Good morning. In just a matter of days the Church will flip the page of the
liturgical calendar to the season of Advent. The season of Advent is certainly a
time of various thoughts and feelings; for some it is an anxious time, a time of
longing, for others it is a time of uneasiness and anticipation, for others it is
a time of awe and wonder and for others it is a time of hope and a time of blessing
as we await the arrival of the Christ at Christmas. Yet it is not just the arrival of
the infant Jesus that we prepare for throughout the season of Advent, but it is
likewise His coming to us at the end of time that we make preparations.
Jesus clearly makes us aware of this in today's Gospel. Either way, whether it is Christmas or His second coming, we
anticipate His arrival with joy. We shall sing longingly over the next few weeks
“Come, Lord Jesus,” “Maranatha!” hoping for our Lord’s return in glory.
Not too long ago there was a fringe group of Christian believers who were
certain that the end of the world would occur on May 21, 2011. That you are reading this it would seem their
calculations were somewhat off. Of late there is another such prediction for
December 2012
which is based upon the conclusion of the Mayan Calendar. Now, I have to wonder,
if we truly believed in this prediction, if we firmly believed Jesus’ second coming
was set for December 21, 2012 how different would our lives be? For that matter if
we thought He were coming tomorrow, what would we do differently today? If we knew
the end of time was imminent I’m certain we would make some necessary adjustments
in our lives. Yet, He will be here tomorrow; in fact He is here with us today in
everyone we meet.
This idea of the end of time, this second coming should have us making
preparations daily for His arrival, for He is here amongst us. Our Saint for today,
Saint Cecilia presents to us
an example of readiness for His arrival. Saint Cecilia whose memory we celebrate today, when our Lord came for her, He found her
waiting and ready to meet Him. May we likewise be ready! We should reflect daily on
the sacredness of our lives, and consider our readiness to meet Him. As married couples
we should consider every day how our marital relationship reflects our readiness for Christ.
How do we help prepare our spouse for His arrival? Do we invite Jesus into our lives?
Do we ask Him to share in our joys and in our sorrows? There is a prayer, attributed
to Nicolaus Ludwig Zinzendorf which reflects well this need for us as married couples
to invite daily Christ into our lives. The prayer is an old Lutheran prayer said
before meals but would serve well to be spoken by all married couples “Come Lord Jesus,
Be our guest, and let thy gifts to us be blessed." Whether it is Christmas, tomorrow,
or December 2012 let us invite Him into our lives, into our marriage today. Come, Lord Jesus!
Maranatha! Make a great day!
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