Waiting
Larry McGuire of Gilbert, AZ, USA
Hear, O my people of the church, I am Jesus Christ of whom you have sung and testified and in whose name you pray. I am the spirit of love and peace which is in the world and yet not known by the world. I have heard your prayers which have been raised to me without ceasing, and I have sent my healing ministry as a dove to be in your midst. Therefore, lift up your hearts and rejoice in the promises which have been given for your assurance. Have I not said it is the Father’s good pleasure to give to the kingdom? -Doctrine and Covenants 157:11-12
Trust what is being born.
Hope is often born in darkness. I read that somewhere and wished it were true. Facing situations of violence or grief so thick it was difficult to breathe, I was wrapped in a reality that there was only darkness and despair. I did not see hope. The voices of cynicism and hatred drowned out the words “you are enough” or “do not be afraid.” The future was so unknown and uncertain that no map or lighthouse could point the way forward. There was darkness, uncertainty, and piercing questions of how to survive the injustice, hatred, and suffering. This has been a snapshot of what I’ve experienced in the several months of isolation, zoom meetings, online worship, and restrictions on every aspect of life.
Trust what is being born? Messages of encouraging words sent in a text message or videos posted online to help navigate our reality give some relief, but the darkness settles in on another night. Prayers are offered but sometimes they get stuck on the ceiling or my mouth is so dry, unable to speak, they are choked out and fall unspoken. Trust what is being born?
And then, a word is shared, a hug extended, a listening ear is offered, and something begins to stir within that invites me to take one step toward hope. I wait in silence, hoping to hear a word or a phrase that points a way forward. Waiting is hard. Silence is scary. And in the midst of waiting, I realize I’m being invited to wait with silence. It’s an invitation to suspend my expectations, to see the reality of my day not as foregone endings but as unfolding possibilities.
We wait, we struggle, we sit, we hide, we embrace with arms wide open. Advent-an uncertain future that has been embraced for centuries-continues with us. We aren’t simply readers of that story; we are participants in that story. We wait and we choose. It’s often in the unknowing that faith takes root. It is in that dark soil that hope begins to show itself. Trust what is being born.
Prayer Phrase
“Trust what is being born.”
Spiritual Practice
Jesus, the Peaceful One
We have spent this year with a guiding question: Are we moving closer to Jesus, the Peaceful One? As we near the end of this calendar year, we review how this question has been shaping and forming us. In our thoughts, words, and actions, have we been embodying Jesus, the Peaceful One? What might it look like to move closer to Jesus, the Peaceful One as we make space in our lives for Christ incarnate this Advent season?
Today’s Prayer for Peace
Engage in a daily practice of praying for peace in our world. Click here to read today’s prayer and be part of this practice of peace.
