Rejoice in the Lord always!
Again I say, REJOICE!
God of love’s increasing light,
our Advent journey brings us closer and closer
to our celebration of Your incarnate presence among us.
We are joyful about what this will mean:
a new revelation of goodness and peace
that will shine the way forward
as we share the hope of Christ with others.
Our anticipation grows as we near the manger,
yet there is still so much time,
and so many activities that separate us
from that moment of rest and relief.
In these moments of restlessness and hurry,
we intentionally set aside this time today
to pause….
to anticipate Your coming into our world,
to sing songs of Your joy and love,
and to pray for Your peace and hope.
With Your coming,
You bring light into a dark world;
joy into a painful world;
hope into a fearful world;
love into a lonely world;
and peace into an anxious world.
O Holy God of Joy,
we rejoice in the reality of who You are.
We live within the joy of Your love for us.
Our contentment comes and goes.
Our happiness ebbs and flows.
Our feelings depend upon our circumstances.
But our joy, O God,
our joy is deeply rooted
in our identity
as Your beloved children.
And, for this, we give You thanks.
O Lord, we seek joy,
the kind of joy that You bestow,
and the kind of joy that runs deeper than what can be seen.
We long to rejoice in the midst of so much difficulty,
whether in our own lives,
or in the lives of others close to us in body or spirit.
We wish joy for those with struggles:
physical, emotional, financial, or relational,
especially during a season meant to be filled with glad expectation.
Let us listen fully and deeply for the hope You are preparing.
Let us greet Your hope with the same joy
Elizabeth had when she greeted Mary.
Let us listen intently for the faith You are preparing in us.
Let us listen intensely to Your truth speaking in us.
Let us listen wholly to the hope You place in us.
O God, may genuine joy sustain us.
May authentic hope and peace surround us.
And as we continue our journey,
may Your divine love welcome us.
For it is in the name of the Coming One we pray these words that He taught us to pray:
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name.
Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the Kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
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