Read Isaiah 64:1-9.
When we think about 2020, we’re reminded of the stress, pain, injustice, and uncertainty all of us have faced. How we long for God to come down the mountain and put things right in the world. No more pandemic, injustice, or stripping people of their God-given dignity and worth. In 2020, we have been angry, we have protested for racial justice, we have struggled, been hurt, and found ourselves wanting to cry out to God. We cry out because we long to see, hear, and experience God’s love here in the present in the midst of all of this pain we ourselves have felt. We cry out because of the harm we have caused to others through our words, actions, social media posts, and silence. Now we wait, anticipating God’s coming in the midst of all of these experiences and feelings.
Yet, we know God is present and will come. God is crying too. God sees us amidst the hurts and problems and loves us still. God is here, creating, shaping, and forming us to love as Jesus loved others, especially the oppressed, forgotten, and overlooked of the world. So, this Advent season we anticipate, move, and cry out because we know that Christ is present, forming us to be change agents to build God’s Kindom here on earth.
Pray
God, as we begin this Advent journey, we pray for peace, courage, and wisdom. God, we pray that you will not remember our shortcomings forever, but instead form us in your divine Image. Give us the ability to forgive, love, and see the Image of Christ in each person. Amen.
George Mason University & NOVA Community College
Words for Waiting 