Daily Advent Reflections with Bishop Burbidge

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Preparing for Christ on Christmas means devoting yourself to daily prayer throughout the Advent season. Begin each day with a short reflection by Bishop Burbidge, which can serve as a springboard for your own time of prayer and meditation on Sacred Scripture. Come, Lord Jesus!

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First Sunday of Advent 

12/2: With the start of Advent today, may we be “vigilant at all times” and prepare ourselves for the coming of our Lord Jesus.  

First Week of Advent

12/3: Through the intercession of St. Francis Xavier, patron of missions, may we become throughout this Advent more confident missionary disciples in our homes and communities. 

12/4: Jesus invites each of us to stop posturing and instead to become “childlike” in order that we might find the serenity and peace of life with Him.   

12/5: Like the disciples, we just need to offer Jesus what we have—a “few fish” and some bread. If we do, He will make our offering fruitful in ways we can never imagine!

12/6: Listening to our Lord is a vital step, but it is only the first. We then need to act on his words. Only then will our lives be built upon the rock. 

12/7: Through the intercession of the St. Ambrose, doctor of the Church, may our preparation for Christ’s coming include diligent and prayerful study of our Church’s teaching. 

12/8: On today’s Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, we turn to Mary, patroness of our nation, convinced that “nothing will be impossible for God”! Inspired by her faith, may we turn away from everything that distracts us from recognizing God in our midst.

Second Sunday of Advent

12/9: Each day this Advent, we have the opportunity to “prepare the way of the Lord” and “make straight his paths.” May we do this worthily through a daily examination of conscience. St. John the Baptist, pray for us.  

Second Week of Advent

12/10: In this sacred season of Advent, we search our hearts to find all that prevents us from “rising up” from our sin, apathy, and despair. May we never forget that Jesus calls each of us to deeper faith, saying, “Rise, pick up your stretcher, and go home”!  

12/11: Jesus goes to the ends of the earth to save just one of his lost sheep. Who are the lost sheep—the family members, friends, and neighbors—in our own lives whom we need to seek out with renewed love, mercy, and zeal? 

12/12: “Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.” Today, through the intercession of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Patroness of the Americas, may we entrust our entire lives to God’s providential care.    

12/13: So often we rely on our own strength and “my way.” Today and throughout this sacred season, Jesus invites us out of our isolation and into friendship with Him. Only then do we find that his “yoke is easy” and his burden is “light.”

12/14: Through the intercession of St. John of the Cross, may we become more faithful instruments of God, allowing our Lord to dispel the darkness through us. 

12/15: Jesus reminds us that that even when Elijah came “they did not recognize Him.” In this sacred season of Advent and always, may we become the kind of disciples who recognize Jesus throughout the many little moments of each day.   

Third Sunday of Advent (Gaudete)

12/16: Today we are instructed that if we wish “to rejoice always” we must also “refrain from every kind of evil.” Throughout this Advent, may we renew our promise to turn away from any pattern of behavior that is not of God and instead find peace in Him.

Third Week of Advent

12/17: The genealogy of Christ in today’s Gospel is a powerful reminder that Jesus of Nazareth is not some vague “spiritual” concept. He became man and dwells among us not as an idea but as a person.  

12/18: As soon as St. Joseph awoke from the dream, He “did as the angel of the Lord had commanded Him.” Inspired by Joseph’s resoluteness, may we also hear the voice of God in our lives and act promptly upon it.  

12/19: Weary or despairing like Elizabeth and Zechariah, we too may doubt that the Lord is capable of working a miracle or even delivering “good news” to us. Today may we renew our belief in the good news which the Lord has promised to us. 

12/20: To walk humbly each day with God, may we follow the simple yet unfailing path revealed to us by Mary today: “May it be done to me according to your Word!”

12/21: As the day of Christ’s birth nears, may we “set out…in haste” to do the will of God. It is not too late to recommit and to renew our resolve to prepare our hearts for the coming of Jesus our Lord. May we be vigilant at all times! 

12/22: While the commercial noise and frantic pace of this season are undeniable, may we hear in Mary’s words today a renewed call to refocus on the heart of Advent: “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord!”  

Fourth Sunday of Advent

12/23: Today with Mary, may we be attentive to these words of the angel Gabriel: “The child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God.” May we prepare to welcome the Son of God in our lives with renewed holiness, awe, and wonder.   

Fourth Week of Advent

12/24: Come quickly, we pray, Lord Jesus, and do not delay. “Guide our feet into the way of peace!” 

12/25: Behold, when the fullness of time had come, God sent His Son into the world. May the peace of Jesus Christ be with you on this sacred day and always. Merry Christmas!