December 16 Prayer
‘I am the Lord God and there is no one besides me. There is no just and saving God but me.’ Isaiah 45:6-8,18 Creator and maker of the whole earth brought forth beauty out of chaos. Created a place for light and darkness, night and day for us to dwell in with Him. Woes and well being. Good times and bad times. It’s hard when you know there are those around you sick and dying, and suffering from loss. We cannot save them nor can we save ourselves. Who do we turn to for help? Who can save us? Pause to pray, and hold those in your heart before the One and only God, the one who saves us. ‘Open up, O heavens and pour out your righteousness. Let the earth open wide so salvation and justice can sprout together. They will roll down from the heavens as dew from above and as a gentle rain drops down from the skies. This is advent time. A time to wait for the messiah to come. The one who saves us. We cannot understand the times we are living in but we can look for Jesus to come in an unexpected way. Let us not take offense of what we do not see happen in our expected plans. May our hearts open up like the earth and prepare him room to sprout forth faith, hope and love. May we turn to the One and only just God. For here we are safe. Emmanuel, God with us! Come, Lord Jesus! Amen December 15 Prayer
‘On that day you will no longer be ashamed, because what you have done against my will. You will become my humble and lowly people who trust in the name of the Lord. No more lies, no more deceits, but a people content with who they are and where they are, unanxious, they’ll live in peace and no one will make them afraid.’ Zeph.3:11-13 This is God’s vision for His people. In the broad sense we can view it as for everyone else but take a moment and consider what it would mean personally for you. Jesus tells us a story of two employees asked to complete a task. One says a prompt no but then does the task anyways. The other replies with an eager yes and then is unable to complete the task. Matt.21:28-32 How many times do we say yes to things that are really not the will of God for us? I have found myself in the situation of saying yes for all the wrong reasons. ‘I want to please and not let someone down. I want to find favor with that person and look good in their eyes. I really just want to help.’ If I am honest, humble and lowly before God then I may be able to recognize my own limitations and seek his ways to discern His will at that moment. ‘ A “no” does not hide anything but a “yes” can easily become a deception.” quoted by Soren Kierkegaard. If we are humble, know who we are and content where we are, then we are able to trust in the name of the Lord. Let go of all the ‘to dos’ and let your “no” mean “no”and your “yes” mean “yes.” Pause to pray ‘Lord we confess our motives are driven by our false selves so much of the time. We desire to be true in what we say and do so help us to be that honest with ourselves. Show us where we are led astray by a deceitful yes . We admit that we cannot do everything right all of the time. Bring a new awareness that you are here with us to guide and lead us. We humble ourselves not in shame but in the light of your love and grace. May we say a holy ‘no’ to that which drags us away from your true will. May we say a holy ‘yes’ to birth the life of Christ within us. Emmanuel! Come,Lord Jesus. Amen December 14 Prayer
Come , Lord Jesus we pray. ‘In the wilderness there is a voice calling, prepare the way.’ When Jesus appeared on earth the people questioned him. Who are you, whose authority do you speak and act? Is.40:3-5,Matt.21:23-27, Do you question what you know, who you are and what you are to do? In these days of wilderness throughout not only our land but of all lands we need to see clearly, and open ears to hear the message of what God knows. The prophet Balaam spoke, as one whose eyes see clearly and hears the words of God with knowledge from the most high,who bows down with eyes wide open: ‘I see him, but not now, I perceive him not near but in the future. A star will rise from Jacob, a staff will emerge from Israel.’ No.24:15-17 We humble ourselves now before the One who knows. We confess that our eyes are not clear nor true and ask for your authority to transform what we think we know into the knowledge of the holy one. Prepare us now to hear your voice in the wilderness and to know which way to go. We pray for all of those who do not have the power to choose how they live or survive. May your power be greater than those who exploit and cause harm to others. Help us to discern the way you have prepared for us to go. The way for us to make a difference. To know who we are and whose we are. Come, Lord Jesus! Open our eyes to see you in unexpected places and let our ears hear you more clearly today. What we are to do and how we are to act. May all that we are, reflect who you are, the king of glory come to earth. We prepare the way for you to enter in. Come, Lord Jesus! Amen December 13 Prayer
‘Sing for joy and be glad, O daughter of Zion! For I am coming to dwell among you” this is the Lord’s declaration. Many nations will join themselves to the Lord on that day and become my people. I will dwell among you, and you will know that the Lord of Hosts has sent Me to you.” Zech.2:10-11 Today we light the candle of Joy. Be still and know that the Lord God is among you. Never give up hope, Let peace be your center and Joy will dwell deep inside of you. ‘We give thanks to You, our God, for You have chosen to come and dwell among us. We open our hearts to your presence here and now. May the knowledge of the Holy One renew our hope, and lighten our hearts. May we be ones that live in the light of your love to bring this hope and joy to the world around us. Pause and be still, lift up all of those who are hopeless and without this knowing. Ask for God’s presence to fill them with hope and to come to Him. We choose joy today, We choose Jesus! Emmanuel, Come, Lord Jesus! Amen DECEMBER 12 PRAYER
‘O come, Thou Dayspring, come and cheer Our spirits by Thine advent here Disperse the gloomy clouds of night And death's dark shadows put to flight’ ‘Rejoice, Rejoice, Emmanuel, Shall come to you O’ Israel’ Rejoice, be glad, look for Joy, and possess it, we are told in Isaiah 61 Own it, feel it, let it become what you proclaim and become who you are. Hope is where we set our gaze Peace is what centers our hearts Joy wells up from within Love binds all together Our faith in hope Our peace with joy We see the dark and gloomy state that our world is in. Yet, we are to rejoice, to be glad and gladden others, and give this joy away. For The humble King is coming our saviour is here! And the dark shadows and gloomy nights are put to flight! Jesus the anointed has come, and opens the ancient scroll to bring good news to the poor to bind up the broken hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, to release prisoners, and comfort to all that mourn. To proclaim the Lord's favor! LK 4:17-19 Wherever you are broken,sad, hurting, in bondage, in pain confess your own poverty and need now, to receive the good news from the One who has come to save us. Receive and Rejoice! For in Christ you may rejoice always and give thanks in every circumstance. Only in Christ can we hold the contrast of joy and sorrow together. In Christ you have favor, in Christ you are complete, for His joy will be in you. May this blessing of joy begin to rise up from deep within your soul where hope and peace reside, a bubbling well spring of life that is ready to spring forth, be known, be loved, be called out from every stronghold of darkness into light. The kingdom of God is here. Joy is here! See it, take it, own it and possess it until it possesses you! Rejoice, Rejoice, Emmanuel Shall come to you O Israel! Come, Lord Jesus! Amen December 11 Prayer
“O’Come thou wisdom from on high And order all things far and nigh Tell us the path of knowledge slow And cause us in her ways to go.” ‘I, the Lord your God, teach you what is for your good, and lead you on the way you should go, if only you would hearken to what I have told you…. Your life would have flowed full like a peaceful river, blessings rolling in like waves from the sea….’ Isaiah 48:17-19 Hearken…. to listen, accept, observe and notice, welcome, long for and attend. These are just a few synonyms to define the word hearken. Think of your life and the times God was leading and you turned to go another way. ‘If only I could have ? What if I would have ? Then my life would have been as.. And I am now….’ All the ‘what if’s’ and ‘ if onlys’ can only hold you bound to this dry ground of stagnation. God always offers an invitation into a flow. Into a river that flows full of peace. It requires an open spirit that listens and surrenders to the path that is good for us. And then our ‘if onlys’ may become an ‘even though’ prayer. Pause in surrender to the flow of his spirit within you now. ‘Even though I walk through the dark valley, You are with me. Even though I have stumbled, fallen from my blunders and missed opportunities, I believe that You redeem everything. Even though the waves crash and sea roars, and the earth crumbles, You are the Lord who has come to save us. Even though we get caught up at times in the world of fear and frenzy we choose to hold firm to heaven’s ground. We need not fear nor live in the past . Come, Emmanuel, O Wisdom from on high, bring order to the chaos and lead us in the right way to go. Let your waves of blessings roll over your people in all places. Those who are attending to the sick and dying, bring to them your river of peace and strength today. Hearken to the voice of the Lord, Who bids us to come and listen, attend to his spirit within us. Let the river of peace flow through you into the new day. And let us raise our eyes heavenward and sing with the angels, ‘Glory to the newborn king.’ Emmanuel, Come, Lord Jesus. Amen December 10 Prayer
O come, O come, Emmanuel And ransom captive Israel. That mourns in lonely exile here, Until the Son of God appear, Rejoice,Rejoice! Emmanuel Shall come to you, O israel. The whole world is waiting now more than ever. Waiting for the vaccine, waiting for a cure, for help to come, waiting for this time of mourning to be over. As people of hope how do we rejoice when in captivity? Advent is when we are waiting for His appearing, for the son of God to ransom and free us. We stop and look for him everywhere. Yes, we look for miracles and breakthroughs and for sickness and death to be no more. Jesus tells us that the kingdom of God is near, He is here. Isaiah the prophet foretold of how the kingdom would appear. ‘Blind eyes opened deaf ears unstopped lame will leap and the mute will sing for joy!’ Waters will gush forth in the wilderness and fresh streams in the desert. Is.35:5 Look for His appearing in the first awakening breath you take the first view your eyes gaze upon the wonder of the sky and ground. Look for His appearing now and to come, so your mourning does not take you down but your hope raises you up. He will save you, He will take each of your right hands, the sign for victory and will help you! What better help could you ever find here on earth? Fear not, be strengthened in your weakness and take courage. Is.41:13 Surrender all that is dragging you down now and let the holy trinity take your hand and raise you up. ~ ‘We thank you God that you have come to save us! We give to you all of our worries, all of our concerns, our griefs and cares. We take hold of your hand and allow you to guide us on the pathway of joy. Open our eyes and ears so we may see you and hear you and find your gushing stream in this desert time. And may we all drink from your life- giving waters. Rejoice, Rejoice! Emmanuel, God with us. Come, Lord Jesus, Come Amen December 9 Prayer
I woke up to see scattered stars as luminaires fixed in the night sky each one hand painted there by the finger of God Isaiah 40:25-31 “Look up into the sky, the heavens.’ He says. Who created all of these armies of stars? ‘Because of his great power and incomparable strength, not one star is missing. He has numbered and named them all.’ I wonder how He went about it? How the master artist painted the sky with lights a constellation for all to see, at all times, somewhere on the earth. Each star, hand painted by the finger of God. It must have been magical to see it emerge as a painting on a black canvas. Look up into the sky, the heavens. God comes with comfort for his people. He never grows tired or weak, though His heart aches with the pain and injustice He sees. He sees, He hears, and will not grow weary in listening, in caring, in healing our land. ‘No one can ever measure the depths of His understanding. For He will give power to the weak and strength to the powerless. For those who wait, for those who trust.’ Look up to the sky, and gaze in wonder. Receive his grace now to pray and wait on His spirit to come upon you, fill you with the strength you need this day to wait. O God of consolation, come to strengthen your people now. O God of the constellations, we trust in your strength and creativity. We rely upon your power and justice to be made known here on earth. Just as you painted the sky with luminaires, would you create in us the lights we are to become. We open up a space for you to strengthen where we are feeling weak and powerless today. We pray for all those who have grown weary and are waiting for the night to be day. We will not give in or give up, but will wait and trust. O beautiful Jesus, light of the world, we welcome your spirit here. ‘Though the vision seems slow in coming, wait patiently, for it will surely take place. It will not be delayed.’ Hab.2:3 Come , Lord Jesus, Come. Wait and look up while you wait. Shine light stars in the night! Amen December 8 Prayer
Lk.1:28-33,Gen.3:20, Eph.1:1-12 ‘Grace to you, favored one, the Lord is with you. Blessed are you among others.’ ‘You will be a sacred space, A holy room for God to dwell and give birth to A kingdom that will never end.’ Full of Grace, Mary was ready to encounter the holy. Prepared to receive the kingdom of God. We are a blessed people In Christ, God’s promise to all has given us every spiritual blessing! Even before they made the world we were chosen to be his, a holy room to birth the heavenly realm on earth. ’You are made holy in His eyes, with an unstained innocence.’ A woman named Eve, was easily deceived became the mother of all the living. A woman named Mary was ready to receive, became the mother of God. Full of grace, she was ready to receive the kingdom of God. Jesus, king of all nations who will rule over all our hearts. ~ Be still to make room in your heart The Lord is with you Do not turn away Let a space be made for the holy one Let your whole being return to who you were created before the earth began Unstained and innocent, pure and holy With God, blessed and favored. As you breathe in this image take it with you throughout the day. Ready to receive and hear ‘Blessed are you favored one.’ Now be a blessing full of grace to others. Amen December 7 Prayer
Isaiah 35 There is a roadway in the wilderness it is the holy way. Where does this road lead and who may walk on it? It is for the redeemed, the ransomed. Angels with messages are waiting for me to clear the clutter to make a way. Prepare the way for Spirit to come. How can I hear you if I am somewhere else? Preoccupied with fear and gloom, embedded with every distraction I can find not to listen, which way to go, where to stay. Let us make a way to see and a way to hear what is the holy way during these upsetting times. As Mary was immersed in her domestic duties, she was able to see an unexpected visitor giving a message she was ready to hear. In her youthfulness and willingness she was ready to walk a pathway, the most holy of ways. To carry within her Emmanuel and birth the promised one into the world's wasteland. Can I say, Here I am, I am here ready to listen, ready to be redeemed and ransomed? Ready to have the holy one dwell within me? First I must be forgiven, forgive myself for all of the roadblocks I have let prevent the way. Breathe in the love and acceptance of Christ. See His eyes of delight gaze upon you now. ‘May we clear out the clutter in our hearts so we may walk the holy way as restored, reclaimed, delivered from our fears. So we may hear the message for each of us just for today to walk in. May we see the wilderness and desert become green and spring forth blossoms.. ‘May our souls be a place for the splendor of God, to strengthen those who are tired and encourage the weak. To say to those with fearful hearts, be strong, do not fear for your God is coming to save you!’ Come, Lord Jesus, Come! Amen |