Season of Preparation Day Eight: God’s Gift of Longing

When the Holy Spirit nudged (i.e. convicted) me to prepare my heart for Christmas differently this year, I couldn’t wait. My soul thirsted for a time of focused, intentional fellowship with God.  And it hungered for a reason (as if a reason were needed) to step away from the world’s preoccupation with our modern Christmases, and revel in the birth of Christ with a renewed sense of awe.

I long for a more meaningful relationship with Christ, a deeper understanding of God’s Word, and a soul so soaked in a steadfast faith you can’t wring a drop of doubt out.

But I’m learning that the ability to long for something is a gift from God.

The official definition of to long for means to have an earnest and deep desire.

Ironic that the One who gave us the ability to long is often not the object of our longings.

I long for new knowledge, books I’ve never read, and quite evenings at home. Not bad things. But are they filling the place of God in my life?

Some of us long for a relationship or career or a child.

We long for things we believe  will somehow bring us happiness or make our lives better.

But we forget to long for the One in which all things we created. We long for the goods but not the creator.

Few moments are more special than staring into the eyes of a newborn baby. In that moment, we long—our earnest and deep desire—to make the child happy, to protect him, to care for his needs.

What would it have been like to hold the newborn Jesus in your arms and gaze into his innocent eyes?

Jesus doesn’t need us to make him happy, protect him, or care for his needs. But he does want us to long for him.

This Christmas I want to be aware of my longings and make sure I am meeting them with the right One. I want to cultivate the gift of longing so that it is firmly rooted in the right place.