Advent Reset

Unplugging, Refocusing, and Preparing

This period is one of my favorite times in the Church calendar. As the liturgical year came to a close, the scripture and prayers at Mass increasingly focused on the end times. Starting with the great feasts of All Saints and All Souls at the beginning of November, the liturgy throughout the month guided us to contemplate our own mortality—on life, death, judgment, heaven, and hell. The end of the liturgical year culminated in the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, a vivid reminder that all things within the entire created order are subject to Christ’s kingship and dominion. He is in charge.

I don’t know about you, but I desperately needed this reminder as I limped across the finish line of this election cycle. American politics has become emotionally and spiritually exhausting. Yet now, as it so often does, the Church’s liturgical calendar invites us to refocus on what truly matters.

As the season of Advent begins, we start a new liturgical year. This is a season of expectation, of preparation, and of hope. It’s a chance to reset, not just spiritually, but in every area of our lives.

Unplug

No matter who you supported in the election, everyone needs a break. If you’re anything like me, you’ve probably realized that your social media and news consumption rates have become terrifyingly high.

Political campaigns, especially presidential elections, are designed to shatter all of our self-imposed barriers and safeguards. Both the media and the candidates want us glued to our screens, checking and rechecking the news 50 times a day to see the latest updates.

If we don’t reevaluate and restructure our relationship with social media and the news, we risk getting sucked into another cycle of allowing external forces to dictate our mental and spiritual well-being. During the first Trump administration, Americans became addicted to our country’s political theater. Like John Mulaney’s bit about Trump as a horse loose in a hospital, we tuned in every day to see what would happen next. We told ourselves, “I’ve gotta stay updated!”

This post-election season is the perfect time to unplug and rethink your relationship with social media and the news. As Cal Newport recently suggested, “Use the stress of this election to be the final push needed to step away from the exhausting digital chatter that’s been dominating your brain. Take a break from social media. Stop listening to news podcasts. Unsubscribe, at least for a while, from those political newsletters clogging your inbox with their hot takes and tired in-fighting.”

While social media fasts are often associated with Lent, Advent offers another chance to reset your brain and focus on this season of joy and hope. When we unplug, we create the mental and spiritual space necessary to answer Advent’s invitation to refocus and prepare our hearts.

Refocus

I’m the last person to minimize the importance of politics. Our world is at a critical juncture, and complete disengagement is not an option. But as vital as the issues consuming our news cycles are, they cannot dominate our everyday lives. Without focus, we risk being consumed by every new controversy, every headline, every storm.

There’s a Stoic saying I’ve been reflecting on lately: “The winds may howl, but I will not be swept away.” The winds are indeed howling all around us: violence abroad, political turmoil at home, and divisions within our own families. These storms threaten to sink us, but Advent reminds us to refocus, to look up from the swirling waters, and to fix our gaze on Christ, the anchor that holds us steady and offers peace amid the chaos.

This season isn’t just about waiting for Christmas, it’s about recalibrating our priorities. It’s about intentionally redirecting our hearts and minds toward what is eternal. Our faith assures us that while the winds howl and the waves crash, the King of the Universe reigns. He is unshakable. When we anchor ourselves in Him, we find the clarity and strength to withstand even the fiercest storms.

Prepare

Advent is a gift. It calls us to slow down, to prepare, and to hope. These first few weeks are especially important. They are a rare window of time to step back from the noise of life and reflect. Once mid-December hits, the busyness of the Christmas season will likely take over. Traveling to visit family, last-minute shopping, and holiday parties will pull our attention in a dozen directions, and it will be all too easy to lose sight of the preparatory nature of the season of Advent.

But right now, we have an opportunity. Now is the time to prepare our hearts. Now is the time to sit in silence, to listen, and to pray. Now is the time to wait in humble expectation for Christ’s coming.

Advent reminds us that God is always present, even in the noise and chaos we create around ourselves. But to truly hear Him, we must quiet our hearts and our minds. He comes in the quiet. In the stillness. In the manger in Bethlehem. If we don’t slow down, we risk missing Him.

This Advent, I challenge myself—and I challenge you—to embrace this quiet. To turn off the distractions, set aside the to-do lists, and simply be present.

Aslan is on the move. The King of the Universe is coming, and He invites us to meet Him with hearts that are ready and open.