Preparing Ourselves for Christ

This Sunday marks the beginning of the beautiful season of Advent, a time to deepen our relationship with Christ. In the Gospel, Jesus exhorts us to “keep awake therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming.” This exhortation doesn’t imply that we are expected to never sleep, or sin, again, but that we must consistently strive to move from a life of running towards sin, to a life of running away from sin.

One tremendous way we can do this is to receive God’s merciful love in the sacrament of reconciliation. It is important to remember that the Lord eagerly and lovingly awaits to forgive us. The whole purpose of the Incarnation was for this reason, as St. John says in his first letter, ‘in this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins.” Jesus became man for our salvation. In going to confession, we are enabling the Lord to fulfill His salvific mission in our lives which brings Him boundless joy.

This cleansing of our sins will greatly help us live out our lives as stewards by infusing all of our actions with the grace that flows from the sacrament. In order to receive the graces well, let us foster a sense of contrition for our sins, a firm purpose of amendment for our lives and a commitment to penance. All parishes in the Archdiocese will be hosting an Advent Day of Confessions to make it easier for us to avail ourselves to this sacrament. Let us take this season of preparation to become better stewards by properly preparing our own souls for the coming of Christ in our lives.

Wishing you all a grace-filled Advent!