Advent Prayer for December 22

A Christmas Prayer

Robert Louis Stevenson (19^th century)

 

Loving God, Help us remember the birth of Jesus,
that we may share in the song of the angels,
the gladness of the shepherds,
and worship of the wise men.
Close the door of hate
and open the door of love all over the world.
Let kindness come with every gift and

good desires with every greeting.
Deliver us from evil by the blessing which Christ brings,
and teach us to be merry with clear hearts.
May the Christmas morning make us happy to be thy children,
and Christmas evening bring us to our beds with grateful thoughts,
forgiving and forgiven, for Jesus' sake.  Amen.

 

Stevenson’s prayer is one worth repeating.  What a privilege to share in the song of the angels, to be able to shout, “Glory to God in the highest.”  How exciting to experience the thrill of the shepherds as they ran to the stable and discovered the baby Jesus.  How we long to worship at the manger of Christ as did the wise men, offering our gifts to him.

Yes, Christmas is a time of rejoicing, and we long to be part of the sacred response of the ages, with love from that stable pouring out into the world.  That’s the joyous hope as we celebrate Christmas year after year.

Yet we cannot leave this prayer without noting the last phrase, so striking in its description of the one who is praying:  forgiving and forgiven.  Yes, kindness, good desires, merry hearts and grateful thoughts are good gifts to be received..  But without the forgiveness that comes through the incarnation, and the forgiving that we offer one to another on a daily basis, we are missing the redemptive reason for the birth.

 

Prayer Focus: forgiveness