We have lit the fourth candle of Advent. We have made it through three whole weeks of waiting and hoping and praying. And now the moment we’ve been waiting for has almost arrived. If you can remember the impatience of your childhood, or if you still have a child’s heart, then you will know that it is this moment – the moment before the happening – that is the most exciting.
Frederick Buechner describes it so eloquently in Whistling in the Dark: “The house lights go off and the footlights come on. Even the chattiest stop chattering as they wait in darkness for the curtain to rise. In the orchestra pit, the violin bows are poised. The conductor has raised his baton… The extraordinary thing that is about to happen is matched only by the extraordinary moment just before it happens. Advent is the name of that moment.”
In this breathless moment, we wait for God to break into our lives. And the longer we wait, the heavier the weight of hope and expectation. The longer we spend in the darkness, the more we yearn for the light. The longer we wait in silence, the more we want to shatter that silence.
Following Gabriel’s startling announcement to Mary that she would be the mother of God’s child, she breaks the silence with a song. The text tells us that Mary speaks these words, but I like to think that she sings them:
“My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name. His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty. He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, according to the promise he made to our ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants for ever.’ Luke 1:46-55
How will you break the silence this Christmas? What will be your song? Will you sing out carols with family? Will you break out the guitars with a friend? Will you join in hymns of praise at a place of worship? Or will your soul magnify the Lord with a song beyond all earthly perception?
Frederick Buechner describes it so eloquently in Whistling in the Dark: “The house lights go off and the footlights come on. Even the chattiest stop chattering as they wait in darkness for the curtain to rise. In the orchestra pit, the violin bows are poised. The conductor has raised his baton… The extraordinary thing that is about to happen is matched only by the extraordinary moment just before it happens. Advent is the name of that moment.”
In this breathless moment, we wait for God to break into our lives. And the longer we wait, the heavier the weight of hope and expectation. The longer we spend in the darkness, the more we yearn for the light. The longer we wait in silence, the more we want to shatter that silence.
Following Gabriel’s startling announcement to Mary that she would be the mother of God’s child, she breaks the silence with a song. The text tells us that Mary speaks these words, but I like to think that she sings them:
“My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name. His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty. He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, according to the promise he made to our ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants for ever.’ Luke 1:46-55
How will you break the silence this Christmas? What will be your song? Will you sing out carols with family? Will you break out the guitars with a friend? Will you join in hymns of praise at a place of worship? Or will your soul magnify the Lord with a song beyond all earthly perception?
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