The Advent Battle Goes On
Ten days into Advent and the battle heats up. We started the new year - the Church year - fresh. We were bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. We were ready to conquer the world. For us Catholics, that means conquering ourselves - our tendency to sin. We want Heaven!
So we start anew, this new year. And now, only ten days into Advent, you can just feel the initial push slipping a bit. For us Catholic men, consumed with our work, facing year-end goals, with Christmas coming, we can lose our focus. Now's not the time to lose focus. Now's the time to sharpen it. Let's get back to Advent - to our preparations for the coming of the Christ Child.
Advent resolution: I'm going to change my life - really. I've identified a thing or two that keep me away from Christ. They're habitual sins that I've struggled with all my life. I'm determined to get rid of them - now.
There, I've remembered my resolution. I've remembered how I started this Advent in a burst of energy and enthusiasm.
Okay, now that I've remembered that, how realistic is that resolution? Was it only the result of an initial burst of enthusiasm I felt as the Church Year began on the first Sunday of Advent? Not to worry. As long as you take that first step, you're at least on your way. Now we're going to take the second step...and the third and fourth, and so on. We're not worried now about our eventual success or failure. We're just focused on taking those steps.
As we've talked about before, it's all in God's hands anyway - that is, whether I'm successful in "conquering" these sins this time around. He'll decide whether I'll continue to struggle against these sins my whole life, or whether He'll relieve me of that particular struggle and turn my efforts in new direction. One thing that won't change is the struggle - not in this life.
So my part in all this is the struggle, the fight. It's your part too. We all have our own personal struggles.
So, back again to restarting our Advent engines. It's really important that, if you haven't done this yet, you identify those things that keep you from Christ. Maybe you want to concentrate on one or two in a special way during Advent.
But there is one struggle all of us Catholic men share: keeping God at the center of our work. Hey, we're in it together, brothers!
So to re-cap: Advent gives us a chance to renew the struggle - a lifelong struggle. But don't expect that a successful Advent means that the struggle will finally end. God will decide when that struggle will end (and it won't be in this life). Our job is to keep fighting.
I'll count myself lucky if I can start each day in the office in a moment or two of prayer; if I can get to Mass before work or at lunch; if I can pause once, twice, three times right in the middle of some important project to say "Divine Infant of Bethlehem, come and take birth in my heart," or just "I love you Jesus."
If I can do that, I know I'm struggling to keep my Catholic faith front and center. I'm not looking to conquer the world. I'm not looking to evangelize India, Southeast Asia and Japan like St Francis Xavier did (see the last post). I'm just keeping my nose to the grindstone. I'm remembering that it's Advent now.
So we start anew, this new year. And now, only ten days into Advent, you can just feel the initial push slipping a bit. For us Catholic men, consumed with our work, facing year-end goals, with Christmas coming, we can lose our focus. Now's not the time to lose focus. Now's the time to sharpen it. Let's get back to Advent - to our preparations for the coming of the Christ Child.
Advent resolution: I'm going to change my life - really. I've identified a thing or two that keep me away from Christ. They're habitual sins that I've struggled with all my life. I'm determined to get rid of them - now.
There, I've remembered my resolution. I've remembered how I started this Advent in a burst of energy and enthusiasm.
Okay, now that I've remembered that, how realistic is that resolution? Was it only the result of an initial burst of enthusiasm I felt as the Church Year began on the first Sunday of Advent? Not to worry. As long as you take that first step, you're at least on your way. Now we're going to take the second step...and the third and fourth, and so on. We're not worried now about our eventual success or failure. We're just focused on taking those steps.
As we've talked about before, it's all in God's hands anyway - that is, whether I'm successful in "conquering" these sins this time around. He'll decide whether I'll continue to struggle against these sins my whole life, or whether He'll relieve me of that particular struggle and turn my efforts in new direction. One thing that won't change is the struggle - not in this life.
So my part in all this is the struggle, the fight. It's your part too. We all have our own personal struggles.
So, back again to restarting our Advent engines. It's really important that, if you haven't done this yet, you identify those things that keep you from Christ. Maybe you want to concentrate on one or two in a special way during Advent.
But there is one struggle all of us Catholic men share: keeping God at the center of our work. Hey, we're in it together, brothers!
So to re-cap: Advent gives us a chance to renew the struggle - a lifelong struggle. But don't expect that a successful Advent means that the struggle will finally end. God will decide when that struggle will end (and it won't be in this life). Our job is to keep fighting.
I'll count myself lucky if I can start each day in the office in a moment or two of prayer; if I can get to Mass before work or at lunch; if I can pause once, twice, three times right in the middle of some important project to say "Divine Infant of Bethlehem, come and take birth in my heart," or just "I love you Jesus."
If I can do that, I know I'm struggling to keep my Catholic faith front and center. I'm not looking to conquer the world. I'm not looking to evangelize India, Southeast Asia and Japan like St Francis Xavier did (see the last post). I'm just keeping my nose to the grindstone. I'm remembering that it's Advent now.
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