Why is it hard to buy an Advent Calendar?
聽聽聽聽聽 Because their days are numbered.
聽聽聽聽聽 God gave us Advent in our lives because we need time to get it right 鈥� time to prepare for that meeting with our Lord and Savior. As children we strove to be good so that we would be ready for Jesus鈥� coming. As adults we prepare for another coming.
聽聽聽聽聽 Most days we have to admit we still struggle for perfection. We imagine God is watching and keeping track. Actually God has other plans. He sent Jesus to explain, but we just don鈥檛 seem to get the message.
聽聽聽聽聽 I am reminded of the words of a mother shared on internet:
聽聽聽聽聽 My proudest moment came during the children鈥檚 Christmas pageant. My daughter was playing Mary, two of my sons were shepherds and my youngest son was a wise man.
聽聽聽聽聽 A wrestling match broke out between Mary and the shepherd and was stopped by an angel, who bent her halo and lost her left wing.
聽聽聽聽聽 I slouched a little lower in my seat when Mary dropped the doll representing Baby Jesus, and it bounced down the aisle crying, 鈥淢ama-mama.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽 My other son stepped forward wearing a bathrobe and a paper crown, knelt at the manger and announced, 鈥淲e are the three wise men, and we are bringing gifts of gold, common sense and fur.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽 The congregation dissolved into laughter, and the pageant got a standing ovation鈥� 鈥淢y children are my pride and my joy and my greatest blessing,鈥� I said as I dug through my purse for an aspirin.
聽聽聽聽聽 I imagine God has a sense of humor. He likely doesn鈥檛 have to reach for an aspirin, but God is proud of our least efforts in bringing about the Kingdom. God does not reward success, but he does reward effort.
聽聽聽聽聽 This Christmas, let us have a deeper understanding of how the incarnation changes us. When the Word became flesh, a human Mary gave great dignity to the human race by becoming the Mother of God, by housing the eternal power within a human body.
聽聽聽聽聽 You and I have a great dignity by being the temples of the Holy Spirit through Baptism and by receiving Christ within us. Be it in the Word or the Eucharist, Jesus wants to enter our hearts and make our living bodies the place where God can dwell.
聽聽聽聽聽 This Christmas, let鈥檚 pray for peace on earth and blessings on those we love. I have learned never to ask God for anything unless I mean it. As a minister said, 鈥淚f you pray for rain, make sure you carry an umbrella.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽 To share just one example: several years back when my oldest son was still single I started a Christmas wish by praying for God to bless him. It took God a couple of years to answer my prayer, but my son was blessed with a wife who is an answer to prayer in so many ways, as are our two grandchildren.
聽聽聽聽聽 God鈥檚 blessings on our children and families is only one area to be thankful for. This Christmas may we be aware of our prayerful needs and the abundant blessings we enjoy in time and in God鈥檚 plan.
