It is now the moment for you to wake from sleep.  Romans 13:11

AS a pastor, every Advent I tell folks, “Over the ages, Christians have found it a beneficial discipline to simply wait; to wait simply; and while they’re waiting, to take an inventory of their lives.” And then people tell me, “Don’t be such a party-pooper.” Honestly, I don’t enjoy the role of John the Baptist who calls people to repentance. I prefer being Mike the Methodist who attends a slew of Sunday school Christmas parties.  Yet we are called to prepare for Christ’s coming as we wait. We prepare for Jesus’ coming by acknowledging our need for him. Realizing that we need Jesus isn’t very merry. It requires us to be honest about what’s missing in our lives and about what’s wrong with us. Advent calls us to recognize that the void in our soul cannot be filled by gadgets, entertainment, food, alcohol, drugs, sports, busyness, travel, work, religion, or church. We know that because we’ve tried. These do not satisfy because the void in us is a God-shaped hole that only the Holy One can fill.

Advent prepares us to see that Jesus, the baby in the manger, is the Holy One of God. If we do not wake up, our sleepy eyes will not recognize God in the baby who looks more like us than like God.