We ask for Good Tidings

Angels Announcing Christ’s Birth to the Shepherds, Govert Flinck, wikimedia commons
 
Dear God:
The newspaper brings nothing new
    only an old, old story of war—
    more bombing, more shooting, more bloodshed.
    One more family wailing a funeral song.
Against the backdrop of brutal images,
    we hear the old, old story of an angel with good news,
    who brought good tidings of great joy for all people.

Angel of Bethlehem, we long to hear your song again this day.
We want good tidings for countries in crisis.
We want good tidings for people who long to govern themselves.
We want good tidings for soldiers caught in webs of violence.
We want good tidings for all who grieve, and who see no end to grieving.
We want good tidings for terrorists whose actions spread fear and anguish.
We want good tidings for ordinary people who long to live in peace.
We want good tidings for children, who long to inherit a country
    where peace has blossomed.

Jesus, our Savior,
    you escaped Herod’s best-laid plans.
May your Spirit of peace be born again this year
    in the hearts of all who work for peace.  Amen.

Carol Penner, Canadian Mennonite pastor and professor
leadinginworship.com  source 
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Isaiah 9:6-7

For to us a child is born,
    to us a son is given,
    and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
    Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
    Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the greatness of his government and peace
    there will be no end.
He will reign on David’s throne
    and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it
    with justice and righteousness
    from that time on and forever.
The zeal of the Lord Almighty
    will accomplish this.
________________________________

In what ways is the coming of Jesus the best news that the world needs to hear?
Who is one person that you can share this news with?

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Come, O true Light

Hagia Sofia, Istanbul, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0, via Flickr
 
Come, O true Light!
Come, O eternal life!
Come, O hidden mystery!
Come, O indescribable treasure!
Come, O powerful one,
    who always creates and re-creates and transforms
    by your will alone!

Come, you whom my wretched soul
     has desired and does desire!
Come, you who alone go to the lonely
    for as you see I am lonely!
Come, you who have separated me from everything
    and made me solitary in this world!
Come, you who have become yourself desire in me,
    who have made me desire you,
    the absolutely inaccessible one!

Yea, O Master, just as you remembered me,
    when I was in the world
    and, in the midst of my ignorance,
    you chose me and separated me from this world
    and set me before your glorious face,
so now keep me interiorly,
    by your dwelling within me,
    forever upright, resolute;
that by perpetually seeing you,
    I, the corpse, may live;
that by possessing you,
    I, the beggar, may always be rich,
    richer than kings;
that by eating you and by drinking you,
    by putting you on at each moment,
I go from delight to delight
    in inexpressible blessings.

Symeon the New Theologian 949–1022 Byzantine Orthodox monk
source
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John 1:9-10

The true light, which gives light to everyone,
    was coming into the world.
He was in the world, and the world was made through him,
    yet the world did not know him.
 
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When have you experienced the presence and love of God most powerfully?
Remember some of those times in prayer and praise.
 

God, we greet your coming in Jesus Christ

Altarpiece of the Seven Joys of Mary, c 1480 France, via Wikimedia Commons
 
We greet your coming, God, with wonder:
You come to be with us;
    yet you remain far greater than we can imagine.
You are near;
    yet your wisdom sets you apart from us.
You appear among us;
    yet we cannot describe your glory.

We greet your coming, God, with repentance:
We are more or less satisfied with ourselves;
    but your presence exposes our sin and failure.
We are self-confident;
    but you challenge our confidence in ourselves.
We are proud of our understanding;
    but you show us that we do not know everything.

We greet your coming, God, with joy:
We had no true idea of what you are like;
    but you have shown us yourself in Jesus Christ.
We felt our human life could be of no importance to you;
    but you have shown its value by appearing among us as a man.
We are aware of the gulf between us and you;
    but you have bridged it with love.

God, we greet your coming in Jesus Christ our Lord!

Caryl Micklem 1925 – 2003 English Reformed minister
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Psalm 77:11-14

I will remember the deeds of the Lord;
    yes, I will remember your wonders of old.
I will ponder all your work,
    and meditate on your mighty deeds.
Your way, O God, is holy.
    What god is great like our God?
You are the God who works wonders
    you have made known your might among the peoples.
 
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How can you greet the coming of Jesus with wonder, repentance, and joy?

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Glide down into my longing soul

​Simeon in the Temple, Gerbrand van den Eeckhout, wikimedia commons
 
O sweet and true Joy,
O sweet and true Joy,
I pray Thee come!
Come O sweet and most desired!
I pray Thee come!
Come O sweet and most desired!
Come my Love, that art all my comfort!
Glide down into a soul longing for Thee
                                             and after Thee with sweet heat.
Kindle with Thy Heat the wholeness of my heart.
With Thy Light enlighten my inmost parts.
Feed me with honeyed songs of love,
    as far I may receive them
    by my powers of body and soul.

Richard Rolle 1290–1349 English writer, Bible translator and hermit
The Encyclopedia of Prayer and Praise
 
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Isaiah 61:10

I delight greatly in the Lord;
    my soul rejoices in my God.
For he has clothed me with garments of salvation
    and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness,
as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest,
    and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
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What are some ways you can express joy praising God 
    as you anticipate the coming of Christ?

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visit with us, too

​The Meeting of Mary and Elisabeth, Bloch 1866, wikimedia commons
 
Lord Jesus, this advent season we remember
  the visitation of Mary and Elizabeth
    both women miraculously pregnant.
We delight as we recall John the Baptist leaping for joy
    inside Elizabeth’s womb!

Make plans to visit with us too,
   that we might be filled with joyful expressions!
Impart within us the same awareness that John had
    that we might always sense your presence.
Bless us with the same knowledge
    that you are truly the lamb of God
        who takes away the sin of the world;
    that you are the Messiah, and we are not;
    and that you must increase, and we must decrease.

Invite us to join with John and prepare for your coming.

Eric Mathews
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Luke 1:41-44

When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting,
    the baby leaped in her womb,
    and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.
In a loud voice she exclaimed:
    Blessed are you among women,
        and blessed is the child you will bear!
    But why am I so favored,
        that the mother of my Lord should come to me?
    As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears,
        the baby in my womb leaped for joy.

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When have you rejoiced in God’s presence most vividly?
What aspect of your life needs to decrease 
    so that the influence of Jesus can increase?

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bring Life and Peace to us

 
O King of the nations,
You are the headstone of the glorious hall of creation.
You are the firm mortar which holds the building together.
Throughout the earth people marvel at your works.
But now the building is being reduced to a ruin by greed and fear:
 
Reveal yourself to mankind, 
    show yourself as the ruler of the world,
    demonstrate the power of your love.
 
O just and faithful King,
    you can unlock the prison-house of sin,
    and let us out into the glorious freedom of love.
Now we sit in darkness,
    grieving over the wrongs we have committed.
We long for the sun,
    we yearn for the warmth and brightness of your truth.
Open the gate of this prison, and lead us to your kingdom,
    which is our true home.
 
Come now, high king of heaven.  
Come to us in flesh and bone.  
Bring life to us who are weary with misery.  
Bring peace to us who are overcome with weeping,
    whose cheeks are covered with bitter salt tears.  
Seek us out, who are lost in the darkness of depression.  
Do not forget us, but show mercy to us.  
Impart to us your everlasting joy,
    so that we, who are fashioned by your hands,
    may praise your glory.
 
Exeter Book, c.960,  codex of Old English poetry
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Isaiah 61:1-3

The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me,
    because the Lord has anointed me
    to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
    to proclaim freedom for the captives
    and release from darkness for the prisoners,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor
    and the day of vengeance of our God,
to comfort all who mourn,
     and provide for those who grieve in Zion—
to bestow on them a crown of beauty
    instead of ashes,
the oil of joy
    instead of mourning,
and a garment of praise
    instead of a spirit of despair.
 
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Where is God’s life and peace most needed in your community?
Pray that the power of Christ’s love would be revealed in this situation.

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Come Thou long expected Jesus

 
Come, Thou long expected Jesus
Born to set Thy people free;
From our fears and sins release us,
Let us find our rest in Thee.
Israel’s Strength and Consolation,
Hope of all the earth Thou art;
Dear Desire of every nation,
Joy of every longing heart.

Born Thy people to deliver,
Born a child and yet a King,
Born to reign in us forever,
Now Thy gracious kingdom bring.
By Thine own eternal Spirit
Rule in all our hearts alone;
By Thine all sufficient merit,
Raise us to Thy glorious throne.

Charles Wesley 1707 – 1788 English hymn writer and Methodist
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Haggai 2:6-7 

This is what the Lord Almighty says:
‘In a little while I will once more shake
    the heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land.
I will shake all nations, and what is desired by all nations will come,
    and I will fill this house with glory,’ says the Lord Almighty.

_________________________
 
What are some of the desires of the nations that only God can fulfill?
How can you be praying for your country this season?

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Send your Holy Spirit upon our preparations

Savault Chapel, France, Benh LIEU SONG, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
 
Lord Jesus,
Master of both the light and the darkness,
    send your Holy Spirit upon our preparations for Christmas.
We who have so much to do
    seek quiet spaces to hear your voice each day.
We who are anxious over many things
    look forward to your coming among us.
We who are blessed in so many ways
    long for the complete joy of your kingdom.
We whose hearts are heavy
    seek the joy of your presence.
We are your people,
    walking in darkness,
    yet seeking the light.
To you we say, “Come Lord Jesus!”

Henri Nouwen 1932 – 1996 Dutch Catholic priest and author
source
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Isaiah 42:6, 16

I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness;
    I will take hold of your hand.
I will keep you and will make you
    to be a covenant for the people
    and a light for the Gentiles

I will lead the blind by ways they have not known,
    along unfamiliar paths I will guide them;
I will turn the darkness into light before them
    and make the rough places smooth.
These are the things I will do;
    I will not forsake them.
 
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What is one way that you can prepare your heart this Advent season? 

God’s rescue operation and new creation

image by geralt via pixabay

 
Lord, we dream about justice.
We glimpse for a moment, 
    a world at one, a world put to rights, a world where things work out, 
    where societies function fairly and efficiently,
    where we not only know what we ought to do but actually do it.
And then we wake up and come back to reality.
 
…from the very beginning, two thousand years ago,
we the followers of Jesus have always maintained that
 
You took the tears of the world and made them Your own,
    carrying them all the way to Your cruel and unjust death
    to carry out God’s rescue operation,
and that You took the joy of the world and brought it to new birth
    as You rose from the dead and thereby launched God’s new creation.
 
N.T. Wright, 1948-, British New Testament Scholar, retired bishop
 
______________________
 
 
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: 
The old has gone, the new is here!  
All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ 
and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 
    that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, 
    not counting people’s sins against them. 
And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.
 

Psalm of the Razor’s Edge

Knife’s Edge, Katahdin by , via flickr CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
 
 
The path we walk to you, O God, is narrow,
    as narrow as a razor’s edge.
The Way is only as wide as a human hair,
    and many are those who lose their balance.
    on such a thin and uncertain edge.
Each day, like a circus aerialist,
    I walk the tightrope of the command,
    “Come, follow me.”
Who can stride safely on such a narrow bridge,
    which swings between heaven and earth?
Downward is the pull of self;
    it tugs at me: “for me, for me… me.”
Heavy the gravity of the urge:
    “I want, I want, I want.”
The Way is narrow and high:
    holy and brave are those
    who climb upon the razor’s edge,
    swaying from the left to the right or right to left,
    straining too hard or relaxing too much.
Holy are those who fall
    but rise again
    and climb back upon the narrow edge
    and begin again and again.
The Way is narrow and high,
    and high are those who walk it,
    one small step at a time,
    intoxicated by risk,
    joyous at the fine balancing line
    of the razor’s edge.
 
Edward Hays, 1931-2016, Catholic Priest in the Archdiocese of Kansas City
 
__________________________
 
 
Enter through the narrow gate. 
For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, 
    and many enter through it. 
But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, 
    and only a few find it.

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