[We offer two Christmas Eve services. Our first service was a family service that included our puppet ministry team and the use of glowsticks instead of candles. In the picture above, we are singing "Silent Night" as we welcome the coming of Christ into the world. Since Christmas is a season of twelve days, let us continue to shine Christmas light!]
O God, is it really true that
tonight is the night that you have come into the world? We had no idea that
Mary would deliver her baby so far away from home. This story has caught us off
guard. We’re so not prepared. You deserve a better welcoming.
And yet, you chose to come in
this way, and at this time, and in this place, to of all people, us! Tonight,
can we at least say, “thank you?” Thank you for coming into our world because
we have been making a mess of things as of late.
We are a troubled world. We
don’t listen to each other. We are divided. We are fearful of what the future
holds. We are quick to pass judgment on others, but truth be told, we have to
admit that we too, are part of our problems.
Even so, reassure us tonight
that there is hope for all of us, no matter what political signs we placed in
our front yards. There is hope for the long-term church member just as much as
there is hope for the person who isn’t the praying type. There is hope for the
believer. There is hope for the non-believer. There is hope for the saint.
There is hope for the sinner. There is hope for the middle-aged pastor who
tells corny jokes. There is hope for the church member who has to listen to
those jokes.
O God, thank you for
reassuring us in the most surprising way that there is hope for all of us
because we need you, Aleppo needs you, the world needs you. Thank you for the
surprise gift of the birth of your Son, Jesus Christ tonight. Thank you for
coming into our world just in the nick of time.
Thank you for coming to the
Little Town of Athens and thank you for coming to the Little Town of Bethlehem. In the name of the savior of the world, Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment