Well, happy Advent! 

We are now officially in the season of anticipation… of getting ready… of being prepared… and today’s Gospel continues a theme we have been hearing a lot lately in our Sunday readings, that of vigilance. Jesus is quite emphatic about this to his disciples when he tells them pointedly: “What I say to you, I say to all: ‘Watch!’”

Watch!

So, are you prepared to do some serious watching?

This reminds me of the arcade game, Whac-a-Mole. Have you ever played it You use a giant mallet to smack down small mechanical moles that randomly pop up out of several holes. It’s fun. But also quite tense. And frantic. The key to winning is to stay alert and to be vigilant, just as Jesus is telling his disciples to be… at all times.

 At all times…?

Truth be told, I always wondered about this, especially as we approach the season of Advent. Jesus instructs his followers to never fall asleep in case the lord of the house should show up, which could, like those moles, happen at any time and in any place. This is much like the Gospel reading a few weeks ago about the ten bridesmaids who were to wait up all hours of the night for the groom to arrive. I don’t know about you, but this sounds hard. And unrealistic. After all, we all do need to sleep.

I think Jesus is making the point that we must “Watch!” not so that we will be wound up tightly like a spring, so that we can never rest, and in a way that is as frantic as an arcade game. Rather, readiness and preparation can come in another form.

I once heard about a study cited by David Bayles and Ted Orland in their book, Art and Fear. They describe a sociological study that was conducted using two college pottery classes. In the first class, the students were told that their entire semester grade was going to be based on one work of art. Just one. A second class was instructed that their final grade would be based on the total number of pieces they made over the entire semester. We have all heard the notion that it’s quality, not quantity that counts most of all… but this particular study seemed to suggest the opposite. The quality of the pottery pieces were independently judged at the end of the semester and the second class, the one that made a lot of pieces, were judged to have improved the most. Theirs were best. The class that focused on creating one single masterpiece did much, much worse. This is because the students who practiced their art form more improved more. They made and then learned from their mistakes. They experimented. They built good work habits. They learned. They adapted.

I think the same can be said about our faith lives. Quality matters obviously, but quantity matters too.

How so? 

Well, I believe it matters that we get into a regular pattern of attending Mass and find a consistent time each day to try to connect with God, whether through quiet reflection time or through recited prayers such as the liturgy of the hours or rosary.

I believe it matters that we spend time in front of the Eucharist on a regular basis.

I believe it matters that we fortify ourselves with the sacraments, including Reconciliation because it helps us to look deep within ourselves and to be truly honest about what we see there.

I believe it matters that we try to be peacemakers in our own homes and that we take small steps each day to work for the glory of God instead of for the glory of ourselves.

And then maybe most of all, it matters if we try to increase the amount of love in our world. Try asking yourself every night before going to bed these questions: Did I increase the love around me today? Or did I decrease it? Or was I just neutral?”

I think that if we add a little to the love that is in the world every day and can practice our craft in these ways, we will improve… just like the pottery students did. And this, I would like to suggest, is how we get ready, how we prepare, how we remain vigilant, and how we stand watch.

Jesus is coming into the world. He first came to Mary in the form of the baby growing within her. He then came to the world in a manger located within a stable full of animals. He will come to everyone at the end of time. And he will come to us personally at the end of your time and mine.

Baby steps. Just a little bit closer… every day…