"Rejoice and be glad that so
great and good a Lord, on coming into the Virgin's womb, willed to appear
despised, needy, and poor in this world, so that men who were in dire poverty
and suffering great need of heavenly food might be made rich in him." --
St. Clare of Assisi
Gospel Text: (MK 13:33-37)
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Be watchful! Be alert!
You do not know when the time will
come.
It is like a man traveling abroad.
He leaves home and places his servants
in charge,
each with his own work,
and orders the gatekeeper to be on the
watch.
Watch, therefore;
you do not know when the Lord of the
house is coming,
whether in the evening, or at
midnight,
or at cockcrow, or in the morning.
May he not come suddenly and find you
sleeping.
What I say to you, I say to all:
‘Watch!’”
Waiting is about time. Waiting
is focused on the future, not a backward look or even a glance into the past. A
looking forward to a new, different time, a new experience. Something is
coming – good or bad, it is coming.
The Church teaches that Advent is a
time of waiting, anticipation, expectation, joy and preparation for the coming
of Jesus, the promised messiah. A season of looking forward to something
wonderful – the promise of the ages. And so it is.
This Advent season we take our cue
from Mary. When asked to be the mother of the Savior, she said that
powerful word, "Yes." At Mass we sing our "Yes"
at the great "Amen" at the end of the Eucharistic
Prayer. We proclaim our "Yes" when we say "Amen"
and receive Holy Communion. We give ourselves to God and ask him to
receive us, mold us, shape us, form us, and come to dwell within
us.
Then each person we come in contact
with will feel the Lord's presence in their life. Every day can be
Christmas.