Come, Lord Jesus

“It gets darker and darker, and then Jesus is born.”  -Wendell Berry

A dear friend of mine worships at a wonderful Presbyterian church in Alabama. This past Sunday (Advent I), she shared this:

 

“At church today, we were guided to pray only laments in the ‘prayers of the people’— which we pray spontaneously out loud — ‘How long, O Lord will ________’ or ‘Lord, why…’ [Our pastor] said we too quickly move to action or expression, and the scriptures and Jesus’ example guides us to turn to lament.”

 

This wise counsel—to suspend action and expression and make way for lament—reflects the heart of Advent. The rallying cry that we proclaim at the beginning of each Eucharist during the Advent season forms the basis for our lament: “Come, Lord Jesus!” If there is nothing to lament, Jesus need not come. During Advent, we pause to recall how Jesus’s birth ushered light into a dark and dying world and how his return will overcome darkness, forever. So we wait, candles lit, in the dark.

 

Our family has been enjoying Tsh Oxenreider’s Shadow & Light devotional this Advent season. Each evening, there is a song suggestion to accompany the short reflection and Scripture reading. The lyrics of one song in particular captures the longing of our heart as we wait for Jesus:

 

“In labor all creation groans till fear and hatred cease,
Till human hearts come to believe: In Christ alone is peace.

In labor all creation groans till prejudice shall cease,
Till every race and tribe and tongue in Christ will live in peace.

In labor all creation groans till rape and murder cease,
Till women walk by night unharmed and Christ is this world’s peace.

In labor all creation groans till false divisions cease,
Till enemies are reconciled in Christ who is our peace.”

 

If all you can muster this Advent season is a cry of lament, lament loudly. If the only thing you can pray is “Come, Lord Jesus,” pray it often. If you, with all creation, are groaning under the weight of a world torn by sin, groan together. Jesus knows what it is to suffer, to lament “with loud cries and tears” (Heb. 5:7), and He has come to be our peace.