December, 2010 Sketchings:

“JESUS IS COMING? NO! HE’S ALREADY HERE!!”

The Advent sign appeared in the churchyard about a week before Thanksgiving. It was a simple, hand-lettered sign that read, “Get ready. Jesus is coming!” It was simple, clear and to the point.

My initial reaction was something like, “That’s cool!!” But after a bit, the message struck me as quite odd. Somehow it felt like my mother saying, “Tom, clean up your room, your Grandma is coming.” Or maybe more like, “Get ready! Get cleaned up. Get your hands and face washed, our special guests are due at anytime.”

I think what struck me as odd was the subtle sense that Jesus isn’t already here. It seemed more like Jesus is coming for a short visit, but he isn’t going to stay very long so don’t get too excited. It gave me the sense that I only have to get my life “ready” for a little while at the end of the calendar year to celebrate the birth (coming) of Jesus but Jesus might not have to do much with any of the rest of my life.

Now, in defense of the churchyard sign, Advent is about preparation. It is about getting ready. It is about Jesus coming. It is about taking a look at our lives and making some assessments about our readiness for Jesus to come, as promised, in final Glory.

But Advent is not about the sense that Jesus is just coming for a short visit. It isn’t about being ready for the time while Jesus is here before he disappears “back home” where I don’t have to worry about his presence until next year about this time.

You know the truth. Jesus is always here. AND Jesus is always coming. It’s an interesting contradiction in our faith.

Jesus came once! He came to visit this earth. He came to accomplish his mission and ministry, not in the miracle of his birth, but in the miracle of his death and resurrection. And once he came, he stayed! He is still here in the spiritual presence through his Holy Spirit. Jesus has come. He is already among us.

At the same time Jesus is always coming. Jesus is always showing up in our lives in ways that make his presence even more real and profound. Jesus is always arriving with the challenges of His call to mission and ministry, with the abundance of His blessings and mercy and with messages of hope and power for our every day lives. Jesus is always showing up in our lives through other people, through the power of nature, through the silence of our devotions or in the words of a song that flits through our consciousness. Jesus is always showing up and if we haven’t done at least a little bit to clean out the cobwebs of our spiritual house we will probably miss Him.

What I’m trying to say is this: Advent (which means coming) is an on-going process. It is a daily process. This “getting ready” business isn’t just about 20 some days before Christmas. It is really more like a “being ready” process for every moment of every day.

T. O. M.