By: The Rev. Chris Harris
Jesus promises his followers that he will be with them always. It is a comforting promise, but one that can be so easily crowded out by our busy, agenda-driven lives, that it’s easy to lose touch with the divine presence. And so we are warned again and again in the Gospels to stay awake — to “keep watch!”
Advent is such a time to keep watch. To slow down and turn down the noise long enough to open our stance and take on a posture of expectation for the many comings of Christ. Those unexpected “thief in the night” moments when we come face to face with divine love and get a taste, fleeting as it may be, of the peace that passes all understanding. God’s presence is a precious thing to behold. So much so that once experienced, we long to return there, again and again and rest in it.
This Advent, we are learning a new prayer practice called Centering Prayer which is one way to make our lives an intentional, ongoing consent to God’s presence. It’s a meditative prayer. A prayer without words. Because there comes a time in our relationship with God when words fail us.
We’ve all had such moments haven’t we?
Like two lovers who can gaze in each other’s eyes for hours on end. Or a parent quietly delighting at the face of their infant child, sound asleep in their arms. Or when we hold vigil at the bedside of a loved one, silently fighting for their life as we silently contemplate all the ways their life blessed ours. Again, words fail us when we try to explain it. But we know it when we experience it. I invite you to come and experience it with God.
Join myself and our guide, The Rev. Marjorie Wilhelmi, who in addition to being an ordained Presbyterian is also certified by the Shalem Institute in Contemplative Leadership and a recent graduate of Living School for Action and Contemplation.