Brad Rozairo, OMI – Last Sunday (Nov.27, 2022) the Catholic Church entered the Advent season. This means that the day of waiting for Christmas has begun.
During this Advent time, the Bible teaches us the importance of awake and praying. The state of being awake as Jesus said means, being attentive without distraction. In other words, we are to keep our minds from becoming dull and our spiritual life from becoming lukewarm. We have the tendency to get absorbed by the things we hold dear to us, such as computers, smartphones, pets, television, and people around us. Yes, we may need them for life, but too much of attachment to what we possess will make us crumple and fold when they pass away. This leads to losing our souls and being asleep because they are not permanent and ultimate things in life. Therefore, the call to “stay awake” demands that we make an effort to stay focused on God without getting distracted by the temptations around us. In the midst of the hustle and bustle of life and during the pre-season of the Christmas rush, let us not forget that JESUS IS THE REASON FOR THE SEASON.
Brothers, let us make use of the Advent period of “waiting” to re-examine our hearts and our faith in God. Perhaps our faith as Catholics is about to fall asleep. If I am not aware of what is entrusted to me, my mind will be distracted by temporal things because of my own greed, and my eyes will become blinded by superficial things. Such a state is called sleeping on faith, even though my eyes are open. Therefore, the Biblical phrase, “stay awake” seems to prompt the question of “awakening to faith” so that we will be prepared to meet the Lord at Christmas. It is meaningful to ask ourselves – What makes our minds dull? What paralyzes our spiritual life to become lukewarm, and why do we allow that to happen? What are the bad habits that are keeping us grounded and preventing us from lifting our heads? and so on.
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