Sunday Pastoral Prayer (Dec. 22/Advent) Athens First UMC

[When Athens High School alum, Joe Burrow mentioned in his recent Heisman Trophy speech about the extreme poverty that is present in his home area of southeast, Ohio, this has led to hundreds of thousands of dollars being donated from all over the country to our local Athens County Food Pantry. Not only has this been what some might call a “Christmas Miracle,” perhaps it also is an answer to many prayers that have been lifted for impoverished families in our county to find some needed relief. God works in mysterious ways as we will soon celebrate at our 4:30 pm and 7:00 pm Christmas Eve services this week. For the 4th Sunday of Advent sermon, click here.]

Gracious and loving God, we have so many questions to ask you. What kind of star led the wiseman to Bethlehem? How many shepherds are we talking about? Three, four, maybe twenty? Explain to us the virgin birth and how that could have happened. It’s hard for us to understand. Why do only two of our Gospels have the Christmas story?

 

We have so many questions to ask you, O God. How can the story of Christmas make a difference in our lives? How can the good news of Christ’s birth make this world a better place? Is Jesus really the one who has come to bring peace on earth or should we look for another?

 

Like John the Baptist, we live with so many unanswered questions and yet if we are alert enough, there are signs of your presence all around us. There are glimpses of your presence in so many mysterious and surprising ways.

 

We have been praying for the many families and children in our surrounding area who have limited access to food and just hours after Joe Burrow’s Heisman Trophy speech, hundreds of thousands of dollars have been donated to our Athens County Food Pantry from all over the country. Thank you for this Christmas miracle, O God!

 

For this year’s Christmas Angel Tree program, we were assigned to help 18 children and because of so many generous people, we were able to provide 53 gifts, 32 bibles, & 25 hams for a total of 29 families! Thank you for this Christmas miracle, O God!

 

Just a few weeks ago, we didn’t know what we were going to do for this Tuesday’s 4:30 family-friendly Christmas Eve service, but thanks to some creative ideas and people willing to help, we now have a special service planned for those who will attend. Thank you for this Christmas miracle, O God!

 

O God, even as we have many questions about our faith and about the mystery of the incarnation, thank you for these holy and surprising ways that you remind us of your presence. 

 

We pray this in the name of Jesus who taught us to say together… “Our Father, who art in heaven…”