Light expectations

 You can find daily Advent reflections “Travelling Light” here.

Every year, I find myself longing for Advent

Longing for a season of waiting

Longing to hunker down

in the chill of winter here in the west

Waiting

Quietly

Expectantly

to see what God’s up to

Longing to be surprised

by glimpses of God

at work in our world today.

Sometimes I have to pay close attention

Other times, it takes little focus

Always God appears.

In this year of disruption

there has been a lot of waiting

Of anticipation

Of expectation

Of hope

Of disappointment

And so this Advent

feels more familiar than ever

yet no less welcome

A time to wait and to wonder

to peer through the gloom expecting light

even and especially

when the darkness is pervasive 

And, possibly, one thing I’ve learned

in this year of disruption

is how little it matters

whether I am ready 

or willing

or receptive

God appears

and hunkers down with us

on the days when we notice

and those when we don’t

Persistently loving 

Holding the light

until we’re ready to see

God who dwells with us

Convicted

 John 4:40-42

So when the Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with them; and he stayed there two days. And many more believed because of his word. They said to the woman, “It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is truly the Saviour of the world.”

It started with a thirst

A basic need

And led to an encounter

An encounter, if truth be told

That she'd hoped to avoid

Yet, as her bucket plumbed the depths

drawing up life giving water

So her encounter dredged up

all manner of things

she could never have anticipated

even in her wildest dreams

A man who engaged her in conversation

Who answered all her questions

And met all her challenges

A man who told her all about herself

A Messiah who revealed

truth to a stranger

and set off a cataclysm of change

in the Samaritan woman

and in those to whom she witnessed

Not just through testimony

but through personal conviction

as people experienced for themselves

Life-giving water

from a well

that never runs dry

Encounter, Transformation, Renewal, Commitment

A call to discipleship

made new in the water of life.

Validated

John 4:39

Many Samaritans from that city believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I have ever done.” 

Our validation comes

not from any authority

or institution

but from those we serve

those in whose lives

we participate

making a difference

not by our brilliance

but by our presence

Showing up 

time and again

with empty hands

and full hearts

Knowing ourselves

called and commissioned

loved and sent by God

who deems us enough 

who created us to be

in relationship

holding space 

for one another

Validated in service

Sent

John 4:28-29

Then the woman left her water jar and went back to the city. She said to the people, “Come and see a man who told me everything I have ever done! He cannot be the Messiah, can he?”

Leaving behind the very thing

that took her to the well

in her haste to share

the gift she encountered there

She rushed back to the city 

Sent

With her thirst quenched

 and her passion ignited

 she could not wait

 to tell others

Sent

without being sure of response 

And, catching her excitement

and witnessing her renewal

her community took off

to see for themselves 

Sent

To check out

the witness she bore

the story she told

about the one 

who told her story.

Called

 

Called

John 4:7

A Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.”

Arrested

In the midst of everyday toil

Startled out of routine

by the demands of a stranger

“Give me a drink”

A simple enough request

yet layered

as deep as the well

Who was he?

And who was she?

Conversing in the middle of the day

with no regard

to time

or tradition 

or culture

Yet riveted by encounter

Enough to throw aside convention

and truly see one another

Both were thirsty

She for understanding

He for mission

Their thirsts were pooled

as life took root in conversation

and out of the depths

sprang understanding 

and respect

and communion

that spilled over 

into response

Called and loved

Loved and called.

Formed

 

John 4:5-6

Jesus came to a Samaritan city called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired out by his journey, was sitting by the well. It was about noon.

By the time Jesus got to the well

in the heat of the midday sun

many women had already drawn

from the depths 

Assembling in the cool morning air

Attending to the chores of the day

Gathering in community

sharing their news

and their lives

their wisdom

and their angst

Gathering around a source

that through every season

sustained life and work

encouraged the sharing of confidences 

witnessed to life in community

Those ancient stones

that protected the source

had stories to tell 

Stories of love and laughter

of trauma and tragedy

of flourishing and dying 

Little escaped 

that fount of formation

Around that well

love was kindled

possibility was imagined 

hope lived and died

and new stories 

were shaped and formed

Generations drank deeply

passing on tradition and culture

establishing customs and norms

creating kinship

And, in that place 

of community engagement

the Son of God experienced

a transformative encounter 

forged in intimacy 

confirmed in community

and preserved in story.

Intimacy, community, story

three elements of formation.

that make way for encounter

and lead us to transformation

Come to the well

 John 4:13-15

Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life.” The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I may never be thirsty or have to keep coming here to draw water.”

Lord I am thirsty

Come to the well

My soul is weary

Come to the well

Bruised and battered

Come to the well

Tired and discouraged 

Come to the well

Misunderstood

Come to the well

Judged and found wanting

Come to the well

Wounded and withdrawn

Come to the well

Ready to quit

Come to the well

Come to the well

where there is water that is

thirst quenching

wound healing

soul soothing

life giving

Water of life

found in the One

who knows our name

and calls us back

to drink deeply

of the Wisdom of the Well.

Autumn grief

When the grey edges in

stealing all the colour

leaving in its wake

sepia tinged memories 

When the light grows dim

and the edges become fuzzy 

between time and eternity

When the now and the then

no longer stand in stark contrast

but merge into a beige coloured sludge

And all the radiant golden hues

of a crisp morning in the woods

give way to a carpet of wet, brown leaves

Then we need strong arms around us

quiet souls who will not cajole us

into false cheer

but will allow us to wallow

in the melancholy

that we cannot shake off

Then we need love and companionship

that makes itself known

by tiptoeing in and staying put 

relentlessly reliable 

persistently present.

In that crevice between fear and hope

lies a world of creativity

only accessed by descending into the valley

to discover a new way to traverse the shadow

until bit by bit the colours re- emerge

and, in our own sweet time,

we edge closer to the light.