During Advent, we often hear the Gospel stories of John the Baptist, the one preparing people to meet Jesus. In Luke’s Gospel, when the crowds showed up in the wilderness to hear him, they asked a question that lies at the heart of this season:

“What should we do?” (Luke 3:10)

They wanted to be ready. They wanted to respond. And John did not give them a complicated plan.

“Whoever has two cloaks should share with the person who has none.  Whoever has food should do likewise.”

Before Jesus ever preached a parable or healed a blind man, John was already teaching people how to live with open hands and open hearts. Advent still asks for the same posture.

Not frantic activity. Not spiritual performance.
A steady, generous readiness.

Advent is not a season of waiting around. It is a season of preparing the heart and the hands for Jesus.

Prepare for a Person, Not a Performance

Advent can slip into project mode without us noticing. Hang the wreath. Order the cards. Plan the penance service. Bake the cookies you make every year because someone will ask about them if you do not. And somewhere along the way we forget that projects were never the point.

The question is.

“Lord, what should I do?”

That is the beginning of evangelization. Not a program. Not a parish initiative. A willingness to let Jesus reorder something in me first.

Remember the wisdom from Advent: Are You Unprepared to Be Prepared? Do one thing. One step that draws you toward Jesus and makes His love visible to someone else.

After all, evangelization is not one more task or project. It is the heart of the mission.
(Read More: Parish Leadership and Evangelization Priorities)

Sharing Faith During Advent

One Thing: Christmas Cards

Your “one thing” this Advent might be as simple as the Christmas cards on your kitchen table.

If you are planning to send them, take a minute to choose cards that actually speak to what Christmas is. Better yet, add a short handwritten line about what God has done for you this year.

“This year I have seen God’s faithfulness in …”
“Praying you know His peace as deeply as I have.”

A throwback to one of our Christmas cards — simple words, honest faith, and a reminder that the love we give is never ours alone. It always begins with Him.It does not have to be polished. Sincerity is the whole point.

These tiny sentences often reach places a long homily will never touch. They remind people that the Gospel is not an idea or a slogan. It is a relationship, and relationships are shared person to person.

This is the opposite of what we cautioned against in Brace Yourselves: The Christmas Jesus Juke Is Coming. No guilt trips. No correcting someone’s holiday greeting. Just quiet, joyful witness.

Other Simple Ways to Evangelize During Advent

For more “one thing” ideas, start small.

• Invite someone to an Advent evening of reflection or concert.
• Pray for someone by name and tell them you are.
• Share a favorite Advent reflection or Scripture online with simple gratitude.
• Offer a listening ear to someone who is overwhelmed or grieving this month.
• Ask your family who might need a little extra love or attention this season.

All of these choices come from the same posture described in The Art of Accompaniment. Walk with people. Notice them. Care about what weighs on them.

Sometimes the most evangelizing thing we can do is simply be present.

What Should I Do? Pray, Ask, Then Act

Scripture says John the Baptist “preached good news” and “exhorted the people in many other ways.” His words always carried a rhythm of both repentance and response.

Take five quiet minutes sometime this week and ask Jesus:

“What should I do?”

Maybe He will bring someone to mind who needs a meal or a phone call.
Maybe He will nudge you toward a little forgiveness you have been avoiding.
Maybe He will ask you to speak hope out loud instead of staying silent.

Spend some time reflecting on John the Baptist’s answer:

“Whoever has two cloaks should share with the person who has none.  And whoever has food should do likewise. 

Consider: What is your cloak this Advent?  What do you have in abundance right now?
It may not be money, or things.  I could be your time. Your patience. Your attention. Your story.
Give it freely and trust that God will do more with it than you expect.

Small steps of faith often ripple farther than we ever see.

If you do not know where to start, or do not get a clear answer, try asking the Holy Spirit to bring one person to mind who needs encouragement this season. Then pray for that person by name until Christmas.

It is remarkable how often God opens a door when our hearts are already leaning toward someone in love.

Living the Mission Throughout Advent

When you drop off canned goods without posting about it, pray daily for someone by name, send a simple note, or sit with someone who just needs a minute of kindness, you are doing more than being nice.

You are making the invisible love of God visible.
You are letting the Gospel take on flesh again.
You are giving someone a reason to hope.

The world does not need more polished programs.
It needs people whose hearts have been turned toward Jesus
and whose hands are open.

Advent is short, but the impact of a single “yes” to Jesus never is.

Every prayer you whisper, every small risk of generosity you take, every ordinary moment of compassion — these are the ways Christ enters the world again.

If we want our parishes, families, and communities to encounter Jesus this Christmas, it will not be because we ran perfect programs.
It will be because we lived like He is already here.
Because we let His coming reshape our hearts and our habits.

So keep listening. Keep asking. Keep acting.
The Savior we prepare for is already preparing something in us.
Let your Advent be a place where His love takes root and grows into something others can see.

Practical ideas for evangelizing during Advent: small acts of generosity, prayer, and accompaniment that prepare your heart for Jesus and help others encounter His love.