Love That Comes Near

“The Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory.” — John 1:14

I've been in a long-distance relationship for the past year, and I've learned something about what it means to be constrained by distance when all you want is nearness.  

Whoever came up with that old aphorism, "Absence makes the heart grow fonder," was obviously a masochist.  

Nothing can compare with the feeling that comes over you when you have been apart from your beloved and then have them right in front of you. When you can hold them, see their face, and spend time in their presence. 

If this season of life has taught me anything, it's that being in close proximity to your beloved is the best of all possible worlds, and there is nothing quite like it.  

Love is often imagined as sentiment or affection, but Advent reminds us it is movement. It is God descending into human vulnerability, choosing proximity rather than distance. Love is not merely declared—it is embodied.

“The Word became flesh.” The Creator did not send ideas, advice, or abstract comfort. God came near—breathing, weeping, suffering, rejoicing, living among us. Advent love is not theoretical; it takes shape in manger straw, in ordinary homes, among ordinary people.

This is a love that seeks—pursuing those who wander, comforting those who mourn, healing those who hurt. It is a love that does not wait for us to be ready or worthy. God initiates. God arrives. God abides.

Mary experienced this as an overshadowing presence—love that disrupted her expectations yet honored her story. Joseph experienced love that redirected his plans but dignified his character. The shepherds found themselves drawn into a love that refused to overlook them. The Magi traveled because love beckoned them to worship.

That same love draws near to us. Not when we are polished, certain, or spiritually impressive, but when we are afraid, tired, or bewildered. Advent love says, “You are not alone.” It moves into our neighborhoods, our anxieties, our stories.

Where do you need love to come near? Perhaps there is a room in your life you assume God won’t enter—too messy, too hurt-filled, too unresolved. Yet Advent declares that nothing is too ordinary or too broken for love to inhabit.

Love takes flesh again through us. Every act of mercy, every word of kindness, every gesture of forgiveness becomes incarnation—God’s nearness expressed through our lives. We do not wait for Christmas simply to remember Christ’s birth; we wait so that Christ may be born again in us.

Let His love come near—then let it move through you toward others.

Prayer

God of incarnate love, thank You for coming close. Enter the places in our lives we have closed off, and remind us that nothing is beyond Your touch. Make us vessels of Your nearness—people through whom Your love becomes visible. Help us receive love deeply so we may extend it freely. Amen.

Reflection Questions

1. Where in your life do you most need God’s nearness today?

2. How have you experienced God’s love moving toward you rather than waiting for you to move toward Him?

3. What is one way you can embody God’s love for someone this week?