus to ask, "Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?" Jesus was not the Messiah many of the people of his time were looking for.  He did not come and vanquish the Roman army that occupied Israel at that time.  He did not cozy up to the priests and other religious leaders and continue to maintain the status quo. Jesus came to fulfill the expectations God had from the first moment of creation when he created us in his own image and likeness.  Since the original sin, God’s expectations and hopes for us have been frustrated, but obviously God is not frustrated with himself or with us.  Why else would he humble himself and become one with us in our humanity. He did that so that we might become fully alive and become one with him in his divinity.  The words in the prayer that the priest says silently when the water is poured into the chalice of wine during the offertory of Mass are: "By the mystery of this water and wine may we come to share in the divinity of Christ who humbled himself to share in our humanity." It is the gift of Jesus, and only the gift of Jesus, that makes our lives full and complete.

To recognize this truth at times we must allow Jesus to do for us what he said to the followers of John the Baptist in reply to their question about whether or not he was the Messiah, "Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind regain their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised and the poor have the good news proclaimed to them.  And blessed is the one who takes no offense at me." It is Jesus who opens our eyes, minds and hearts to see who we truly are and what a gift it is just to be alive.  It is Jesus who strengthens and accompanies us at every step in our journey through life. Jesus takes away leprosy, all those things that make us and others unacceptable and seemingly unlovable.  Through Jesus we hear the word of God, the words of truth and love.  It is Jesus who takes away what drains life out of us and makes us fully alive.  We are the poor who now know the good news and proclaim it through our words, actions and attitudes.  I cannot help but see all the gifts that were brought to our church the two weekends to help the needy among us through our Reach For A Star Program.

What we wait for during Advent we have already received.  Jesus is God’s gift of himself to us every moment of our lives.  It is Jesus who sustains us with his patience, understanding, mercy, compassion and unconditional love. I see this in my friend with cerebral palsy who waits humbly and patiently for so much we take for granted, from toothpaste being put on his toothbrush to someone putting on his shoes, all of which he humbly expresses gratitude for.  There is no other gift we need or that can measure up to what God has given to us.  Our response is one of grateful humility.  That is what God and our own hearts are waiting to see in us.

Father Walden