The Journey is the Goal

Written by Natasha Lovely on the Feast of Saint Andrew

“How beautiful are the feet of those who bring the good news!”

Each year we are reminded that Advent is a time of waiting, but for me waiting seems more painful than fruitful. Simply waiting for a pizza to be delivered or waiting in traffic is hard enough, imagine being asked to wait four weeks to celebrate the birth of Jesus…not exactly an easy task. Although, it seems the older I get the more I find myself jumping straight from Thanksgiving to Christmas and I forget about the journey.

This image in the readings today of feet spreading the good news brought back to this idea of a journey. Advent is journey, a beautiful journey. Advent is the time of the year in which we are able to journey and prepare our hearts for the birth of Jesus and also anticipate his second coming. But if we spend all four weeks simply anticipating and waiting until the end, Christmas, we risk the fruits of the season. We risk missing the lessons and opportunities that Christ wants to present to us. Christ is waiting for us to invite him on this journey with us. As we begin this season I wish for you to challenge yourselves and challenge your heart. Challenge yourself to setting resolutions for this journey, even something as simple as committing to an extra 15 minutes of prayer and reflection. Most importantly challenge your heart to recognize the beauty in the journey.

Question for Reflection:
How will you challenge yourself this Advent season to journey and spread the good news?

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Natasha Lovely
Natasha is a graduate student at the University of Michigan School of Social Work.
Email: lovelynl@umich.edu