“The days are coming,” declares the Sovereign Lord,
    “when I will send a famine through the land—
not a famine of food or a thirst for water,
    but a famine of hearing the words of the Lord.”
Amos 8:11 (NIV)

We’ve enjoyed a very mild autumn this year with temps that feel warmer on average than usual. At least, that was until the past few days. The first blast of arctic air has blown in with a reminder of winter’s scheduled arrival. It’s a little chilly in the quiet this morning.

Along with the change in weather, the chill reminds me that the season of Advent is right around the corner. While not universally observed among followers of Jesus, Advent is a traditional time of spiritual preparation and “waiting” for the celebration of Jesus’ birth. It is also a reminder of our “waiting” for Jesus’ promised return. Many followers of Jesus will fast as a part of the season, and of course you can find almost any kind of Advent calendar with a little treat for each day leading up to Christmas.

In today’s chapter, Amos makes a rather strange prophetic proclamation. He says that there is a coming famine, but it won’t be food that will be scarce, but the word of the Lord. People will search for a word from the Lord and be unable to find it.

What’s interesting about this prophecy is that Jesus famously replied to the evil one when He was tempted, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” In the same way that bread is a staple form of physical sustenance, so God’s words are a form of staple spiritual sustenance. This chapter-a-day journey is a form of daily spiritual nourishment. When Amos declares that there will be a famine of God’s word, he’s declaring a spiritual famine.

What’s equally interesting is that after the last prophet, Malachi, there is a roughly 400 year period of prophetic silence until the birth of Jesus. Amos’ prophesy was eventually realized. More than just a celebration of Christmas, the annual season of Advent is a yearly reminder of the 400 years of spiritual famine that preceded the baby, wrapped in swaddling clothes, and lying in a manger.

I’m thinking this morning not just about physical seasons but spiritual seasons. As a child, the season of Advent and countdown to Christmas morning is agonizing. In the same way, my spiritual journey has contained long seasons of waiting, when each day felt spiritually parched and the fulfillment of promise seems perpetually on the horizon. Looking back, I realize that times of spiritual famine have exercised my faith, on which I have to rely like a starving person getting by on meager provisions. I have also experienced that seasons of spiritual famine do end. Christmas morning dawns. A time of harvest and blessing eventually arrives like spiritual rain. As Jesus put it, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.”

Sometimes, you have to wait.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.