Poem on Advent 1

Reflective poem by Cheryl Lawrie,
Since the beginning of time
throughout all of history
and across all the earth
people have been waiting for the birth of a saviour.
We do not wait alone.

And in this time of Advent,
we join our voices with those throughout history
who have spoken of a different kind of world
and a different kind of saviour –
the prophets the wise ones the peace-makers.
Wait with them.

–
Imagine what the prophets’ words might be
to the extraordinary world that surrounds us today
this world that breathes both chaos and beauty
despair and delight
poverty and peace,
A world that, with every heartbeat,
is evidence of love’s resilience and fragility
Imagine how they would rewrite the headlines
just like Mary did once before…
… God has brought down rulers from their thrones
but has lifted up the humble.
God has filled the hungry with good things
but has sent the rich away empty…

One day, God says.
Just wait…
–Still your heartbeat for a moment.
Find the place within you
where you can escape from the shopping lists
from the diaries, queues and expectations
from time that won’t stand still
from tensions that won’t be resolved
find the place where God’s hope can hold hands with your stress
and wait…

When the Christ Child was born,
the story tells us nothing was ready for him
no cradle
no pram
no freshly painted nursery
no 000 sized clothing (in both pink and blue, just in case)
just some cloth to wrap him in.

...In spite of all that will go wrong
in spite of the frustration and stress
in spite of the mess of the world and our lives
in spite of there being nowhere for him to fit
the Christ Child will be born.

Just wait.