FILL THE CHALICE WHILE YOU WAIT FOR THE KING
(a reflection by Willy Effinger)
Advent! What a wonderful season it is to take time out to reflect. At least one evening a week during Advent, or perhaps on Sunday afternoon, try to just sit and meditate, to forget the hectic life, to turn off all electronic distractions and to just BE.
To be or not to be a child of the King? It is a haunting question for each and every soul. Created in His Image, we are all beautiful; we are all called to aspire to the values fitting for royal children of God. Unfortunately, life has taken its toll on humanity; we have become cold, hardened by the ever increasing wants and desires of the world. The once fiery lava burning within our hearts to be real princes and princesses of our King has become crusty and, for some, even as hard as the Canadian Shield. The desire to serve others, to be patient, kind, loving and merciful has been overshadowed by the allurements of the ever faster and more demanding world.
It took the Magi years to figure out the Scripture passages about the star over Bethlehem and perhaps months to follow that star. Despite the hardships, follow it they did – and they knelt in front of Him whom their hearts desired. Today, with the onset of high-speed Internet, broad band and satellite connections, we are impatient when things take more than a few seconds. But what a price we pay!
All the things that were of greatest value to our forefathers have been set aside; no time to worship, no time to pray, no time to sing, no time to experience the REAL LOVE that is God's love! Really, there is no time to just be!
Empty vessels we have become, chalices which cannot quench the thirst of others. Regrettably, we have difficulty even quenching our own thirst. We are being called at this time of the year to retreat, regroup, return. The soul cries out: “Fill my chalice with the wine of mercy. Let the truth, the living Word of God be mine again. What are you waiting for? The time is near. The King's Birth is only a little while away. I thirst for Him in whose Image I have been created. I desire Him who desires me.” Can you hear your soul crying out to you?
Look around you. The world is already weeks ahead of us. Gleaming Christmas lights, Santa Claus parades, line-ups in the shopping malls – no time to think about Advent, no time to step back; just shop and desire the goods of this world. The advertisers convince us that we can't be happy unless we spend money to make others happy. Yet, what we really need is to spend a little time filling our chalices with prayer. We need to spend time in solitude and in joyful expectation of the coming Infant King, who came to set us free from our own sinfulness.
Baby Jesus does not desire what is Caesar's, nor do our souls depend on things of monetary value. On the contrary, our soul's chalice yearns to be filled with the Treasures of Heaven. That - and only that – is what the King desires for His heirs.
So, during the Advent Season, remember to take time out – to fill the chalice of your soul with the Treasures of Heaven while you wait for the King of Kings to be reborn into your heart.
“O Holy Trinity, Eternal God,
I want to shine in the crown of Your mercy
as a tiny gem whose beauty depends on the ray of Your light
and of Your inscrutable mercy.
All that is beautiful in my soul is Yours, O God;
of myself I am ever nothing.”
(Saint Faustina's Diary entry #617)