# A Melody of Hope: Finding Silence in Advent
*2015-10-30*

> Bill Young reflects on Rev. James Field’s meditation “Sounds of Silence” for the first Monday of Advent, sharing how power outages and quiet moments can draw us into deeper hope and listening to Christ.

## Opening the Advent Reflection

Good morning, I’m Bill Young, and welcome to this episode of Prayer & Lunch. I’m reading from Rev. James Field’s book *A Melody of Hope: Daily Reflections, Responses, and Prayers*. For the first Monday of Advent, the entry is titled “Sounds of Silence.”

## A Power Outage That Became a Blessing

Earlier this year a group from our parish served on a mission to the Dominican Republic. Our clinic there was frequently cut off from the power grid whenever someone else needed the electricity more. We never knew when the lights would flicker out or come back on. During those nighttime blackouts we stopped what we were doing and gathered on the patio. The canopy of stars, the countryside sounds, and the deep quiet settled over us.

## What Silence Reveals

In the darkened world we could notice what really matters. A great theologian once remarked that the biggest malice in our world is that we no longer expect anything. The Advent days invite us to awaken, renew our desire for God, and listen for Christ’s presence. In the silence we can begin to connect the dots between Christ’s desire to dwell with us and our readiness to receive Him.

## A Simple Practice for Advent

Spend twenty minutes today in silence. Go for a walk without an iPod, turn off the car radio, or sit for a while in the evening without the TV. As you listen, ask yourself what Christ might be saying to you. Let that word or thought settle in your heart.

## Prayer of the Day

Quiet me, O God. Give me the grace to hear Your call. Help me to live in hope, certain of the coming of Christ, believing even now that He gives me strength. Amen.

*In the stillness of Advent, God invites us to hear His voice and to live with hopeful expectation of Christ’s coming.*