Today is a new beginning. We begin a new liturgical year. We begin as we do each year with the joyful and hopeful season of Advent. On this first Sunday in Advent we hear the words “Be watchful! Be alert!” on the lips of Jesus. The message encourages us to notice more carefully what we experience in the Liturgy and in our daily lives as we prepare to celebrate Christmas.
We hear the prophet Isaiah address a prayer to God: “We are the clay and you the potter; we are all the work of your hands.” God is not finished with us yet. The Advent season helps us to see how intimately God is part of our human lives, continuing to fashion and shape us in Christ-like ways.
How can Advent be a season of attentiveness and watchfulness for you? What is your sense of what God is up to in your life?