Advent is a word I was unfamiliar with as a child growing up in my Baptist tradition. But in my years with the Mennonites, I became familiar with the ritual of lighting candles on the Advent wreath in anticipation of Christ’s nativity. Advent, I learned, meant arrival, but intrinsic to that word was the waiting, the anticipation, and the longing of God’s people for his appearance and especially his deliverance. As a little boy, I relived that expectant hope as the calendar slowly edged forward to Christmas. Sometimes, Waiting Is Hard I think most children find waiting for the climax of Christmas morning difficult… but they may also ...