Most of us are usually glad of an opportunity to make a fresh start, to have a new beginning. The reason for this is not just because we are aware of our past mistakes and our failures. It is also, I believe, because we have hopes that have not been realised and dreams that have not been fulfilled.
Every year on the first Sunday of Advent the Christian community makes a fresh start. It is the day the new church year begins. Among the things the season of Advent invites us to do is dream. It encourages us to imagine a better life for ourselves and for our world. Throughout the four weeks of Advent there is a question that keeps recurring. It is a question that is expressed in many different ways. Perhaps the best way to put the question is this: What is it we really long for?
Someone has said that there is a difference between what we long for and what we settle for. During the season of Advent the focus is clearly on what we long for, not on what we settle for. It can take us time to identify what it is we really long for. We may also need help to name our longing. The Advent season offers this help. It suggests things that we might long for. Here are some:
- We long to be able to accept ourselves as we are.
- We long for reconciliation with members of our families.
- We long for someone who will love us unconditionally.
- We long to be able to make a difference in the world.
- We long for a personal relationship with God.
- We long for the healing of a hurt we experienced in the past.
What we really long for may or may not be on this list. If it is, let’s own it; if it is not, we should try to name what ours might be. It is important for us to believe that Jesus wants what we want, what we really want. In other words, the thing we most want for ourselves is the very same thing that Jesus wants for us. After all no one knows the deepest longings in our hearts better than Jesus.