Study: Consider an experience where you were able to be still, pause and reflect.  How can you make that pattern happen this Advent?

Pray: Carve out a few minutes this season for quiet prayer.  Reflect on your life and invite the Lord to dwell in your heart.

Serve: There are many opportunities this time of year to help others.  Look around for an activity that speaks to your soul.

Mass Readings – 1st Sunday of Advent

Advent is one of those seasons that has the power to surprise us.  Just like the relationship between Lent and Easter, Advent offers us a time to prepare our hearts for the great feast of Christmas.  In this short season we discover the themes of Preparation, Waiting, Expectation, Repentance, and Stillness.

The thing is…if we aren’t ready for Advent then the whirlwind rush of December can sweep us up into the frenzy of the commercial side of the holiday.  Many people are so busy – concerts, parties, family events, purchasing gifts and partaking of the “forced fun” of consumerism’s attempt at a Hallmark Christmas…

Whew!  Instead, we can take a deep breath, pray, and reflect on where the Lord is leading us at this moment in our lives.  Consider the readings this Sunday:

• 1st Reading – Isaiah acknowledges that the people are far from God
• Psalm – “Lord make us turn to you; show us your face and we shall be saved.”
• 2nd Reading – St. Paul encourages the people of Corinth to be faithful to the end.
• Gospel – The Lord exhorts us to be watchful and alert.

So in these short days of preparation here are a few questions to ponder:

• Where I can find a little stillness and quiet in my life?
• How is the Lord calling me to pray?
• Is there anything or anyone that requires special attention?
• Where is the Lord leading me right now?
• What do I need to do as I prepare for Christmas?
• How can I help someone in this quiet season of Advent?

You get the idea.  Step back, pause, and consider in the busy pace that many of us call normal how the Lord is directing your heart.  Advent has a beauty and power; our task is to enter into this season and allow God to speak to our souls.

Note: This post was first published on November 27, 2017.