Sunday is the fourth Sunday of Advent. Where on earth did the season go? Every year, Christmas seems to get here more quickly than the last, but this year has been incomprehensible. I keep thinking of all the people I want to do things for, but now there isn’t time.
That is such a parable of life. Like many churches, we will light the candle of love on Sunday. All too often love becomes mushy sentimentality, but, given the nature of our society, and the state of our culture, it has become increasingly easy for me to define it, identify it, express it, and even quantify it. Love is TIME.
What we give our time to is what we really love. Once upon a time, Jesus said, “Where your treasure is, there your heart really is.” Today, I think he would amend that to say, “Where you spend your time tells the truth about what you really love.”
Recently, Bill and I traveled to the Holy Land together. We had a great time and learned a lot. We were the only gay couple on the tour and the only Americans. I realized later that one of the very best parts of the tour was that I got to spend 10 days and nights with Bill. Traveling so much this past year, consulting and teaching, I spent a lot of time away from home. So, having time just to be together was an amazing gift. Even after 35 years, there is no one I’d rather be with because there is no one I love more.
That is how love works, but it shouldn’t just be about romantic love. Do you love God? Oh? Remember that time thing? Do you love those who are poor, hurting, in need?
“Where your time is, there is where your heart really dwells.”
Well, on Sunday we will light the candle of love. What will it represent in your life? What will it REALLY represent? Work? Email? The Internet? Golf? When we light the candle it will be okay if you decide it is not a symbol of what has been, but of what you hope will be. What will you love in the year ahead? Where will your time be spent?
I don’t know about you, but I’ve got a whole lot of loving to do before Christmas.
Blessings,
Rev. Michael Piazza