Through Stained Glass: Advent--wonder

Wonder.

“I think us here to wonder, myself. To wonder. To ask.
And that in wondering bout the big things and
asking bout the big things, you learn about
the little ones, almost by accident. But you never
know nothing more about the big things than
you start out with. The more I wonder, the more I love.” 
― Alice Walker, The Color Purple 

Often I wonder about wonder.

It is such a mysterious word to me.

Free of boundaries and expectations.

There is a freedom and an invitation for creativity.

Wonder.

Lately I’ve been wondering about something.

I can’t help but wonder what God thinks about the sate of things?

I wonder if She is tired of weeping?

I wonder if He has grown exhausted of asking “when?” and “why?”

I wonder…

Today’s word, wonder, is accompanied by this text:

Luke 1.26-33

The Birth of Jesus Foretold

26 In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, ²⁷to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. ²⁸And he came to her and said, ‘Greetings, favoured one! The Lord is with you.’²⁹But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. ³⁰The angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favour with God. ³¹And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. ³²He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. ³³He will reign over the house of Jacob for ever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.’

The word wonder is perplexing and worth pondering.

I find it helpful to wander when I’m thinking about wondering.

I wonder about the invitation declaration the angel Gabriel made to Mary.

I wonder what she thought immediately after hearing the good news?

I wonder where her thoughts wandered?

Wandering and wondering go in hand. So does walking. Walking, some way, helps us become aware to the wonder of the world around us, the way Mary made herself available to God.

I wonder what would happened if you took a walk today and did so with intentionality?

Advent is about being mindful of how God has, is, and will disrupt the status quo of life as we know it.

Advent is a season that invites us to slow down, to ponder the coming Christ child, and wonder about this selfless act of love.

Friends, take an advent walk today. Walk though quietly and mindfully. Listen for what feels life giving. Walk with your senses. Take a walk and be not afraid to wander, you never know what wonder of the world might overwhelm you with a warm stirring of God’s love…

And then wonder WHAT you can do to let the world know that The Lord is with you…’