Advent marks the beginning of a new liturgical year. It is a season reflective of humanity’s preparation for the “coming” of Christ on that first Christmas day. More than a symbolic event of anticipation, its essence nowadays is our continued preparation of minds and hearts in acknowledging Christ’s presence in our lives.

Providentially, Advent comes to us as we continue with the second phase of our Parish Renewal Initiative that focuses on strengthening our relationship with the Lord. Our preparation this Advent should be centered on encountering Christ in our daily lives. During these busy days of rushing, decorating, cleaning, cooking, and shopping we need to take time to quiet our minds and hearts so not to miss how God is acting in our lives.

During this wonderful season, I am inviting all of us to join together as we “Come Home”. We have opportunities available to open our hearts and to listen to God, Who wants to speak to all of us. Pray and reflect with the community every week. Join us for 75-minute sessions of peace and grace as we prepare for the Lord’s coming. Spend time with the Lord during your lunch break or give thanks to God, maybe on a Friday as you end your week. Go to holyspiritchurch.org/gofj for additional details and to register for these sessions.

In addition to the prayer and reflection offered via Zoom sessions, we also have Give Us This Day and Blue Books available. These two wonderful resources will guide us through our daily prayer. Pay attention to how God is speaking to us and be vigilant and watchful to God’s active presence in our lives.

Who is not attached to modern technology or to social media? The Hallow App is available for us. Hallow is a Catholic prayer app that offers audio-guided meditation sessions to help us grow in our faith and spiritual lives and find peace in God. This beautiful app offers contemplative prayer, meditation, scripture readings, music and more. Download the app and enjoy your time with the Lord. This is free for our community. All you need to do is to contact one of the staff and get the login code.

I pray that this new liturgical year will be one filled with hope, joy, faith, and peace! Let us continue to join each other in our Parish Renewal Initiative to Respond, Renew, and Re-engage! May the Holy Spirit direct our lives today and into the coming year.