The Lord is coming, always coming. When you have ears to hear and eyes to see, you will recognize him at any moment of your life. Life is Advent; life is recognizing the coming of the Lord.    - Henri Nouwen

The season of Advent which begins this coming Sunday, November 28, is when we focus on preparing to celebrate the joy and wonder of the birth of Jesus.  Advent is also a time when we can think about what it means to be prepared in ways that go beyond the things we will do like buying gifts and decorating our homes by asking ourselves this question:  Am I ready to receive the coming of Christ into the world and into me?  As we prepare for this Christmas, I hold up to you the idea that every day can be a time of preparation, not just the routine kind of preparation often influenced by what goes on around us, but the kind of preparation in which we find ways to welcome God more deeply into our lives.

In these days leading to Christmas, I invite you to make time to be aware of what is going on with you and in your life with God. As we go through the motions of preparing for Christmas, let us also be intentional about preparing ourselves to receive the coming of Jesus into our lives and our hearts again.  God of love, your son, Jesus is your greatest gift to us.  He is a sign of your love. Help us to walk in that love during the weeks of Advent, as we wait and prepare…