BE ON YOUR GUARD!

I SUNDAY OF ADVENT: Mk 13:33-37

A time full of expectancy

This Sunday, we begin the season of Advent, so called  because we look forward to the one who is coming. It is a time full of expectancy, filled with hope.

In the Gospel, Jesus puts forward attitudes that go with the Advent season and which are essential in our lives and for our salvation.

We must live in an attitude of waiting. We do not belong to the present, but to the future. If we are satisfied with what we are and with what we have, we will be left behind, fallen by the wayside or lost in the wilderness, tired and exhausted.

We are waiting for something - indeed for someone, who will bring fulfilment to our lives. We do not wait in vain. We know that God is faithful and he will not go back on his word. We are sure that God’s Promise will be fulfilled. In our waiting there is no despair, but hope. We live our lives in hope, looking towards the future. The hope that fills our hearts gives us the strength to go on walking and to keep on struggling, sure that in the end we will be given the victory.

Be alert and vigilant

While we are waiting, we must remain vigilant, that is we must be on the alert. Jesus stresses this admonition, repeating his warning: “Stay awake! Be on your guard” (Mk 13:33-36). We must be aware of what is happening around us, and we must be able and prepared to react. If we fall asleep, then we will be caught unaware and dispossessed of whatever we have. This attitude of alertness is very important in the various areas of life. Important in our spiritual life and in our relationships, as it is important as well in scientific research, in business and in politics.

This call to vigilance is very different from the vigilante groups that we find in some political forces. Vigilantes try to force others to keep in line with their leaders, the authority or the law. And in doing that, they are ready to use violence on anyone who is seen as going astray. Jesus’ call to alertness and vigilance is a call to a personal attitude of responsiveness to God’s intervention in our lives.

We must be ready and prepared, so that when the Lord comes, he finds us  ready and prepared wot welcome him.