Today we begin a new liturgical year. On this first Sunday of Advent, the Church is inviting us to prepare for the second coming of Christ.
The first thought Advent brings is about celebrating Christmas. If that is all there is to this season, we Christians are to be pitied, for the rest of the world celebrates Christmas and have a goodtime too. For us this season reminds of two other comings of Christ, his glorious second coming as the King and the continuous coming of the Lord Jesus into our lives every moment.

The theme of today is “Watch!” The irony of our generation is the double standards we apply for our lives. Often, we want to control our lives, having our plans, not willing to submit to the plan and will of God.

We fear that God will destroy our dreams and crush our plans. Yet, when life gets too burdensome, when our striving becomes too exhausting, we question where God is. When unforeseen events crop up, many of us blame God. We have forgotten that we had left God and have been managing our lives independent of him.
The Prophet Isaiah reminds us that God is our Father, who never forgets or forsakes us. Learning about God will sustain us for a while, but it is the Father-child relationship, that makes us know him, allowing his love to fill our lack. All God’s promises become ‘yes’ and ‘amen’ for us.

Jesus the Son, who came to reveal the Father to us, is inviting us to be watchful to not let life pass us by. He is asking us to watch so that we won’t be fooled by the enemy and the world to fall into a life of self-effort, without God, and also to watch for the moments of his ‘coming’ into our life situations.
This can only be learned when we become intentional about deepening our relationship with him. Our daily quiet time with the Lord helps immensely to know him more intimately through worship. The Word of God helps us to hear his voice in our hearts.

We are called to live as citizens of heaven, our minds being constantly renewed by the Holy Spirit. The world might laugh that it is mere fantasy, but St Paul tells us that every spiritual gift we need to live a life of rest and joy, in good times and bad, has already been poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit.
Through our Baptism and Confirmation we have been empowered to live in the power of the Holy Spirit. Let us choose to open the gift bag, take the gifts out and use them to the fullest.

Prayer: Abba Father, thank you for enriching us with the grace to live like your Son Jesus. May we hear your voice and obey. Amen.