"The liturgy of Advent...helps us to understand fully the value and meaning of the mystery of Christmas. It is not just about commemorating the historical event, which occurred some 2000 years ago in a little village of Judea. Instead, it is necessary to understand that the whole of our life must be an "advent,' a vigilant awaiting of the final coming of Christ. To predispose our mind to welcome the Lord who, as we say in the Creed, one day will come to judge the living and the dead, we must learn to recognize him as present in the events of daily life. Therefore, Advent is so to speak, an intense training that directs us decisively toward him who already came, who will come, and who comes continuously" (St. John Paul II)

We know in faith that Jesus is coming again in glory,  but do we know this in lived reality? What does that mean? When one expects another to come, the person  is always in a state of readiness for that coming. When we expect a guest to come to dinner, we prepare everything before hand and we anticipate the person's coming. How attentive are we to the Lord's coming in the present moments of life? How attentive are we, not in fear or anxiety, but in love and hope for his final coming to us? His coming is a certainty. The timing is not known to us, so that we can truly be ready to receive and welcome him when he does come. But what we do know is that while we wait we are given time to repent of our sins and live a life worthy of our calling. In that way, when he comes, he will find us ready to receive him. Come, Lord Jesus, come!