I was reminded today of two realites. first, I am personally NOT ready for Jesus to come. Unfortunately, this seems to be a reality for me each and every Advent season. My unreadiness shows up in lots of ways, from a tendency to have a “bah, humbug” attidude as Christmas approaches, to being tardy and resistent to doing my Christmas shopping, to a general sense of having lots of loose ends and unfinished business in my life. Maybe this is just the way things are, not only for me, but for you as well. On the other hand, I have been repeatedly reminded that despite my unreadiness, this community of faith is getting itself ready. Just this morning, our weekly Bible study (in the nave) was accompanied by the drone of the organ as our tuners did their work. At the same time, one of our Bible study group members bolted out of her chair when she realized that the Altar Guild was beginning its work in preparation for tomorrow night’s services. And as I looked around I noticed that our Flower Guild is also here, not only working on the displays in the nave, but also decorating Gammell Hall for tomorrow’s Wednesday Soup Lunch that we offer to the neighborhood each week. So the bad news is that I’m not now ready for Jesus to come. The good news is that the community of faith of which I’m a part is getting ready, and that the community’s preparations will in the end make me ready for the blessed event we’ll celebrate in just one day. Merry Christmas to you and all those you love.
