Advent Devotional, December 8

There are people who can slip into a room unseen, and who make a very light impression, if they make one at all. 
And then there are people with such charisma that, even though they are doing nothing to draw attention to themselves, get the attention of everyone in the room as soon as they step into it. The very atmosphere of the room changes with their arrival. 
And I can’t figure out which category Jesus belongs in. On the one hand, he’s the light of the world, and what could be more magnetic than that?
But on the other hand, Isaiah tells us that he had “no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.” There are times in the gospels that he is the center of attention. And there are times that he seems invisible to the crowd until he says something to provoke them. 
Even at his birth, Jesus was neither quite the center of attention nor the wallflower in the background. And following him still means paying close attention. He may come into a situation like balls of fire. Or you may, after looking for him intently for some time, discover that he’d been in the situation all along, keeping his peace. So pay attention and let Jesus be Jesus.

Prayer: Jesus I want to be alert to your arrival and presence, but I’m afraid I might miss you. You could so easily slip into my blind spot. So make me attuned to you and help me to welcome you whenever and wherever and however you show up.

Song: “Make the Gates All Wide” by Swedish musician A Treehouse Wait invites us to remove barriers and make room for Jesus on his own terms.

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