Advent (erin jean warde)

Advent asks me to wait for, to stay awake in anticipation of, something different than my anxieties — something new, something birthed, something blessed.

Advent

A heads up: I’ve been refocusing very intentionally on my faith. Not to suggest I ever left it, but I struggled in my faith after the death of my sister almost a year ago. It felt hard to pray, hard to read scripture, hard to have spiritual practices rooted in my Christianity.

For whatever reason, the pall would seem to be lifting, and I’m enjoying turning to these sources of wisdom and hope again, in a very intentional way. You could say God has always been with me, and I with God, but now I’m choosing to spend time with God again.

These newsletters naturally take on the form of what I’m giving my attention to, so gird your loins (lol) as I imagine this newsletter might feel a bit more spiritual. That said, I love and appreciate a variety of different understandings of spirituality and divinity, so I don’t ever intend to tell you what to believe, or proselytize!

That said, I absolutely love Advent. I love it, because it runs contrary to me. It asks me to be patient, and Lord knows that doesn’t come to me naturally. What I’m noticing the most this year is how it asks me to quiet my mind. To release some of the tensions I hold.

Advent asks me to “stay awake,” but to stay awake in anticipation of Christ — not my own anxieties. Sure, my anxieties persist, but it’s not a good idea for me to stay awake with them for too long, as they take over the inner conversation and become the unreliable narrator that rules my brain and life. No, staying awake with my anxieties becomes literally the root of my insomnia.

Instead, Advent asks me to wait for, to stay awake in anticipation of, something different than my anxieties — something new, something birthed, something blessed. It’s actually the antithesis of being overcome by the consuming nature of my anxieties, because it means waiting, with hope, for the birth and the blessing that stands the only chance at putting an end to those very anxieties.

Today, I’m not sure what you’re holding in your heart, soul, and mind. But I know the world is full of anxieties. And, to be clear, these anxieties are worthy of our care — and I don’t suggest we act as if they don’t exist, because they do exist, and we do need to tend to them.  The very real wars unfolding in front of us demand our care, our attention.

And yet, what I’m finding is that staying awake to wait for Christ actually helps me hold my attention on these very real needs, rather than just the needs of myself, because waiting for Christ means waiting with the hope of deliverance not just for myself, but for everyone else too.

For me, Advent’s call to stay awake in anticipation of the birth of God means waiting with hope for deliverance from war. It means waiting with hope for deliverance from racism. It means waiting with hope for deliverance from poverty. It means waiting with hope for the beginning of a different way of life — a way of life less like the news headlines and more like the Magnificat.  

Love y’all,
EJW

PS: I’ll be offering reflections for the first two weeks of December, then I’ll be consumed with the gift of Advent & Christmas. I’ll return again in January! Thank you for your patience with me, and my writing schedule, during the chaos of the holiday season. I’m so grateful for you!

coach with me

It’s not too late to sign up for some coaching support during the holidays.

We can meet once or twice prior to Christmas, then finish up in January. This allows for prep time as you confront the stressors of the holidays, as well as reflection after the holidays, which always offers wisdom and insight into our coping patterns.

Maybe you’re trying to stay sober, or maybe you just want to drink less, or maybe you just know your drinking can get out of hand when the holidays are here (I know that feeling). No matter where you are with it, if you want some support and would like a coach for December, I’d love to work with you. <3