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Advent is a time that we as a society don’t do too well with. It has to do with waiting. Patiently. The good news is that our waiting for the Messiah is comforted by our celebration of Christmas morning and the birth of Jesus. But what about the waiting that we do as a Christian collective for the coming of our Lord back to our world?
Should we still be waiting?

Advent means “coming,” and during Advent we celebrate how Jesus came to Earth to live and die for us. We also are told through scripture that Jesus will come again someday. We don’t know when this will be, but it gives us hope to know that God will keep His promise to return for us.

People have wondered throughout time when that return would be. In fact, while Jesus was on Earth, people asked Him for signs of the end of time. Then, like now, they wanted to understand how they could be ready for the end, and they wanted to know when it would be. They literally thought that that time would be in their lifetime. Jesus gave them some signs and said that many things needed to happen before His return.
Here we are today… we still don’t know exactly when that will take place, and it has now been more than 2,000 years since Jesus described these things.  Maybe it has already taken place and we missed it. Maybe it happened centuries ago with the destruction of the temple in 70 CE. Jesus wasn’t too clear about that. After all the destruction of the temple was the end of Jerusalem as it was. It was totally burned and the temple was destroyed.

However, as a Christian society we still wait for Christ to come again for us in the modern world. While we wait, we have hope that comes from other signs. We can be on the lookout for signs of God’s love and presence. God has promised to be with us always. We don’t quite see God with our eyes, but we can see signs of God’s care.
These signs can be simple everyday things. Having people near us that love us is a reminder of God’s blessings.

Sometimes we see signs of God’s closeness in nature, like a beautiful Arizona sunset or the state flower. Maybe really great things happen, like an illness cured, or simple things like our favorite desert being served after dinner. And we remember God’s faithfulness when we read God’s Word. The Bible gives us many signs of God’s love. God cares for us and provides for us, and God keeps God’s promises always. 

We might not always receive signs in huge, exciting ways. We might not see the signs of the time Christ will come again. But God gives us signs of God’s love and presence  every day if we look for them.  And this gives us hope. Hope encourages us and gives us something to look forward to. We can remember that now in the Advent season, and every day of the year! Let’s pray and thank God for signs of God’s presence and love…