“People…were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the Jordan River as they acknowledged their sins.” – Mark 1:5
Advent is a time of preparation and penance to help us prepare our hearts for Christmas. One of our parish priests said recently that lighting the candles on our Advent wreaths reminds us that “Christmas is near, not here.” It’s so easy to want to rush the Christmas festivities. But our Church, in Her wisdom, has set aside and sanctified this time to help us prepare the way for Christ the King to come into our hearts.
In this Sunday’s Gospel passage (Mark 1:1-8), John the Baptist is the “voice of one crying out in the desert: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths’” (Mark 1:3). The way that must be made ready lies in our hearts. Part of preparing our hearts for Christmas is recognizing our own sinful patterns that poison our hearts and turning away from them in order to turn back to the Lord. Notice how the people “acknowledged their sins” before they were baptized. This leads me to ask myself how Jesus is calling me to turn away from a specific sin in order to prepare the way for Him.
One way to do this is to ask Jesus to reveal any hidden sins to you. The Psalmist cries out to God: “But who can detect their errors? Clear me from hidden faults” (Psalm 19:12). We all have blind spots in our spiritual lives. It’s a humbling experience to consider your failings and shortcomings. But I believe this is part of making the path straight for God. Isaiah, whom the Baptist quotes, goes into more detail about the path: “Every valley shall be lifted up, every mountain and hill made low; The rugged land shall be a plain, the rough country, a broad valley” (Isaiah 40:4). Acknowledging our sins and then admitting them out loud in the Sacrament of Reconciliation chips away at spiritual pride and makes the mountains of our prideful hearts low, making our hearts smooth, level, and ready to receive the Lord.
My Jesus, how would you like to prepare my heart for Your coming? Reveal my hidden faults so that I can humbly acknowledge them in Confession.