I like Advent because it feels more honest

I like Advent because it feels more honest.
We are already and not-yet
God-with-us and Thy-kingdom-come
Christ has come and Christ will come again.
Questioning the lie of instant gratification,
we wait.
Counting the days in anticipation
We admit the longing of our hearts
The desire unfulfilled
The ache of what is to come.
It feels more honest to say
That the stretching of a womb hurts
And takes time.
To question the truth of buying more equals more Christmas
While frantically falling victim to it.
We are already and not yet
So we prepare our hearts and our homes,
For the ultimate guest.
Not in the woe-is-me way of Lent,
But in the quiet, humble way of preparing for a little baby
Who enters the world naked and vulnerable
Without fanfare
Through the pain of childbirth
Like everyone else.
God-with-us
In our nakedness, vulnerability, and pain.
And so we wait
And so we hope
It feels more honest this way.
In our nakedness, vulnerability, and pain
Waiting. Hoping. Rejoicing. Tempering. Preparing. Celebrating.
Both/And
God-with-us in our joy
God-with-us in our pain
Thy Kingdom Come where the wolf will be the guest of the lamb.
It feels more honest this way.
Advent.
O Come
O Come
Emmanuel!

This reflection was originally posted on Melissa's blog "Like Sunlight Burning at Midnight". Reposted with permission of the author.

Image: "Waiting For" by George Hodan at PublicDomainPictures.net