God
of Hope,
sometimes
hope is scarce.
Soaring
inflation tightens our budgets
Flu
and COVID and RSV strain our health system
Our
daily news so often brings despair.
As
Christmas comes round again,
help
us see the hope found in a baby,
a
baby who will change, renew, revitalize our lives and our world.
God
of Peace, tonight we mark the birth of one called “Prince of Peace”
He
is born again into a world where we hear of mass shootings,
and
warfare in Ukraine, and Yemen, and too many other places,
and
domestic violence shelters full to the brim,
and
people on our streets struggling with poverty, and health, and
addiction.
Where
is the Peace?
As
Christmas comes round again,
help
all of us see how peace and justice are possible
transform
us to be people who actively work to make them grow around us,
so
that we can echo the angel song of “Peace on earth, goodwill to
all”
God
of Joy,
sometimes
Joy is absent.
When
worry and stress take over our lives,
when
there is an empty spot at the table,
when
grief is still raw,
when
we are afraid,
it
is hard to sink into the joy of the Christmas season.
As
Christmas comes round again,
remind
us of the joy that goes deeper than happiness,
the
joy of knowing that You walk with us, that You will always be with
us,
the
joy that comes with an abiding sense that somehow, someday, all will
be well again.
God
of Love,
lovingly
you break into our lives, sharing all that we do and are and will be.
You
challenge, command, convince us to live lives guided by love,
love
for family, for friend, for stranger, for enemy, for neighbour.
Where
we miss the chance to act lovingly, forgive us,
and
move us to be better next time.
As
Christmas comes round again,
fill
us with the dream of a world where love is the universal rule of
life,
fill
us with the love that casts out fear
and
may that love overflow from our hearts onto everyone we meet,
so
that, as people of love, we can help build a renewed, revitalized
world
God
of Birth,
tonight
we gather to celebrate a birth that happened long ago,
the
birth of a child laid in a manger
But
tonight we also celebrate births that happen everyday:
we
sing praises for hope born anew in the midst of despair,
we
watch as peace is born in the middle of violence and struggle and
disparity,
we
listen as joy is born afresh in the broken-hearted,
we
are overcome with emotion as love is born time and time again,
overcoming fear and distrust and hatred,
we
stand in the glow as tiny sparks give birth to a light that warms and
illuminates the wonders of life.
For
all the births we celebrate this night we offer prayers of
thanksgiving and praise
Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment