Be Alert!

Alert! A state of watchfulness, of wakefulness. A state of being aware of one’s surroundings. A state of paying attention.

Today is the first Sunday of Advent. The theme for this week of advent is Be Alert! We think about the coming of Christ, not just in the manger, but returning for us.

Are we ready for it? Were the shepherds ready? The magi? Mary and Joseph? Is anyone every REALLY ready for the Divine to walk into their life? How does one get ready for Jesus? Do we pray more? Become more regular in our church attendance? Read through the Bible in a year? Everything I can think of seems so inadequate. It’s sort of like preparing your little studio apartment for the President’s state dinner.

But, you know? It doesn’t say that we should be prepared, does it? It says we are to be alert, to be in a constant state of trying to GET prepared. You don’t always have to know the destination to pack your suitcase.

Think how many people missed the birth of Christ entirely! The innkeeper. The census takers. The other people in the inn who only knew that a poor woman had to have her child in a stable because everyone in the inn was too rude to give up their room for even one night to someone in such need. Think what they missed.

Think what people will miss if they fail to be alert the next time around! The people who heard about the birth of Jesus had other opportunities to welcome Him into their hearts. They heard him from the mount, they heard Him from the boat of Peter, and they saw His actions in the temple.

We hear the Gospel of Christ each Sunday. How do we respond? Do we go forth rejoicing and praising God as the shepherds did? Or do we respond as the philosophers did to Paul. “We wish to talk to you again about this matter.” In other words, when do we quit talking and start doing? We love to hear the Christmas story, but are we ready for it to be happen in our own lives? It’s one thing to think how nice and cute it is to have God born in the manger. It is something entirely different to have the Savior of the universe born again in our own hearts. Be Alert! Christ is coming!

Pastor Craig