Be Patient

​We read in James 5:7-10 “Be patient, therefore, beloved, until the coming of the Lord.” I discovered the beauty to be always traveling with God, the beauty that you discover when you can enjoy the journey and not only be worried about when you will arrive to your destination. This is exactly what James is trying to share with us today, we need to enjoy this time, this journey, enjoy what we have here, enjoy every day and rejoice that we have an opportunity to discover God´s presence even in the worst moments and more dramatic times in history. Yes, God is here close to us during this journey, and God is inviting us to enjoy it, to be patient. James says: “The farmer waits for the precious crop from the earth, being patient with it until it receives the early and the late rains.” This is a natural process that we need to accept. Advent is preparation and reflection, it is an opportunity to enjoy and rejoice in the presence of God, but we cannot force Christmas, we cannot accelerate the moment of Salvation, we need to learn the importance of the time before Christmas as an opportunity to discover the incredible power of what the Incarnation of the Son of God means. When I was a child I always wanted to celebrate Christmas and open my presents at midnight. But then I discovered that I was more interested in the Christmas eve-Christmas Day experience that I did not enjoyed the Advent Time, the days before Christmas, and, as soon as Christmas Day was over, people run again to store the Christmas lights and the Christmas tree. Later, I discovered that there are twelve days of Christmas to enjoy and not only one night and one day. I learned that the four weeks of Advent are very important because they help me to appreciate the time of waiting for the Lord, and that the twelve days of Christmas are important because they help me to remember that there are twelve more months to live the blessing that I received on Christmas Day. This is the natural process of life! Do not try to rush and do not try to stop it. Use these beautiful days of waiting to practice patience and to rejoice in the good things that God brings day by day into your life. Even in the most difficult times, trust and be patient because the God of Advent and the Lord of Christmas is there traveling with you. Please enjoy your journey in the company of God.
Amen.