Advent is a time of waiting and watching. The Call of Jesus in the gospel today that we should "watch" for Him is heightened by the fact that we are nearing the threshold of time of powerful grace and favor from the throne of God.

Advent is a very special time for Christians as we accept the challenge of the gospel to become more God focused. Yet for many of us, if it were not for the change in the color of vestments and decor, would we really notice any difference at all?

A cartoon in one of the newspapers last week showed a Santa Claus holding up a big sign reading HO! HO! HO! Behind his back stood the prophet of doom with a sign reading: "One week later and it's all over." Do we envision the new millennium as a promise from God or something to be feared-- or do we just right it off with apathy or antipathy--who really cares?

Today's first reading from Isaiah sharply calls God to attention, reminding the Lord of His ancient covenants; nor does Isaiah quit with God, quickly reminding us of our side of the covenant, goading us to both vigilance and malleability.

Drop down for a moment to the poetry of the Psalmist: "We have dried up, Lord, Green has turned into brown; the brilliance of autumn reds and yellows has dulled and lost its sheen. We are dusty and brittle and cut off from the life giving sap of your presence."

Wearily we ride upon the wind like ghosts. Chilled by frost and snow, cracked by the blast of cold, we swirl in ragged abandon, like snowflakes caught in an endless dance of futility.

From north and south and east and west bitterness blows, tossing us from nowhere to nowhere, away from the circle of your presence, whose circumference is everywhere.

The call of the Prophet Isaiah and of Jesus is a message of collaboration. God wants to work in us. God wants to transform us but he can only do so as we give God permission, as we follow the example of Mary in responding to Gabriel: I don't understand how this can be. But Let it be.

This particular Advent is an invitation to be ready and to be anxious to be reshaped into God's children. Listen to the dialogues: The people cry: Maranatha -- Come Lord Jesus. And the Lord answers: Stay awake and sober for I am coming.

Now is not the time to doze but to be awake and ready It is not just a time of waiting but of attending. What we are truly warned against is "spiritual slumber" brought on by allocating too much time or energy to things that are not essential to the whole season

Where are we to get the energy we need to remain alert to Christ, while simultaneously preparing ourselves for the celebration which surrounds our remembrance of his birth in time?

Human beings are limited, with limited time and limited energy to devote to any enterprise. In this season --as always--we need to make choices.

We might best prepare during Advent a spiritual audit-- a spiritual 1040--our spiritual investments and debits--and where we might be more open to the promptings of the Holy Spirit in the next year and millennium. As we prepare to cross over the threshold of the next millennium let us pray:

Maranatha! Come Lord Jesus! Break through the whirlwind of our despair. Silence our meaningless chattering and gossiping.

Save us from ourselves, from our own worst inclinations. Come Lord Jesus Come. Call us back to yourself for the sake of your Holy Name. O Come Lord, Come! Rouse us from our apathy, from our listlessness; summon us from the abyss. O Come Lord.