Futile but Fruitful
Each advent season brings an ebb and flow of reflection and emotion as we welcome Immanuel and peer out towards His return. We’re reminded of the simplicity of our faith by the meek and humble baby in manger, while dipping our toes into the infinitely complex well of God’s paced revelations. We’re drawn into joyous simplicity and confounding mystery.
The contrasts of flesh and spirit are perhaps no more laid bare than at Christmas, when the thrill of hope crashes headlong into the desperation of our daily trials. Transcendent and entangled, helpless and hopeful, fragile yet fortified. If nothing else, the advent of Christ reveals ourselves as we truly are. But it also reveals something far more important…everything. (rev. Here, 2022)
In self-reflection we may find many things at the Holy Spirit’s prompting, but we will not find anything we truly need within ourselves. In this, the incarnate Christ levels the strides of striving humanity. The only identity or self which is of value or eternal significance is the one hidden with Christ in God(Col 3:3).
How easily we are misled in noble pursuits. The four virtues of Advent are hope, peace, joy, and love. We try so hard to grab hold of them and exhibit these spiritual fruits in our lives. Yet, how easily they elude us! We can rarely produce them, much less perfect them, settling for counterfeit adaptations in a futile quest for those deeper truths we cannot capture. We look forward to earthly pursuits and call them hope, we manufacture tranquil moments and call them peace, we find some episodes of happiness and call them joy, while we savor some affections and call them love. None are ignoble, but neither are they indelible.
The striving soul wearies, but the Savior, that baby in Bethlehem manger calls to us:
Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.
Matthew 11:28-30
Beloved friend, the message accompanying Christmas is this: Hope is a person. Peace is a person. Joy is a person. Love is a person. The divine descended to us that we might see Him and know Him. The fruits of the Spirit are not within ourselves, they are Him, and He is here. We can never realize them, we can only receive them by receiving Him. When our wicked and worn out souls yield to His yoke, we discover all that our hearts could not manufacture. When we find the Christ, we find everything, even life itself.
Epilogue:
We hope that you’ve been encouraged, exhorted, or inspired in some way to draw nearer to Christ in this Advent season. If these devotionals have in any way contributed to this end, there is no present labor more meaningful or satisfying to us.
If you call Immanuel Lord, then you are never alone, but know that we also feel deeply with you and for you. Perhaps a greater privilege than writing something that would encourage you, is to join with you in prayer. If you would like a brother and sister with you at the throne of grace with your petition, please reach out and tell us how we can pray with you. We’re not always great at keeping up with our responses to email, but we read EVERY SINGLE ONE and we truly do love to hear from you. In the meantime, please accept a hearty and cheerful !!!Merry Christmas!!! from our family to you.
Blessings,
Steve & Cari Wendel
wendel@thewendels.org
steven.wendel@abwego.org
(913)325-9609
