A certain man made a great supper, and bade many: and sent his servant at supper time to say to them that were bidden, ‘Come; for all things are now ready….” (Luke 14:16-17)
Since Christ is born into this world, now is the time that all things are ready for us to come to Him humbly, but with determination and attention, without excuses, and with love and reverence, for His Kingdom is always right before us and in the present tense, and we are directly invited to enter.
This invitation does require that we make an effort to leave our other activities of life as our first priority, and yet we don’t have to abandon all in life that is not sinful, but simply make our journey to “live, move, and have our being” in Him as the very first and most important activity of our life. He will certainly and actively help us do so, for He desires our heart as He constantly gives us of His own.
Only two things are needed to begin to really start this journey to Christ and His Heavenly Kingdom even now and also at each moment: first, to recall our hearts from its focus on the world to now really focus on Christ through constant interior prayer, and then secondly, to ardently ask Him for help like a small child calls to his mother with love. Maranatha! Come, O Lord!
The Monastics at St. Isaac of Syria Skete
and at the Convent of St. Silouan
and the Faithful at St. Nicholas Church
and the Staff at Orthodox Byzantine Icons and St. Isaac’s Bookstore