“Let’s Get The Ball Rolling”

Well, here we are…Advent has begun….it’s time to get the ball rolling. I have my plan and need a lot of grace to make it happen…. but I need some momentum.

Momentum is important in all phases of life, including the spiritual life. In Physics, “momentum can be defined as “mass in motion. All objects have mass; so if an object is moving, then it has momentum.”  On the other hand if an object is stopped, it has no momentum and it takes some force to get it moving. Are you with me ???

If I’m hoping to develop some new spiritual habits during Advent, I need to take some actions and it may take some time to get the momentum going or “to get the ball rolling”. Anyone home ??? While it’s very helpful to get off to a good start, nevertheless, it’s going to take some time and effort and grace.

Let’s take me for example. I’m trying to “turbo charge” my “prayer, fasting, and almsgiving” during Advent. It’s not going to all happen in one or two days…it will take some time and some patience and some perseverance and a lot of grace from God. I need to keep applying force to see if some good things can happen. Well it’s day one and I’m applying some force (making some effort) but there’s no obvious results….hmmmm.  “Dave, don’t get discouraged…it’s only day one…it will take time…God will help you….” (I think that was my guardian angel speaking)

Let’s look at this from another angle. I was reading a few pages from Cardinal Sarah today (“The Day Is Now Far Spent”).  He said  “The Church does not have the right to be mediocre”. This means I don’t have the right to be mediocre. The answer to the church’s woes and to the world’s woes is “more saints”; the church needs saints. I think it also means I don’t have the right to complain. I need to strive to become a saint. You’re not off the hook either…you need to strive to become a saint. The answer is not new programs, it’s not wringing our hands and pointing the finger at others. The answer is we need saints… and it starts with me…and you.  Remember the old adage  “if you point a finger at someone else, you have three fingers pointing back at yourself”. 

Okay, let’s tie this together. In order for the church to address the woes of the world, it can’t be mediocre. In order for the church to not be mediocre, it needs saints. In order for you and me to help the church, we need to strive for sainthood. In order to get the ball rolling (momentum) toward sainthood, we need a good Advent. That’s pretty simple. 

I know this is a pretty choppy BLOG and it doesn’t flow very well, but let’s just ask God to help us to have a good Advent and see what happens .…. maybe we’ll start gaining some spiritual momentum and you never know……