Advent: Learning to Pay Attention

    Dec 8, 2018 | by Meg Sumner

    Week 2 of the Advent Season:   Raising Our Awareness of God’s Presence & Work

    “In the silence of a midwinter dusk, there is far off in the deeps of it somewhere a sound so faint that for all you can tell it may be only the sound of silence itself.  You hold your breath to listen.  You walk up the steps to the front door.  The empty windows at either side of it tell you nothing, or almost nothing.  For a second you catch a whiff in the air of some fragrance that reminds you of a place you’ve never been and a time you have no words for.  You are aware of the beating of your heart.  The extraordinary thing that is about to happen is matched only by the extraordinary moment just before it happens.  Advent is naming that moment”.                                                                                                                       - Frederick Buechner

    Doubt is often my companion as I go throughout my day.  As a ‘realist’, or some might say a pessimist, I am often on the look-out for worse care scenarios.  I am so good at it, that many times I am totally unaware that I am even doing it.  But being unaware of things can be dangerous.

    Advent is a great season to practice being aware not only about what happened long ago in the manger, but also what is happening here and now in our lives and in our world.  This is a challenge in a season that is so full for our eyes, our mind, and our heart that the struggle to be aware can feel, at times, impossible.  How can you and I enter into Advent saying “I am always aware of your unfailing love” (Psalm 26:3).  How could Advent be different if this awareness of God’s love flooded my heart instead of the doubt that often takes up space there?

    One practice that is helpful in growing my awareness is the Prayer of Examen.  This is a prayer that has been used by our Spiritual Fathers and Mothers for centuries.  It’s a simple prayer that allows God to open our eyes to where He was active in our day as we pray in the evening.  It reminds us that God is ever present but often in our distracted lives we fail to be aware of God.

    I would encourage you to try this prayer with your children, for they are often far more aware of God around them then we as adults are.  Maybe by entering into their lens you will glimpse the love of God in a way that you haven’t seen before.

    This version of the Prayer of Examen is adapted for Advent[1]

    During this time of Advent let us reflect on what we can do to prepare for the Lord.

    1. Invite the Holy Spirit to help you see the day as the newborn baby Jesus sees it. What joy(s) have you found today? Where have you felt God’s love? What have you done today to prepare the way for Jesus being born into this world for you?

    2. Now think about your day as if looking at it through the eyes of a child: what do you see? Did something surprise you? Was it something someone said to you or something you are grateful for? What did you recognize as gifts (thinking about the gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh brought to Jesus)? Thank the Holy Spirit for the gifts God has given to you today.
    3. Take a moment to reflect on the times today when God was especially present to you. Recognize your feelings in those moments. How did you prepare your heart for God’s presence in the coming of Jesus? Where did you feel God’s loving arms wrapped around you the way Jesus felt Mary’s arms? How did you prepare yourself to experience God’s love, forgiveness, and hope?

    4. Now take a moment to think about the times when God seemed to be hidden. Where did you struggle to see the Messiah in your life—the way some failed to recognize the birth of the Messiah when Jesus was born? When might you have seen the need for love and didn’t respond (maybe like the innkeeper), or the opportunity for forgiveness and you walked away? How was your heart prepared? Ask God to forgive you for anything that moved your heart away from God’s love and recognizing the birth of Jesus in you. And ask God to help you to open your heart and become the person that God created you to be.

    5. Finally, prepare for the hope of Jesus Christ in your life. Think about what you are hopeful for, what you are looking forward to during Advent and the Christmas season. Is your hope like that of a child on Christmas morning? What gifts will you share to be hope for someone else? Ask God to bless all the people in your life as you prepare the way of the Lord, and ask God to be with you today and every day.

     "O God and Father, I repent of my sinful preoccupation with visible things.  The world has been too much with me.  Thou hast been here and I knew it not.  I have been blind to Thy presence.  Open my eyes that I may behold Thee in and around me.  For Christ’s sake, Amen." - A.W. Tozer

    This is the second in a series of Advent liturgies written by Meg Sumner. For Week 1 (Advent and Lament), click here)

    [1] Written by Laurie Marshanke from https://www.ignatianspirituality.com/18250/advent-examen

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