Sunday, December 10-- Holding Your Breath

At the theater, there is one moment in the production when everything is so quiet, you can hear your own heart beat. It’s so still, you can hear the thoughts of the parents standing beside you awaiting the moment when they are going to see little Susie in her brand new pink dress. At the same time, there’s a lot of activity going on behind the scenes. The stage hands scurry with last minute details; the cues arrive through the stage headphones; the sound operators are poised to cue the microphones. It’s the final hush before the curtain rises; it’s the moment the conductor raises his baton before the downbeat of the orchestra; it’s the pregnant pause before the lights turn on.

This moment, says, Frederich Buechner, is Advent. That’s what we’re in right now; it’s the extraordinary moment before the moment. The world holds its breath waiting for God to cue the camels, the manger, the shepherds and the magi. We hold our breath right before the curtain rises on the drama of this Christmas story.