Desire: An Advent-Related Tension

Spiritual desire. How and why faith exists. In his book Consuming Religion, Vincent J. Miller describes it beautifully: “The spiritual life is marked by a progressive increase in desire as the soul presses closer to the ever-unreachable object of its desire” (Miller 129).

Consumer desire. This is a reality our society is all too familiar with, particularly during the Christmas season. As a society, we want and want and want, and every time we attain something, we are already five steps ahead with our eyes on the “next best thing.” Consumer desire comes dangerously close to spiritual desire, as we studied in my theology course this semester. The two can be visualized as two parallel train tracks, and with subtle changes in our mindset and behavior, we find ourselves slipping from one side to the other (Miller).

My brothers and me with our Christmas Eve gifts last year

How can we even attempt to balance consumer desire and spiritual desire, if the difference between them remains subtle and blurred?

By putting a greater value on the chase. By acknowledging the beauty of the fact that God designed humans to desire for a reason, and that this gift, like so many others, may be used either the way He intended it to be or not. We can use desire to develop our characters as holy, spiritual beings or to suck ourselves into the earthliness and sin of consumer desire. This is not to say that all consumer desire is inherently evil, but it becomes challenging and risky in our consumer society when we allow it to nudge us along the path of idolatry and a cycle of greed and despair. But desire is also beautiful, because it prompts us to pursue an active relationship with our Creator, who gave us the gift of desire.

Spiritual desire enhances our relationship with God. I believe there is also a sort of spiritual/social desire that drives our enhancing of relationships with others. ­­­This Advent season, may we take time out of the craziness that often characterizes Christmas preparation in order to appreciate the value of spiritual gifts. Perhaps consider asking for or giving one of the following for Christmas this year, or coming up with your own to add to this list:

1. Spend quality time without technology. Pull out board games, cards, old photo albums, etc., or just share some family memories around the kitchen table
2. Give your time at a local charity with family and/or friends. This could be a homeless shelter, soup kitchen, women’s home, etc. Get creative with how you share your time with your community.
3. Watch a Christmas movie (or any other movie) without outside distraction from phones or the looming pressure of a to-do list. Just enjoy.
4. Go on a walk with family members or friends. Explore your neighborhood or a nearby park.
5. Tell a family member or friend (or multiple) specifically why you are thankful for them.
6. Sit quietly in the presence of God. Let Him love you and all that you are.

Happy Advent and a very Merry Christmas to all. Thank you for your support this semester, and I look forward to beginning a new leg of this adventure with you in January!