It’s Advent, the ancient Christian tradition of the period of waiting before Christmas, the celebration of Christ’s coming to earth. After a year that felt like one big season of waiting—waiting for quarantine to end, waiting to be healthy again, waiting to be able to hug friends and loved ones again, waiting for some semblance of normalcy. I don’t know about you, but I barely even realized that December was here until we were already halfway through it. For so many of us, it’s been a year spent longing for a new season.
The theme that we chose for 2020 here at ASP was “Complete, But Not Finished,” based on Philippians 1:6 that reads,
I am sure that the One who began a
good work in you will carry it on until it
is completed. That will be on the day
Christ Jesus returns.
This quieter-than-normal Christmas, I find myself pondering on this verse and what it means for not only ASP’s mission, but also for each one of us.
God has begun a good work in and through every one of us. We are whole, and loved, regardless of anything we’ve done or left undone, simply because God has called us “good.”
This good work is not finished yet, though. We can grow and work toward wholeness (even the tiniest bit!) every moment and in every situation, in ourselves and in our communities, knowing that we are already beloved.
We wait for the work to be finally completed—but not without hope. It’s this hope which allows us to keep going when everything seems dark.
We know that one day, all will be right again. But for now, we continue the good work, knowing that we are already enough.
This Christmas, may we all find rest in the knowledge that we are loved, and continue the good work of letting others know they are loved, too.
Merry Christmas!
By Jordyn Morel, Advancement Fellow
