JOY- ADVENT
“Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord, is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation. With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation. In that day you will say: ‘Give thanks to the Lord, call on his name; make known among the nations what he has done, and proclaim that his name is exalted. Sing to the Lord, for he has done glorious things; let this be known to all the world. Shout aloud and sing for joy, people of Zion, for great is the Holy One of Israel among you.’” Isaiah 12:2-6 NIV
As we continue our waiting posture this Advent season and enter into the week of Joy, I return to pondering what Dallas Willard asserted at the end of his life -- that perhaps attachment to God is salvation (Renovated, Jim Wilder 2020).
Attachment is foundational to all of life. How we have attached to people and to whatever we love, will certainly shape how we live. This is natural. We don’t have to think about this, but more so observe this aspect of our lives. Curt Thompson says that we enter this world looking for someone who is looking for us. And we discover throughout our lives that Yahweh is always looking for us. His attentive gaze is always available, even if we cannot see it.
This unfolding discovery of a pursuing God, who has in his own being a longing to know us and commune with us, who came near and wants to be face-to-face with us, is a joyful discovery indeed. We discover this over and over through the course of our lives.
And yet, some of us have experienced hurts in life that have affected our ability to receive this kind of love and attentive kindness. Receiving love and kindness feels threatening for some and must be re-learned and practiced in order to be repaired. This is why this is an unfolding journey toward joy. Isaiah says, “he has become my salvation.” We are learning to re-attach to God over the course of our lives and each time we are able to receive his love and connection, we are able to receive a little more joy.
As our attachment to God grows, we can live out of this new foundation. This foundational attachment to God helps us to release the old hurts and insecure attachments that created obstacles to our ability to receive his love freely. We do not have to strive for this, but simply to pay attention to each new invitation with which we can consent to just a little more. He knows what we can handle and is patiently waiting for each “yes” we will give.
One line in the contemporary version of the Anima Christi prayer states, “Do not let me run from the love that you offer.” I love the honesty in this request because it confesses the reality of our tendency to run from what we truly need. I find myself asking God for this gift to remain in his love and to allow this to be received deeper and deeper into my inner most being. This gift is especially meaningful during Advent, as we watch and wait for his return and for all things to be made new.
What is your current experience with receiving Yahweh’s love and joy? What healing do you desire in your attachment with God? If you are able, consider spending some time sitting in His gaze of love this week.