Romans 13:11-14
Matthew 24:36-44
Linda Fernandes-Bailey
Now is the Moment
Have you ever had the experience of driving somewhere when suddenly you’re on the highway when you didn’t want to be on the highway…you were just on automatic pilot and took your usual route even though today you were going somewhere else. OR perhaps you’ve arrived at your destination only to realize you have no idea how you got there…you didn’t notice a thing along the way suddenly you’re just there. WE sometimes sleep walk through life don’t we? Not paying much attention to where we are…what we are doing …or what surrounds us. We go upstairs in our houses to get something but by the time we get there we have already forgotten what we went for. Just the other day I was on the phone talking to a friend when another call came in so I put her on hold…the next thing I know I am in the car driving Lucas to his friend’s house…when I returned there is a message on the answering machine from my friend saying…hey remember me you had me on hold!...Talk about sleep walking! We just don’t pay attention so much of the time. We’re in a hurry…we have a million things on our minds…we have short attention spans (I just read the other day that the average person has a 6 minute attention span!) Even when people talk to us and need us to listen our minds wander…We go through the motions but we are not fully present. I can’t tell you how many times my family says to me... “Did you even hear what I said…are you listening?”
In today’s scripture lessons both readings talk about “being awake” Paul says “NOW is the moment for you to wake from your sleep” Now is the time to put on the armor of light…to put on the mind and heart of Jesus. Now is the time to live fully attentive to God’s movement in your life. Set aside works of darkness Paul tells us and chose instead to live in the light. There is a sense of urgency. Do God’s work NOW. Be intentional about following Jesus NOW. No excuses. In Matthew’s gospel Jesus has a conversation with his disciples about end times and his coming again. He tells them that no one knows the day or hour…not even Jesus…SO Keep Awake…Be Ready. We don’t give too much thought to end times in our tradition AND at least here in America we tend to live our lives as if we have all the time in the world and as if everyone we love and care about will be around forever. I wonder though how might our lives be different if we lived with the expectancy of Christ coming again. I mean what if you woke up and the morning and said “okay Christ could come today…to me…HOW would that reshape your day? Would you act differently? What would you want Christ to catch you doing? Would you be proud of the person Jesus sees? I wonder sometimes would we even notice if Christ came again or would we pass him by while sleep walking through life? I believe if we lived each day as if Jesus were to return we would be challenged to radically reorient our priorities. Perhaps that is our nudge this Advent season.
Advent is the time to live expectantly… A time to wait for the coming of the Christ child. It’s a time when God comes into the world in the most unexpected ways. SO BE AWAKE. BE READY. We are called during this season to be pay attention and be fully present. We are called to slow down and listen for God’s voice. Listen for what gives your life meaning. Advent is a time when we yearn for light to dispel darkness. It is a time to prepare the way for God. A time when we hope God’s peace, justice and compassion can become a reality.
I don’t know if you’ve seen the movie Awakenings…it’s an older movie with Robert Deniro and Robin Williams. Robert Deniro plays a man who due to encephalitis is left in a catatonic state for many years. Robin Williams plays a doctor who works to find a cure. After much hard work he finds a medication that brings the patients back to their normal state. When Robert Deniro comes out of his catatonic state he is so grateful and amazed to be awake he notices everything. He sees as if it were for the first time. Everything is exciting. He has a love for life. He embraces life fully. In fact he calls the doctor in the middle of the night to say “We have to tell everyone…remind them how good life is…they have forgotten what life is about…they have forgotten the joy… …They have forgotten what they have and what they can lose…they have forgotten the gift that life is” His love for life…his deep gratitude for each moment spills over into Robin Williams (the doctor) who had been living as a workaholic, isolated from people and pretty stuck in a routine…in a world of his own. NOW the doctor begins to wake up from his sleep walking life…he begins to see in new ways. It’s a great example of what our lives might look like if we live our lives “awake”. Remember Paul’s words… “Now is the moment for you to wake from sleep!”
Advent stands in stark contrast to the secular Christmas season. The one that has very little to do with the coming of the Christ Child. The secular focus is on busy-ness, shopping and parties. It’s a whirl wind that leaves us exhausted. It is the season when as Christians I think we need to choose. Will we embrace Advent…will we spend our time preparing our hearts and minds for the Coming of the One who is the Light…OR will we give up our spiritual lives because we are too busy shopping and partying? Will we wake up and notice where God is in the midst of the whirlwind? Will we be fully present to our loved ones? It’s not that Christmas is bad I mean we do tend to spend more time together…we focus on family more maybe even on forgiveness…we tend to be more generous…we even feed the hungry. But when we skip over Advent to prepare for Christmas we miss the whole meaning of Advent. It is a time of preparing our hearts… Paying attention to our relationship with God…making time for prayer and meditation …listening for God’s voice calling us. Now I know what you’re thinking... “Is she crazy I don’t have time for that at this time of year…I’m so busy!” But I was reading somewhere the other day something I thought was a great suggestion. When you wake up in the morning light a candle and take ONE MINUTE to say a brief prayer…ONE MINUTE. The prayer might be “God help me to prepare my heart for the coming of Christ”…or “God help me to live today attentive to the possibility that Christ may come today.” ONE sentence could change our day…refocus our intention and help us to be in the spirit of Advent. Advent is a time to live in the HOPE that God’s dream for God’s creation will become a reality. As Christians we believe the Kingdom of God is within us, among us and yet to come. Advent is a time to WAKE UP…Pay attention and NOTICE where we might see God’s reign within us and among us. It’s a time to commit to helping make God’s dream a reality. God dreams of peace, justice, love and compassion. This Advent I would challenge you to wake up from your sleepy life and live your faith as if Christ is coming…NOW!
Joyce Rupp a spiritual writer points out that Jesus gave few material gifts to people but his gift was his loving presence. She continues saying “What he gave most was his personal presence, gifts that were treasures of the heart: belief in self, inner healing, peace of mind, compassion, forgiveness, dignity and justice” If we are to put on the armor of light… live in Christ… have the heart and mind of Christ these are the gifts we need to think about giving not just to others but to ourselves! This advent we need to listen to where God is calling us to be the voice of justice. Where is God calling us to offer hope to those with no hope? Where is God calling us to be present to the lonely? How might you gift yourself with inner peace and believe in yourself? Pay attention this Advent to the non-material gifts God might be nudging you to give. Give the gift of your presence to a lonely neighbor…have lunch with a friend you haven’t seen but have been meaning to, mend a broken relationship or commit to prayer and meditation daily this advent. Let your gift to yourself be some quiet time amidst the hurriedness and let your gift to others be the sharing of your presence.
The moment is NOW for you to wake from sleep!! The Son of God is coming…Be Ready! Amen