A Prayer

Father,

We thank You for this Advent season. We see the decorations that celebrate this time. Some of them are quite beautiful. It is a sad fact, however, that many who decorate for this time do so without realizing what they are doing. They certainly do not celebrate the coming of the Savior. As far as they are concerned, this is just a winter holiday. And yet, in the midst of their rebellion against You, what they are doing highlights Jesus’ coming. In this we can see the wisdom of Your word that says, ‘Surely the wrath of man shall praise you.’ They, unwittingly, are praising You, the God whom they hate.

Father, we don’t want to be anything like them. So, we come to You asking that You would protect us from any compromise of this holy time.

There are many pressures that we feel, many pressures for us to think about this season in ways that are similar to how they think about it. For them, it’s just a time to get a little break, to swap gifts and to have some fun.  But that is not what Advent is to be for us.

For us, this is to be a time to respond to Your indescribable gift. Jesus has come, and we are saved. We pray, Father, that that theme would be at the heart of all that we do as we celebrate Jesus’ Advent. And with that as the heart of it all, we ask that You would help us to celebrate with great gusto. Help us to make this time so very special with all the extra things that we do. We desire to rejoice in the Advent of our Lord, and we desire to pass that tradition of rejoicing on to our children. So, we look to You, Father, to make it happen. Through Christ our Lord Amen.