Dear Desire of Ev’ry Nation Day 19

BY Rachel Marie Kang

There I was, just a young girl in elementary school, sitting at my desk and filling out the blank boxes inside the cover of my marbled composition notebook. I write my name down, trying—hard as I may—to scribble it out in script, all messy and illegible. I write out my grade and my teacher’s name. Then, for my address, I write between the lines: 

Brazil.

I write no street name, house number, zip code, or actual address—just Brazil. And, truth be told, I did not actually live in Brazil…nor am I even Brazilian.

This memory comes to me from time to time, and I think about the exact moment I wrote Brazil. I think about the young girl I was and how desperately I wanted to simplify my story, to hide the complexities of confessing the truth about who I was. The truth about who I am.

I am a mixed woman of African American, Native American (Ramapough Lenape Nation), Irish, and Dutch descent. With that, I carry many stories—of how my family came to be, of speculation and fact, of knowing what it feels like to fear that you don’t belong. I carry hand-me-down histories, the inherited tensions and traumas of being Black and White, and everything in between.

So that young girl that I was, writing inside the cover of her black and white composition notebook? She became Brazilian; she bent the truth and tried to become something that she thought would be easier to recall, easier to retell—and, therefore, easier to welcome.

This Advent, we reflect on and receive the sacred truth that the One who is the desire of every nation is also the One who delights in every nation. 

We turn our eyes to see our Savior, Jesus Christ, the One who shed His blood for every beating heart, no matter the language, no matter the accent or dialect (Revelation 5:9). This love, this longing for all of us—even, especially for those foreign and far from God—echoes throughout eternity, from Genesis to Revelation, from creation until the second coming, and beyond (Isaiah 56:3–8).

His heart is a house for all nations. His hands are stretched out for all people of all places (Isaiah 56:7–8). From Jew to Gentile (Romans 9:22–26) and male to female, He is for every eunuch (Acts 8:26–39) and everyone seemingly unseen. Beyond every country and continent, He welcomes us to His table (Mark 7:24–30) if only we have ears to hear and humble hearts to receive Him. For we are all His children, bought and brought into this family—into His family.

For this, we celebrate and center ourselves around Him, this season. We come out of hiding and step into hereness, declaring our desire for Him and knowing that, as we do, He, too, desires us—delights in all we are.

His bloodline goes beyond blood, beyond the bronze, brown, and blush of our skin. He has saved, is saving, and will always be saving us all. Amen.