As the Advent season envelops us, we enter a time of profound reflection and quiet expectation. It’s a season that reminds us of the holy anticipation that preceded the birth of Jesus, and it’s also a time when we look forward with hope to His promised return. In the midst of this sacred waiting, we find a powerful parallel in the experience of Jesus Himself as recounted in Luke 4:1:

“Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness.”

In this verse, we witness Jesus at a pivotal moment, moving from the waters of the Jordan—where He was baptized and affirmed by the Father—into the stark wilderness. This transition is emblematic of Advent. Just as Jesus was prepared for His ministry, so too are we called to prepare our hearts during Advent for the coming of the Messiah.

The wilderness Jesus entered was a place of trial and solitude, yet it was also where His identity and mission were tested and affirmed. Advent invites us into our own wilderness, not as a place of abandonment, but as a sacred space for self-examination and spiritual renewal.

One might ask, wasn’t Jesus already filled with the Holy Spirit prior to His baptism? While Jesus was indeed divine, His baptism marked the inauguration of His earthly ministry, a public manifestation of the Spirit’s empowering presence. This act was not about necessity but about identifying with us in our humanity and our need for the Spirit’s presence.

During Advent, let us draw from Jesus’ example. His time in the wilderness wasn’t a detour—it was part of His destined path. It was a time of divine leading, not of divine leaving. So too, our Advent journey may lead us through shadows, but we walk this path with the assurance that we are being prepared, filled, and led by the Spirit.

Therefore, as we light the candles and recite the prayers of Advent, let us also embrace the quiet, the solitude, and the lessons of the wilderness. Let the Spirit lead us through our own times of testing and into a deeper, more profound celebration of Christ’s coming.

May this Advent be a time when the Spirit fills you anew, and may the anticipation of the Christ child fill your hearts with an ever-deepening joy. Let us journey from the Jordan to our wilderness, and find that in every moment of stillness, there is a space for God to speak and guide us home.