STEP INTO YOUR QUIET CHAPEL

Have you ever thought about how God had the choice of becoming human in any stage of life but chose to enter the world as a newborn child? Jesus could have started out as a self - sufficient, grown adult equipped to make His own decisions, but instead He came to us as a defenseless infant in need of love and care. I think there is a lot for us to learn from this, but in particular, I am struck by the importance of family and community that is highlighted for us in this decision. We have been created as relational beings, craving the love and care of and for others as a basic human need. In today's society, we are longing for this kind of connection that allows us to be truly seen at our core, but we tend to seek it out in all the wrong places. We look for validation and belonging on social media and the number of “likes” we receive on a post, and easily forget how much we are loved and cherished by the One who created us. As a college campus minister, I watch students attempt to change themselves into who they think they need to be in order to be accepted by others and lose the beauty of their uniqueness for the false pretense of friendship. The notion of true vulnerability becomes terrifying, ironically so, because all we want at the end of the day is for someone to love and accept us just as we are.

Having a strong sense of community and family are essential in allowing us to be vulnerable. I truly believe God puts people in your life for specific reasons, and I have seen God's love and goodness so profoundly through the relationships God has put in my life. My family is my heart and soul. My parents have always made me feel like I could do anything I set my mind to, and they would always be there to support me no matter what. My grandparents taught me the importance of showing up for people, being a woman of my word, and never letting someone come to my home without feeding them. My husband has a way of seeing right into my soul with an overflow of compassion to help me see myself through God’s eyes when I feel like I’m not enough. My friends are my chosen family. They meet me where I am in all my faults and imperfections and love me because of them. They allow me to be my true, authentic self without judgment and encourage me to be the very best I can be. When I am longing for connection, I know I have a village of people I can turn to and be reminded of how deeply I am loved, and I recognize just how much of a gift that is.

Ultimately, I turn to God for validation and connection. I am the kind of person whose prayer to God resembles a conversation with a friend, and I find that in the silence of our campus chapel, where I had the privilege to get married, I can feel the loving embrace of God in the chaos. It is the place where I am seen most clearly by the One who created me and longs to be in an intimate relationship with me. It is where I am looked at in love and awe just as we adore the infant Jesus in the manger.

I enter this time of joy and great anticipation with immense gratitude for the birth of Jesus and what that represents: abundant love, importance of genuine connection and vulnerability, and that the light from one life can truly set the world aflame. This Advent season, I encourage you to take time away from the chaos and step into your quiet chapel to allow yourself to be truly seen at your core by God. Allow God’s abundant love to fill your heart. For when we start here, with the one who created us, we can bring this love and acceptance, of ourselves and others, into every relationship we have and be the tangible reminder of God’s love for others.

Jillian Tutak, matm
Assistant Director of Campus Ministry
Neumann University