Pastor's Pen - December 18, 2016

Are you Prepared? So, it’s the last week of Advent – one more full week until Christmas. How have the preparations gone? Are the stockings up, the tree decorated, cookies made, gifts bought and wrapped? But was that what Advent was about? Was it merely a countdown with candles on the wreath to tell us how much time we had left to prepare the house and our list before the family celebration and the presents are unwrapped in a flurry of paper?

Is there still time to prepare myself? Yes, of course, but you will need to be intentional about it. To open your heart to the blessing that is to come, let’s look backward rather than forward. Rather than being worried about the little time you might have left look backward to what has been.

Go through the year and visit the many occasions that you were blessed – a special card, an unexpected call, a wonderful trip, a new addition to the family, a new job, graduation, a wonderful and tasty harvest, prayers answered, food on the table, a wonderful community, an ever-present God (even outside of Christmas).

Soon, and very soon, we are going to meet the King. The final days before Christmas are a chance to reflect on the blessings of the year so that we can be more attentive to the reason for our Christmas celebration.

Fr. Chuck