Getting Better at Waiting
Third Sunday of Advent
How well do you wait? How well do you handle boredom? Our culture seems focused on avoiding waiting in any way, shape, or form. When we are waiting, we gravitate to our phones because we fear inactivity. The next time you are in a line, look around and see if anybody is waiting patiently and how many people are glued to their phones. Neuroscientists tell us that when our minds are quiet and unstimulated, a part of the brain called the “default mode network” switches on. This is when we daydream, reflect, remember, imagine, and make sense of our lives. In other words, boredom creates the mental space where meaning is born. This Advent, get better at waiting.
Advent is a time of waiting, and John the Baptist is an expert at waiting. His whole life was marked by waiting. His birth, or rather his mother’s pregnancy, was considered miraculous because she was too old to bear children. His father, Zechariah, received a vision, and he came on the scene, just a few months before his cousin, Jesus. Growing up in frequent contact with Jesus, he began to know the Messiah for whom he would serve as the forerunner.
Once he started his public ministry, he had to digest the prophecies from the Old Testament and preach about the Messiah who was coming. He began to suspect that the mild-mannered cousin might be much more consequential than he had ever imagined. In this, he already serves as a model for us as we move through Advent. We need to learn to digest Sacred Scripture. We won’t all have the opportunity to disappear into the desert for a few years, but we can all look for a time to spend with God in silence and prayer.
John received a marvelous grace when he baptized Jesus. The heavens opened up, and the Father proclaimed that he was well-pleased with his divine Son. Something must have still remained unclear for John, since it is only later in prison that he sends his disciples to ask Jesus about his true identity.
When John heard in prison of the works of Christ, he sent his disciples to Jesus with a question (cf. Mt. 11:2). He had heard about the works his cousin was doing. In prison, he had a lot of time to reflect, as his public ministry was completely stopped. He formulates a question that we should all carry in our hearts during this season.
Are you the one to come, or should we wait for another? (Mt. 11:3)
John always knew that he was preparing the way for someone else. As he heard more and more about his cousin, his suspicions grew that he might be the one. He knew Jesus well enough that he had no concern about being deceived, so he sent his disciples with a clear question. We can learn from John how to wait and how to ask questions. He waits patiently, but once he is ready for action, he moves forward without hesitation. Advent is not about passive waiting but about attentive readiness.
Jesus also praised his cousin John. He asks the people why they went out to visit him in the desert. He is not merely a reed swayed by the wind. They must have been looking for something more. He could not himself have been the Messiah. Rather, he was a prophet, and this is why they felt an uncontrollable urge to find him.
No one is greater than John the Baptist in the sense that John lived totally committed to the things of God. John waited with asceticism. He was not focused on fine robes and comfortable buildings, but rather practiced penance. If we want to prepare a place for Christ in our hearts, we have to practice penance. John was courageous and bold in preaching the message of God. We need to be brave as well if we are going to proclaim the Gospel. Finally, John proclaimed repentance, but with humble submission to Jesus.
We should imitate John’s total dedication in the way we follow Jesus. Perhaps the greatest penance we can perform in our own time is to be bored. Be bored, but not because you are boring. Allow yourself to take a step back from the overstimulation of our time and step into the peace that only God can give you. Spend five minutes today without your phone, simply sitting with God. Learn to wait, but not just as an empty activity. Let boredom be the doorway through which Jesus enters.