Week Two - LOOK

For the 2nd week of Advent, the word is:  
 “LOOK”

A little box was distributed at all the Masses this weekend with the instruction to “look” inside the box.  When opened, there was a strip of paper that read:

“Dear Jesus, help me to look inside myself to see what is keeping
me from drawing closer to you.”

Look where? Look inside your heart to see what is . . .   

• blocking your love for the Lord.  

• keeping you from staying vigilant in hope for the Lord.  

• keeping you from growing deeper in intimacy with the Lord?   

Our lives are often defined by:

• the rush of the day, demands and obligations that descend upon us rather

If we are not vigilant (on a daily basis), the daily grind will communicate that our ordinary life is spiritually lifeless and that our days are simply filled with agendas of others and ourselves.  Daily life can begin to feel enclosed, airless, and self-absorbed.  Then over time, we begin to lose a sense of God’s presence in our lives.  

• we begin to feel alone and abandoned.

• Then we begin to believe the lies of the evil one's voice, that says, “God abandoned you.  God doesn’t love you.  Jesus doesn’t hear your cry for help.  Things will never change or get better for you.  Along with many other lies.  

Remember there is a gentle invitation from God to come and rest with HIM.  
Abide with HIM.  Remain with HIM.  How? 

 It is about you and I, MAKING A “POSITIVE CHOICE” TO BE WITH GOD!

• We have to be vigilant against negative choices (we tend to make) that allow us to “hide” from God, rather than remaining in his presence.

• When we are vigilant to make “positive choices” we will come to notice more quickly how God moves to console us, thus countering our grief, fear and loneliness.

• Also, making “positive choices” allows us to remain with the Lord, and those choices will help us see and counter a damaging lie from the evil one about ourselves or others.  Then we begin to realize, we are not alone, God is with us.  NOW we are abiding with Him.

Beware, the longer we feel we are alone, isolated from God; that prolonged loneliness will ignite sin and despair within us.

Christ came to us, Emmanuel . . . God with us . . . to heal us . . . to be with us, 

The heart in love wants to stay connected with the one it loves.  
Therefore, stay vigilant and “look”.

By looking inside ourselves with an Examination of Conscience, and reflecting, we can examine how we are living. Through this, we can work on changing the things in our lives that keep us from being closer to Christ.