Tomorrow is the first Sunday in Advent and we will celebrate with carols, candles and communion.
And the waiting will begin. . . waiting for Messiah to come again . . . waiting for Baby Jesus in the manger . . . waiting for the spark within each of us to be reignited into the very Spirit of God in our midst . . .
And in the meantime, we will go about our lives . . . busy with the day-to-day of existence with even the cracks of time and space filled with the joy or burden of "the holidays" . . .
My own symbol this year of the waiting space is the perfect pie crust.
Pie making requires first and foremost a good crust. I've been making pies since I was about 12 and only recently did I stumble on the great tip for the perfect flaky crust: do not stir or over-work the dough -- rather, lightly fluff the water into the flour/lard mixture only until it is moistened: crust does not like to be overworked. The more gentle we are with it, the more flaky and wonderful-melting-in-the-mouth goodness it will yield. As with so many things in life, less really is more.
That's a great lesson for Advent: less is more. Not only the less of consumer consumption, but also the less of trying so hard. Advent is a time, if ever there were, to relax into God and God's good grace, to do our part gently and with patience and then step back to allow The Divine work to simply happen.
We might mix together some ingredients, but to borrow from poet Joyce Kilmer, only God can make a pie.
And the waiting will begin. . . waiting for Messiah to come again . . . waiting for Baby Jesus in the manger . . . waiting for the spark within each of us to be reignited into the very Spirit of God in our midst . . .
And in the meantime, we will go about our lives . . . busy with the day-to-day of existence with even the cracks of time and space filled with the joy or burden of "the holidays" . . .
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| Can't recommend the book as I haven't read it, but it's a great picture! |
Pie making requires first and foremost a good crust. I've been making pies since I was about 12 and only recently did I stumble on the great tip for the perfect flaky crust: do not stir or over-work the dough -- rather, lightly fluff the water into the flour/lard mixture only until it is moistened: crust does not like to be overworked. The more gentle we are with it, the more flaky and wonderful-melting-in-the-mouth goodness it will yield. As with so many things in life, less really is more.
That's a great lesson for Advent: less is more. Not only the less of consumer consumption, but also the less of trying so hard. Advent is a time, if ever there were, to relax into God and God's good grace, to do our part gently and with patience and then step back to allow The Divine work to simply happen.
We might mix together some ingredients, but to borrow from poet Joyce Kilmer, only God can make a pie.
In my experience only god can do anything....our part seems to be to figure that out...and then admire and accept what god does.....that is most easy with things like pie....im still working on accepting some of the other things god can do...ann
ReplyDeleteWell, you know how I feel about pie, and that's how I feel about this post! I quoted part of it to my guests. I'll try to remember this throughout the season.
ReplyDelete"Our part seems to be to figure that out" - so, so very true- and I continue to wonder - why should that be so hard?
ReplyDeleteGinny - thanks! You made me smile! Tired, happy to be home. Beth
ReplyDeleteIt is hard for me to acknowledge that only god can really do things because i want to 'do tractor'.....whether it is nature or nuture that created this i do not know,maybe both.....i never met anybody who did not want to claim some level of control over their world.....i think for me overcoming this is my main spiritual job.....i know i can be part of gods pie making.....but i can not do anything all by myself.....and i certainly have tried...and i sorry to say i still trick myself into trying.... Thankfully god always shows me that it is not working....Ann
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