You often miss it while traveling through airports in large cities. But you can still glimpse it here at our antiquated airport in Kansas City. Because our airport gates are arranged in a circular pre-9/11 configuration, you still get to witness the moment of arrival. A middle aged couple wearing Kansas City Chiefs sweatshirts crane their necks to see the plane taxi to the gate. Then they lean anxiously to watch folks step off the jet way. When a young man clad in army fatigues crosses the threshold of security, they throw their arms around his neck with a bear hug. Next to them a fianceé melts into the arms of her beloved and children bounce up and down to welcome home their Dad. The moment of arrival unfolds hour after hour.
Advent means arrival. What arrival do you and I long for during this season of long nights and candlelight? Sometimes we forget that the longing still lurks inside of us. So at the beginning of Advent, we pause to name the part of our lives that might be transformed by God’s arrival. What sadness, what challenge, what worry do we carry with us? What fragile place in the world or in our souls is shrouded in darkness but would be changed by the arrival of the light of Christ? God knew that humanity waited and so God sent one whose arrival could change everything. Look, now and stand on tip toe and notice your breath catching with anticipation. The one coming is awaiting your embrace.
— Carla Aday
