Watch, Remain Awake, For You Know Not When the Hour Will Come

My family and I returned to Richmond, VA yesterday (Monday) in hopes of avoiding the heavy Sunday traffic that always occurs with people returning home after Thanksgiving. We made wonderful time; that is until we crossed over the state line into Virginia. Apparently there was a terrible car accident that claimed the life of at least one person. A tractor-trailer truck had wrecked and caught fire shutting down both the north and south lanes of I-95.

As one can imagine, sitting in traffic gave me much time to reflect on all kinds of things going on in my personal life, as well as the world around me. As I sat there moving at a snails pace, I couldn't help but think about this past Sunday's reading from the Gospel of Mark. Jesus said, "Watch, be alert, remain awake, for you know not when the hour will come." That truck driver and anyone else invloved in that accident had no idea what literally lay instore around the next bend; none of us do in this life. Therefore watch, be alert; live life in faithful service to Christ each and every moment. Give unto others, love unconditionally and be quick to forgive. While we often can't control our surroundings and what others do with their lives, Jesus is telling us that spiritual preperation will allow our hearts and souls to be ready for the most unexpected hardships and challenges of life.

I encourage each one of us to use this season of Advent to deepen our spiritual lives and cultivate a deeper relationship with Christ and those we love; "for we know not when the hour will come."