God of all our days, be with us as Christmas draws near. Calm our hearts and guide them to focus on your coming. Let us rejoice for the gift of your presence. We celebrate your birth long ago with much joy in our hearts. But we also await your return with hope for a day when peace shall reign on earth as it is in heaven. As we wait, you also come into our lives today, to guide and comfort us. We praise you that you created us but are still creating and transforming us to be all you desire for us to become. Help us to draw closer to you and one another in the busyness of this season of preparation.
Let this be a time of reconnecting and restoring. May every encounter with family and friends open a new way to live more fully as your follower. You are the gift we seek to find. You are all we truly need to make our lives whole. Lead us to deeper connection with you as we kneel before the manger. In the name of the Christ Child, we pray.
-Pastor Maria