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A few sayings at the beginning: “Not all that glitters is gold.” “Until you opened your mouth, I thought you were a philosopher” and others… Even in Advent, the following applies: “The yoke is made for two, you on one side and Jesus on the second. A burden carried in pairs is much lighter…” Jesus specifically says: “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and lowly in heart; and you will find rest for your soul. My yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:29-30).

Even in Advent, Jesus reminds us of the message he brought to the world, which we should adopt and follow in our Christian life. He calls those who embrace his little ones. Jesus is not against wisdom and reason, but he is against pride and vain knowledge, often just stupidity. Several times, Jesus encountered this kind of behavior of people who, with their indifference, stubbornness, and inattention, not only hurt him but also misled and scandalized others around him. They were the ones who saw and managed the nation. He did not blame them for their science and lead ring but for their pride, which prevented them from accepting the truth. It is a reminder that not the head but the heart is the true home of the gospel.

Pascal writes: “The heart has reasons that the mind does not know.” Jesus does not despise courage, learning, wisdom, and diligence, but what is connected with pride, such as arrogance, exalting oneself, underestimating others, and recognition. Pride closes a person’s way to the truth.A person can be as wise as Solomon. Still, if he does not have the simplicity and innocence of a child’s heart, he closes himself from the truth. Ultimately, he can be worse than a simple person without education who is honest, humble, and open to tfacfactualsus declares himself to be the truth (cf. Jn 14:6). It doesn’t take much. We understand the words “learn from me, for I am meek and humble in heart” (Mt 11:29) because they are a sign of God. As Jesus sees the Father, so when we see Jesus act, we should learn to work according to him; that means that when we toil and overburdened, and act in his spirit, quietly and humbly, the yoke will become accessible, and the burden light, because He will be with us.

Our earthly and eternal happiness is tied to whether we follow Jesus in his example. That is why he addresses us with the words: “Learn from me” (Mt 11:29). The heart of Jesus – quiet and humble, also shows us the model of what kind of heart we should have, what mindset we should adopt, what philosophy of life we ​​should implement.

Humility and quietness of heart should also become our virtues. Sv. Bernard sees humility as the foundation of every Christian’s integrity. He says: “Without humility in spiritual life, there is no other virtue.” It is not enough for us to know the theory but to implement the words of Jesus about humility and silence in practice. The word humility hinders many; they become deaf and blind as if it does not exist for them.

This holiday is close to each of us. Children are happy. They get sweets, and pa; rents are so glad because their children are happy. The atmosphere of St. Nicholas is imbued with benevolence. It is almost impossible to resist this atmosphere because good is arduous. However, we must realize that the feast of  Saint Nicholas invites us to cultivate kindness today and throughout our lives. Christian charity is a gift of the Holy Spirit. It comes from God. It was fully manifested in Jesus Christ. If we live by faith, we are to realize God’s goodness in our lives. We are to be penetrated by God’s goodness, which the Holy Spirit develops, as the fruit of His presence in us. In benevolence, we glorify God above all. We realize his image and likeness in ourselves. Benevolence is also an apostolate that effectively touches the hearts of those far from God.

F.W. Faber wrote: “Goodness is catchy. He has the right to fertility. A good deed leads to more good deeds. A single act of kindness sends out roots in all directions, from which new shoots sprout and new trees grow. This fertility is not limited only to ourselves… This is how benevolence spreads in all directions. An act of benevolence may never die but spreads the invisible waves of its ebb and flow throughout the centuries.” On the way to mastering the benevolence of life, we must recognize the dangers that can stop us. It is primarily pride. A proud man is seldom kind. Pride spoils our spiritual endeavor and turns it into a mockery. A particular writer must have met many Christians infected with this spiritual disease when he wrote this sentence: “Religious people are the most unloving of all people.

Many religious people neglect the cultivation of benevolence because they do not care about its price. Many are charitable but not benevolent. They mortify themselves, but they do not know how to be hospitable. They pray a lot, but they are not very generous. They are also merciful but without benevolence. A reasonable person does not look in the other person’s face to see what is wrong but acts almost spontaneously. This is precisely the nature of this virtue: to do good as soon as the opportunity presents itself or the moment’s necessity requires it without expecting any recompense. We should practice kindness every day. Parents should lead their children to benevolence with all seriousness by their example because they give them a precious gift in life. Perhaps this story will encourage us to cultivate kindness: A 70-year-old ship captain died. His life was fused with the plague. A lamp was burning by his bed. He slept little at night during his illness. He fell asleep now. He had a beautiful dream, manifested externally by the brightness on his face.

In their dreams, he sees the sea in front of him. His ship rested in the harbor Awaiting the captain’s order to set sail and ply the ocean. When the captain got on the boat, it seemed to him that many acquaintances were traveling with him. They all surround him and say, “Today, we will go with you.” In the back are several girls whom he snatched from the claws of the soul sellers. The girls shouted, “We’re going with you today.” There were dozens of guys he secured jobs for. They also called, “Today , we will go with you.” Many people came who were helped in some way by him. Everyone shouts, “We’ll go with you today!” The ship moves, and the captain wakes up from his dream. Sitting next to him is a friend who has come to visit him. She tells him about her dream. Then he smiled briefly, bowed his head, and died. His ship landed on the other shore of life. He had with him intercessors whom he helped in life. (František Dancák gave us an example, 14ththe  amendment, Kružlov 1996, p. 90.) Well, let’s decide to cultivate kindness and ask St. Nicholas to accompany us on this journey with his intercession with the heavenly Father.

Let’s try to think about which people are closest to us. Which people do we like the most, or which people, maybe friends, do we meet the most in our surroundings and let’s try to think about how much we care about them, how much we love them….?

“Freely you have received, freely give” (Mt 10:7-8). Go and preach, said Jesus. Preaching is one of two ways of witnessing. The other is seeing through life. Today there is a lot of talk about the need to proclaim through life, not. Otherwise, the testimony is not authentic. And that is true. But it is also true that Jesus said, “Go and preach.” Why am I saying this?

Because the testimony of life sometimes becomes an excuse for us. Because if I do not proclaim Christ with the word, then at least I take comfort in the fact that I testify with my life. I ask, if I swear with my life, does my testimony drill into someone’s head. H’s anyone noticed that my life is somehow different? And not only that he is different, but he is also attractive and joyful and has something mysterious in him, such as the mystery of Jesus Christ.

Over Christmas – increased number of suicides. And into this darkness, we Christians are invited to bear witness to Christ, to bring the light of Christ, his hope, salvation, and redemption for this life and, later, eternal life. Some people have never heard of Jesus; no one told them about him, so they have been darkness all their lives. They never saw a glimpse of Christ’s light. Some parents have never told their children a single word about Jesus.

What do we talk about with our loved ones, with the people we care about the most? Do we tell them about Jesus, or do we cover everything else? Because if we do not announce Jesus to our loved ones, we not only risk that they will not be saved but that they will be damned. Parents today work from morning to night so that their children can have everything they think of, but they do not tell them about Christ and risk that those for whom they have lived all their lives will one day be damned. And they will not see God’s face. Their life suddenly appears senseless when their loved ones, children, siblings, grandchildren, and friends are excluded from eternal life…

What do we talk about with our loved ones? If we look at the world today, people there have no problem announcing anything. They have no problem promoting a promiscuous lifestyle. Promote pornography. Promote alcohol, promote drugs… but we have trouble telling a friend about Jesus. Why? Because we are ashamed. Because we would look strange. Because we would be different…? Who are our closest? And what do they live on? Have they heard of Jesus? Have they ever had a profound encounter with Jesus? Did we survive it to pass it on? Amen.

Listen! Someone is calling: Prepare the way for the Lord in the desert. Even the blind man cries out: “Son of David” Make a path for our God in the desert! Prepare a way for the Lord in the desert, where nothing is yet to be seen, where there is not even a hint that anything could be there. The prophet is, above all,l an interpreter of God’s will of what God is doing or wants to do. It does not necessarily have to be about things in the future, although we see here that this is precisely what the prophet Isaiah is announcing. Moreover, the way he speaks is also characterized by the fact that he declares future things such as ady taking place: He says, now his slavery is ended, now his guilt is atoned for,… for in the mind of God these things are already taking place, although we do not yet see them. He goes on to describe how this preparation to appearappearsiliation and humility, to bow down before your God: Let every valley be lifted and every hill and hill made low; what is hilly, let it be plain, and what is bumpy, lowland. And the glory of the Lord will appear, and suddenly every creature will see it because the mouth of the Lord has spoken. The prophet calls: Go up to the high mountain, the good news of Zion, l up your voice might the ly, the excellent information of Jerusalem! Lift up, do not be afraid, say to the cities of Judah: “Behold your God!” How powerful this word must have been for those who listened to it then. To those immersed in hopelessness, despair, and disappointment, it sounds: “Behold your God!” As if the prophet wanted to say to them: “Lift your heads, for your redemption is drawing near!” lift your voice mightily, glad tidings of Jerusalem! Lift up, do not be afraid, say to the cities of Judah: “Behold your God!” How powerful this word must have been for those who listened to it then. To those immersed in hopelessness, despair and disappointment, it sounds: “Behold your God!” As if the prophet wanted to say to them: “Lift your heads, for your redemption is drawing near!” lift your voice mightily, glad tidings of Jerusalem! Lift up, do not be afraid, say to the cities of Judah: “Behold your God!” How powerful this word must have been for those who listened to it then. To those immersed in hopelessness, despair and disappointment, it sounds: “Behold your God!” As if the prophet wanted to say to them: “Lift your heads, for your redemption, is drawing near!”

But what does that have to do with us? Like the people of those times, we, too, are immersed in the captivity of various forms of slavery, whether they are external or internal slavery. I often meet people who are often beaten by life, overwhelmed by work and obligations, or disgusted by failure and disappointments. Not to mention the sins that deprive us of joy and friendship with God. All these things put us in the position of enslaved people to those in need of redemption. Even more surprising is that it does not have to be only adverse facts that need saving often; seemingly good things, pastoral activities, help, or service in the parish put us in the position of slaves. In the rush of work and under pressure to meet deadlines, we may push God aside and live in our worries, and the only thing that can help us is Isaiah’s exclamation: “Behold, your God!” The gospel of Advent, however, goes even further because while in the Old Testament, the prophets announced the intervention of God, it was often done through someone else – specifically today, King Cyrus. John the Baptist announces the coming of God himself in the gospel. And so it is no longer just about the announcer but about the one who has the power to make our liberation happen.

A close friend of mine was recently telling me about a former classmate of his. At the first meeting after finishing high school, the topic of faith and relationship with God came up. This young man began to seek God because he fell in love with a sincerely believing girl. He did not just respect her confession of faith but undertook to search for God in his life. He read books, talked to people, and asked about God. During their conversation together, he told his friend about all his efforts. But at the same time, he confided in him: “With everything I’ve read and heard about God, I still don’t know why I should need God. Everything I do works without him. Even charity and love of neighbor can work without him.” And indeed, as my friend told me, this man lives a decent life. But the problem with his search for God is what he said,

The Christian faith is not about whether we need God to be benevolent and kind or to know how to sacrifice. We need God for our salvation. Even the best person cannot achieve salvation without Jesus Christ, who brings it to us.

The subject of Mark’s Gospel is the person of Jesus Christ – Jesus Christ himself. Mark presents it to us as a new beginning of the history of the salvation of each of us. Our whole life and everything we do in it find meaning in it. However, to receive him, we must first know and expect him and prepare our hearts for his arrithroughl by sincere repentance. Let’s try to pick up Mark’s Gospel more often in the coming days and learn to recognize Jesus in it. Let’s do it very concretely: set a time, for example, ten minutes every day, during which we will read a short part of the Gospel and listen to what God wants to tell us through his Son, Jesus Christ.

Actively waiting for the birth of the Savior means preparing the way for him in your heart. To believe in him as the Son of God and start building a road in the desert, hoping that he will come… In the belief that he is already coming.