Jesus, in today's gospel passage, exhorts us to "Keep awake." The future is unknown, a mystery, in spite of all our plans for tomorrow and all our other tomorrows. Many of us are already making preparations for our Christmas celebrations, be they big get-togethers or small intimate gatherings. The busyness of the social/cultural Christmas season may keep us awake, but that is not what Jesus had in mind with his exhortation.

The Church in her wisdom has established Advent as a season of expectation, an opportunity to prepare our hearts to welcome the Beloved's Presence, however it may appear, now or not yet. We might picture our hearts as a manger for the new life that God brings forth in the world again and again and consider how we might ensure our manger is a welcoming container for that new life. In this season, we also look forward to Christ's coming again, that to which we testify in our Eucharistic celebrations: "Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again." That coming again is shrouded in mystery, in spite of the clues we find in scripture. We do expect, that in some way, we will have new life with Christ Jesus, however, whenever, whatever the Holy One has prepared for us.

In addition to being awake, alert, watchful, Jesus tells us, ". . . you must also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour." As I read the scripture appointed for the morning on which I was working on this meditation, I opened Nan Merrill's Psalms for Praying, to Ps. 95. Imagine my surprise and delight when, in verse 8, I read: "[God] awaits our readiness to choose Life." Keeping awake and getting ready is the task of Advent. Are you ready to choose Life?