Advent invites us to pause in silence

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Advent…invites us to pause in silence to accept and understand the presence of Christ. It is an invitation to understand everyday individual events are hints God gives to us and signs of the attention that he has for each one of us. Advent invites and stimulates us to contemplate the ever present Lord. The certainty of his presence helps us to see the world with different eyes and to consider the whole of our existence as a “visit” of God that comes and stays near us in every situation. To make this happen "the liturgy constantly tells us that we need to wake up from the sleep of habit and mediocrity, we must abandon sadness and discouragement and we must lift up our hearts because ‘the Lord is at hand’ "(Benedict XVI).
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Dear Brothers and Sisters,

The words above are taken from a reflection on this Sunday’s Mass readings by Monsignor Francesco Follo, who goes on to say:
…If we live the Advent of Christ like the Virgin Mary lived the expectation of his birth, we will educate our heart to a real daily wait, aware of the presence of Christ who became man for us to save our lives. And we will be in joy, because - like the Virgin Mary- we can be certain that God is at hand. He was in her and is in us always, in joy and in sorrow, in sickness and in health, as a friend and faithful spouse. This joy remains even in trials and in suffering, not on the surface but deep in the person who puts himself or herself in the hands of God and trusts in him.
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May this Advent, by God’s Grace, find us waiting with Mary – more awake than ever before!
 
Thank you for the great post! Wishing everyone a blessed and fruitful Advent season.

Expectation in You

On the road we’re walking
Your joy within our path
Perhaps we didn’t see it
Reflections in the aftermath

Let this day be different
Expectation in our heart
To receive your gifts of blessing
To soul that You impart

We wait in expectation
To glimpse Your way of light
Your touch of grace unique
Gift of hearts delight

It may come in decision
Uncomfortable may be
In a step of faith
Your glory we will see

Perhaps in dawning glory
Through beauty that You shine
Cherishing the moment
Of man and God divine

It may come through a soul
Unnoticed from before
In pause, a time to open
Your kingdoms exposed door

Excited for this journey
To see You in new ways
A grateful heart is waiting
Receiving You this day
 
PathWalker said:
Thank you for the great post! Wishing everyone a blessed and fruitful Advent season.

Expectation in You

On the road we’re walking
Your joy within our path
Perhaps we didn’t see it
Reflections in the aftermath

Let this day be different
Expectation in our heart
To receive your gifts of blessing
To soul that You impart

We wait in expectation
To glimpse Your way of light
Your touch of grace unique
Gift of hearts delight

It may come in decision
Uncomfortable may be
In a step of faith
Your glory we will see

Perhaps in dawning glory
Through beauty that You shine
Cherishing the moment
Of man and God divine

It may come through a soul
Unnoticed from before
In pause, a time to open
Your kingdoms exposed door

Excited for this journey
To see You in new ways
A grateful heart is waiting
Receiving You this day
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Dear PathWalker,

Thanks for your reply and the poem. It reminded me of the picture I posted:
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When I was a freshman in a Catholic College, many years ago, I put a larger copy of this picture on the bulletin board in one of our classrooms, with only the word “Expectation”. 🙂

Did you write the poem you posted?
 
PathWalker said:
Beautiful picture, beautiful 🙂 and great insights.

Yes, I did write the poem. We have a poem forum

forums.catholic-questions.org/group.php?groupid=222

(if you want to take a look)
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Thanks for the link, PathWalker,

I took a look, and read several of your poems. This verse I found particularly lovely:
…Anticipate the light
Eyes of shepherds view
Through humbleness of being
Announce the joy of You… --from “Seeds of Change”
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also this:
…Abide in revelation
As worlds view now is turned
Rejoice in our encounter
Truth in what is learned… --from “Encounter”
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May the Lord continue the good work He has begun in you. 🙂
 
O Lord Jesus, in this most holy season of Advent, prepare our hearts for Your coming and open them to the love and peace that You bring at Christmas. Grant, too, that by a prayerful remembrance of Your birth in Bethlehem, we may come ever closer to You and praise Your name forever and ever. Amen.

May God bless you MariaChristi (and everyone else) in this season of Advent! 🙂
 
Richard_White said:
O Lord Jesus, in this most holy season of Advent, prepare our hearts for Your coming and open them to the love and peace that You bring at Christmas. Grant, too, that by a prayerful remembrance of Your birth in Bethlehem, we may come ever closer to You and praise Your name forever and ever. Amen.

May God bless you MariaChristi (and everyone else) in this season of Advent! 🙂
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Dear Richard,

Thanks of your reply and for your prayer. Today is the Feast of the great Missionary St. Francis Xavier. It reminds me of Mary’s “going with haste” into the hill country to visit her cousin Elizabeth so soon after conceiving Jesus. Advent is such a time for pondering the hidden mysteries in the lives of Jesus and Mary.

I join you in your prayer for all of us, that by God’s Grace we may prepare for His coming as Mary did with hearts and minds given to Him, and as St. Francis Xavier burned with ardent charity like Mary’s to go and share Jesus with others, may we “go with haste” to others in need of Him.
 
Great post! “Into Great Silence” is my favorite Advent movie, so that resonated with me. Advent is a great time for silence, prayer and fasting.

Here’s a haunting Advent excerpt from a public domain poem by Fr. Abram Ryan (d. 1886):
Code: 
                     Four thousand years Earth waited, 
                     Four thousand years men prayed, 
                     Four thousand years the Nations sighed 
                     That their King so long delayed. 


                     The Prophets told His coming, 
                     The saintly for Him sighed; 
                     And the star of the Babe of Bethlehem 
                     Shone o'er them when they died. 


                     Their faces towards the Future-- 
                     They longed to hail the Light 
                     That in the after centuries, 
                     Would rise on Christmas night. 


                     But still the Saviour tarried, 
                     Within His Father's home; 
                     And the Nations wept and wondered why 
                     The Promised had not come.
 
Tesseract said:
Great post! “Into Great Silence” is my favorite Advent movie, so that resonated with me. Advent is a great time for silence, prayer and fasting.

Here’s a haunting Advent excerpt from a public domain poem by Fr. Abram Ryan (d. 1886):
Code: 
                     Four thousand years Earth waited, 
                     Four thousand years men prayed, 
                     Four thousand years the Nations sighed 
                     That their King so long delayed. 


                     The Prophets told His coming, 
                     The saintly for Him sighed; 
                     And the star of the Babe of Bethlehem 
                     Shone o'er them when they died. 


                     Their faces towards the Future-- 
                     They longed to hail the Light 
                     That in the after centuries, 
                     Would rise on Christmas night. 


                     But still the Saviour tarried, 
                     Within His Father's home; 
                     And the Nations wept and wondered why 
                     The Promised had not come.
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Dear Tesseract,

Thanks for your reply and for the touching poem. The last verse inclines me to start a ne thread on “Longing to see His Face”. Mary’s days of waiting for Jesus’ First Coming can help us to wait now. I’ll say more in the new thread. I’ve been pondering this for awhile and now you’ve given me the impetus to put something in writing. 🙂
 
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