Tuesday of the Third week of Advent

“The Grace to Go”

In the Gospel today, Jesus tells a very simple story. A father asks his sons to go into the vineyard. One says no, but later goes. The other says yes, but never moves.

And Jesus doesn’t leave much room for interpretation. What matters isn’t the answer that sounds right. It’s the life that follows.That’s a hard word for Advent, because Advent is a season when it’s easy to speak well. We know the language. We know what we’re supposed to say. But Advent is really about conversion — about movement.Saint Augustine once said, “God has promised forgiveness to your repentance, but He has not promised tomorrow to your delay.”That feels very close to this Gospel.The first son delays — but he doesn’t delay forever. He changes his mind. And in the end, he goes where he was asked to go. The other son never actually refuses. He just stays where he is.When Jesus talks about the vineyard, He’s not usually talking about something dramatic. Very often, the place the Lord is asking us to go is quite ordinary — and that may be why we resist it.For some, it’s a conversation they’ve been avoiding for a long time.Something that needs to be said.Or something that needs to be heard.For others, the Lord may be asking them to go back —to mend a relationship,to offer an apology that’s overdue,or to forgive someone they’ve learned to live without forgiving.Some are being asked to walk away from a habit they keep postponing —something they tell themselves they’ll deal with later,something that quietly pulls them away from prayer, from peace, from honesty.For others, the call is simpler, and maybe harder:to pray when it feels dry,to return to the sacraments with sincerity instead of routine,to stop saying yes to God in words while resisting Him in practice.And there are some who know — quietly — that the Lord is asking them to trust Him somewhere they’ve been holding back.To let go of control.To stop standing still.Jesus says the tax collectors and prostitutes went into the kingdom before the religious leaders, not because they were better, but because they were willing to move when they were called.Advent doesn’t ask us to say better words.It asks us to take the next step.As Christmas draws near, perhaps the prayer today is very simple:Lord, show me where You are asking me to go —and give me the grace not just to say yes,but to follow.