GOSPEL POWER - NOVEMBER 29, 2020 - 1ST SUNDAY OF ADVENT

Gospel: Mk 13:33-37 

Jesus said to his disciples, “Beware, keep alert; for you do not know when the time will come. It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his slaves in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to be on the watch. Therefore, keep awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or at dawn, 36or else he may find you asleep when he comes suddenly. And what I say to you I say to all: Keep awake.”

REFLECTION

T he Church’s liturgical calendar always begins with the reminder that we are a people-of-hope, because we believe in a God who is a keeper of promises—the God who came in Jesus, who is with us now (Emmanuel), and will come again definitively. Advent is all about God’s coming—in the past, in the present and in the future. There is no point in time that is not embraced by this constantly coming God. The basis of our hope for the future is the faithfulness he has demonstrated in the past and continues to demonstrate in the present. Therefore, though we are uncertain of when his final coming will take place, we wait and prepare, watching attentively and engaging diligently in the tasks the Lord has appointed us to do in anticipation of his return. Our waiting is not just a series of aimless activities, but a purposeful participation in the coming Lord’s endeavors.

PRAYER

Lord Jesus, come again into our broken world, our exhausted lives, and shaky relationships. Come and restore us! Maràna thà! Amen.