Advent is the beginning of the new liturgical year.  It is the time in which we look toward, not only the celebration of Jesus’ birth, but new beginnings for ourselves as individuals and as His Church.  It is a blessed time that lets us “start again” with a “clean slate” if we would choose to do so.  The hard part about “new beginnings” is they always, at least in some sense, require a tearing down of old things and a leaving of old, comfortable places.  The great thing in this world is not so much where we are, but in which direction we are moving. And movement to one place always means leaving some place.  In the words of Joan Chittister’s work on the Rule of St. Benedict, “Wisdom Distilled from the Daily”,

“Conversion is a willingness to let go, to be led beyond where we are to where we can be.  Conversion is an invitation not to cling to past works, to past relationships, to past circumstances.  Those are the idols of our lives; those are the places where we have paused along the way.  Conversion opens us to new questions.”

Esther deWaal said,

“Life is to be seen as a journey, an ascent, a pilgrimage, a road.  One of the earliest titles of Christians in Acts was ‘the people of the Way’.  But we cannot think of life as a journey without accepting that it must involve change and growth.  Openness to change is recognition of God’s unpredictability, which confronts our own love of coziness or safety.  It means we have to live provisionally, ready to respond to the new whenever and however that might appear.  There is no security here, no clinging to past certainties.  Rather we must expect to see our chosen idols successively broken.  It is a commitment to letting go.”

So, I guess we have a choice – do we stay where and like we are or do we go on an adventure with God?  Do we delude ourselves into thinking we are already “all that” and indispensably important to the work of God or do we recognize that if we will really do God’s will we must lay aside “our glory” and become as helpless babies again.  Walking with God requires climbing into the manger just as assuredly as it requires getting on the cross or dancing in the empty tomb.

How many want real revival?  How many want God, no matter the cost?  That means a new beginning.

NEW BEGINNINGS START WITH RECOGNITION OF OUR CONDITION AND REPENTANCE.  We are never all that we can be in God.  If God is as big as we say He is, then there is always more to know, to attain, to see and to experience.  We have to recognize that we need to grow.

We must always recognize the fact that we are sinners. If we cannot recognize our sins and faults, then we are condemned to die in them and face God in them.  Repentance is not just getting God to look at our sin; it’s our willingness to stand together with God while we both look at our sin.

Every individual, and church, has a decision to make, either to live life for self or to live this life as a partner with God. It is easy to get caught up in the work of God and get out of step with the God of the work. We must be careful that we are walking in truth.  Irenaeus said, “It is not an easy thing for a soul, under the influence of error, to be persuaded of the contrary opinion.”  We must be careful that our heart is not hard.

Jesus’ mother lost Him in the house of worship, and thousands of us have lost Him in the same place.  We are far more likely to ignore Jesus when we’re on the mountain then when we are in the valley.  We must be living with an attitude of repentance and an openness to change.  Repentance permits the pursuit of His presence.  It builds the road for you to get to God (or for Him to get to you).  “The depth of your repentance will determine the height of your revival”. – Frank Bartleman

NEW BEGINNINGS COME WITH A TURNING WHOLEHEARTEDLY TO GOD.  We must trust in God.  We must recognize that all that we have and know is not enough.  If we can’t recognize that, we need God to take all that we have, so we will rely only on Him.

For the miracle of the Advent to take place, the whole world had to be upset with a taxation degree and Mary and Joseph had to make an arduous journey (change) at a very inconvenient time.  They had to wholeheartedly trust God, not just with the news the Angel had brought them, but also with the method of it coming about.  There is one thing I can promise you about revival.  Revival brings crisis.  That is why in having more of God, we must trust Him more.  He comes to change us and that will upset our world.  Precious things will be taken so real treasures can be given.  Things, even people, will be removed to make room for more of Him and His power.  Everything will change when something new from God is born.  And the more important the birth, the more drastic the change. 

He wants to do things to, with and for us that is out of the ordinary.  Ordinary implies being stuck in a rut.  While in the rut, you’ll attract other rut-dwellers and your mutual impact will be to stay in your ordinary ruts – complaining, finding fault, wishing and hoping for better days.  This we must avoid!

None of this can happen without absolute trust in God.  Only He can birth His promise.  You can’t.  Your talent can’t.  Your knowledge can’t.  Your possessions can’t.  Your money can’t.  Only God.  TRUST HIM!

NEW BEGINNINGS REQUIRE A WAKEFUL EXPECTATION OF HIM! If we are going to have a new beginning with Him, we must always be expecting Him to show up and do something!  This means we must get out of the way in both our attitude and our actions.  It means we must actively listen for His voice and expectantly look for His hand.  It means we must live the faith of least resistance.  “God, what are you up to today?  Can I be a part of it?”  These must be the words we speak, think and live.

“Seek and you will find.”  We will get what we are looking for.  We need to be expectantly looking for Him!  Wise men still seek Him.

Advent – It is a time for new beginnings.  This starts with tearing down the old and leaving old places.  It requires a change of direction (repentance).  It requires trusting wholeheartedly in God, even in scary times.  It requires waking from the slumber of our complacency and like the five wise virgins, living in wakeful expectation of Him.  Of course, like always, the choice is yours.  What are you going to do?