Mary, the mother of Jesus inspires me. Like Mary who sought out Elizabeth when she learned that she was pregnant, I have been drawn to a few spiritually wise companions in recent weeks. One of my “Elizabeths” told me about a book and how relevant it was to our ongoing conversations. I ordered a copy and in reading the Introduction to the book, I’m finding words to describe what is going on in my life. The following are direct quotes from the book Showing Mary, by Renita J. Weems.
“You are on the verge of something special. You know it. You can feel it. Something is in the air. You are restless and don’t know why. You wake up in the morning with flutters in your stomach even though your calendar doesn’t indicate any special meetings scheduled for the day. Your mind is racing from thought to thought, and you can’t figure out why. A voice in you won’t be quieted, but you can’t quite make out what it’s saying.”
“It feels as though you’re supposed to be doing something, something important, but you don’t know (exactly) what it is.”
“This feeling has been coming in waves, off and on for some time.”
“You’re pregnant with possibility.”
“….there’s a deeper, interior upheaval that’s going on inside you. To calm those twitters, you have to first face them and call them what they are. Spiritual gestation. Outgrowing an old self, shedding old skin, and becoming a new self. Sacred labor. Holy work. Re-birth.”
“You are ready to give birth to other dimensions of you.”
“God sent Gabriel because Mary needed those months to prepare for a birth of a different sort. Parts of her self had to expire and other parts be stirred to life before she could take on the incredible task she was fated for.”
“Mary had no more control over what was happening to her than you and I have control when we wake up one morning unable to go on playing a role we feel we’ve long out-grown.”
“Whenever you feel like you’re being summoned from some deep and holy place within, know that it’s God inviting you to an altar where you might encounter God anew and yourself anew. That’s spiritual pregnancy.”
“Sometimes the feeling that we’re on the verge of something comes and goes-and then comes back, each time with greater intensity until we’re gripped by it and unable to ignore it.”
“Pay attention to the people God sends into your life during this period. New friendships. Prayer partners. Role models. Mentors. Strangers who say something you can’t get out of your mind.”
“Stay away from the Josephs who demand that you have answers, make a decision, and give a name to what’s going on. It takes time to give birth.”
So I join Mary in the prayer “Lord, I want what you want for me. Let us begin.”
So yeah, y’all, that’s what’s going on.
Advent blessings!
Claire
