Reflection for the Third Sunday of Advent

By Mary Toline, Notre Dame Associate

​The Second Reading hit home as with a reading from Saint James. He says be patient, brothers and sisters, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient with it until it receives the early and the late rains. You too must be patient. Make you hearts firm, because the coming of the Lord is at hand. Do not complain, brothers and sisters, about one another, that you may not be judged. Behold, the judge is standing before the gates. Take as an example of hardship and patience, brothers and sisters, the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.

Patience they say is a gift and something one learns. While watching my grandkids I have noticed that the older one accepts waiting for a treat or a meal to be prepared a little better. But the younger ones don’t understand why they can’t have what they want right now.

As we prepare for Christmas and go thru Advent, we need patience to prepare for the coming of Jesus. The older children and adults have a better understanding of using patience as have done many times before to get ready for this joyous occasion. So much to prepare with food, gifts, and getting our hearts ready. We need to be good examples for the little ones that haven’t accomplished patience yet. We also need to sacrifice our time to just sit and be with our Lord and think about all the precious things that he has brought to us this last year. Just sit and look at the beautiful lights on our trees, outside lights, and just the beauty in the skies. We have all been blessed in many ways and need to sing praises!

Merry Christmas to everyone!