We all would like to be seen as strong persons and we are even given to showing off our strength.  Strength can certainly be seen as an asset in life.  Guys like to advertise their “gun show” as they hold up their arms and show off their biceps.  They showcase their “six packs” as another sign of core strength.  A lot of money is spent by both men and women on getting physically stronger, hiring fitness coaches, purchasing gym memberships and committing to special diets centered on protein drinks.  However, physical strength is of little advantage if a person does not possess interior strength.  We need spiritual strength even more than we need physical strength.

    Advent is a time for strengthening.  The strength that we are seeking in Advent is a spiritual strength to be able to persevere in a time of trial and tribulation.  It is the strength to remain hopeful,  confident and even joyful when our faith is challenged.  The strength that we are working to develop is an interior strength that is centered in the heart.  We need strong hearts to live an effective spiritual life of faith, hope and love.  Advent is a time to practice vigilance and to “work out” our hearts.  Vigilance is “custody of the heart.” (CCC 2849)  The psalmist exhorts us to, “Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the Lord.” (Ps 31,25)  St. Paul encourages the Corinthians to, “Be on your guard, stand firm in faith, be courageous, be strong.  Your every act should be done with love.” (1Cor 16,13)  To the Colossians he instructs, “Persevere in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.” (Col 4,2)  To the Thessalonians he writes, “Abound in love for one another and for all…so as to strengthen your hearts, to be blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his holy ones.” (1Thes 3,12)

    Courage is the virtue of a strong heart.  The word courage comes from the Latin word, “cor”, which is the heart.  It is the valor and interior quality which enables one to meet danger and trouble without fear.  Scripture often juxtaposes “fear” with “faith”.  Jesus often exhorts his disciples, “do not be afraid,”  and to just have faith.  Faith transcends our fears and anxieties and allows us to stand strong and accomplish great things.  In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus urges his disciples:  “Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy from carousing and drunkenness and the anxieties of daily life, and that day catch you by surprise like a trap…Be vigilant at all times and pray that you have the strength to escape tribulations that are immanent and to stand before the Son of Man.” (Lk 21,34ff)  There will be those people who “will die of fright in anticipation of what is coming upon the world.” (Lk 21,26)  If we are to stand strong at the Coming of the Lord then we need to be vigilant and to have “custody of the heart.”  The workout aid for the heart is love.  We need to do everything with love.  We practice love, we pray in love, we worship in love, we wait patiently in love and we believe in love.  If you don’t want to die of fright then you need to live in love.

    The Advent season offers us strength and conditioning coaches for the heart.  Mary, Joseph and John the Baptist are persons with strong hearts who live courageously.  They don’t show off their “guns” or their “six-packs” but they show us their faith in the Lord, their love for God and their pure hearts, strengthened in prayer.  Mary has the courage to accept the Lord’s plan for her life, even though she does not understand how it can possibly be accomplished in her.  She trusts God’s word and promise and she knows that all things are possible by the power of his grace at work in her life.  She has an Immaculate Heart that is untouched by sin and moral weakness.  Joseph has the strength and the courage to take Mary into his home, to believe the words of the angel, to not expose Mary to the law and to protect her from Herod and from other dangers in the world.  He is a righteous man with a strong and courageous heart.  John the Baptist has the strength and courage to call people to repentance and to challenge those in power in the world.  He boldly points out the sinful choices of Herod and tells him that he is wrong in taking his brother’s wife.  There are no greater examples of strong and courageous hearts than we have in these holy saints.

    The Advent season is a time to prepare our hearts to meet the Lord.  We purify our hearts in the sacrament of confession, we strengthen our hearts by persevering in prayer, we fill our hearts with God’s promises in Sacred Scripture and we practice the virtue of courage to keep our hearts fixed on the coming of the Lord.  Come quickly, Lord Jesus, and fill our hearts, our lives and our world with joy!