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Come Lord Jesus, Come!!!
On the lst Sunday of Advent we read in the Divine Office: “Let us cleanse our hearts for the coming of our great King, that we may be ready to welcome Him; He is coming and will not delay.” (Ant. 3, Pg 139, Vol. l, Divine Office)
Rejoice with me, my dear brothers and sisters, as Our Lord Jesus is coming!! His coming is both physical and spiritual. We do not know the day and the hour of His physical coming, although it will surely occur, either when we die or when this world ends. However, we can determine the hour of His ‘spiritual’ coming. For, even now He stands at the door of our hearts and knocks. Will we tell Him to go away, that there is no room within our hearts filled with lust, or greed, or pride, or avarice, or indifference? Or, will we welcome Him with great joy and hope! The choice is ours.
Our late Holy Father, John Paul II wrote: “What is our response to God’s nearness? ... What then should we do? … This God knows the inner mystery of man, because He came in order to be the light of the human conscience and human heart ... Are we full of deep adoration ...or, have we lost sight of the deep inner truth that God holds out to us in Advent? ... Have we become indifferent? (‘Lift Up Your Hearts’ Daily Meditations By Pope John Paul II, Servant Publications, Ann Arbor, Mich., December 16th, What Then Should We Do? Page 312)
Oh Lord, I am so grateful to Holy Mother Church, for, as a good mother she gives us all that we need! Advent is a glorious gift … another ‘new beginning’, a chance to clean house, to decorate with garlands of love, sweet smelling wreaths of repentance and glowing lights of truth and honesty to illumine our souls. Who am I, that the Saviour of the World should come to dwell in me??? Yet, it is those who are least worthy that You desire most to come to! You are truly my hope and my salvation!
Oh My Jesus, I call upon all the Holy Angels and Saints to help me to prepare for Your coming. I long to give You the best of all that I have and I know You will accept my humble offerings with great love. I know You will not criticize, or compare my gifts of self and sacrifice with the gifts of others. I adore You and thank You because You are a God "who has no favourites" (Acts 10: 34). Thank You for Your merciful love for me, a sinner!
My Dear Christian Family, let us give great thought to what we will give to Our Infant King on His birthday. Our gifts to Him will be unique and we will experience tremendous joy in giving them. With great excitement and anticipation let us greet Him at the door of our hearts and cry out, “Come, Lord Jesus, Come!” Come into our hearts, for we have prepared thoroughly for You with tremendous longing! Having thus prepared, the blessings He will bestow upon us will then spill out upon all those near and dear to us. Then we will have a truly Happy and Holy Christmas!
In Christian Love and Service,
Grace Devine.
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