“In those days before the flood, the people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day that Noah entered the ark.” (Mt 24:38)
We can almost picture it, Noah building a massive ark on dry land, while everyone around him carried on with ordinary routines—eating, drinking, marrying—indifferent to the strange sign rising before their eyes. Their vision was flat, one-dimensional, absorbed only in the present moment.
Advent calls us to something more. It shakes us out of complacency and indifference, reminding us that life is not just about the daily rhythm of meals, tasks, and celebrations.
Advent invites us to see in three dimensions: looking back to Bethlehem, where Christ came in humility; looking ahead to the moment we will meet Him at the end of our earthly lives; and looking forward to His coming again at the end of time. Without this frame, life’s floods—tragedies, losses, disruptions—can feel overwhelming. But with three-dimensional vision, even sorrow finds its place in God’s larger story. Perspective brings peace.
So we ask ourselves this Advent: are we living with depth of vision, or drifting in the flatness of indifference.
Smitten With Goodness 