a community creating for the relentless return of Sunday
God of our fulfillment,
as we gather on the other side of Christmas Day,
we rejoice that we have just scratched the surface
in understanding the good news that is before us!
How great you are that you have chosen us as your dwelling place!
Bless our worship this day that we might hear it with fresh ears and open hearts. Amen.
God of our Salvation,
we come to you on this wondrous night to gather in praise,
to lift up your name with friend, family, and stranger.
In the beginning, your creative work began with a word,
and tonight, your creation continues with the Word made flesh.
On this holiest of nights, we join the everlasting chorus saying:
Glory to God on highest! Great is your name in all the earth!
Like Mary, we ponder these things in our hearts,
and wonder how you could love us so much
as to actually become one of us, one with us.
We remember these stories this evening
that remind us of your steadfast love,
that affirm that you have never, and will never, give up on your children.
Thank you for your steadfast presence in our lives!
And yet, even on this night on which we celebrate the fulfillment of love,
we recognize that there are many who are still waiting for fulfillment:
the fulfillment of adequate food and shelter…
the fulfillment of peace and the end of violence…
the fulfillment of reprieve from the fierce grip of grief…
the fulfillment of a restoration of a broken relationship…
the fulfillment of a renewing of heart, mind, or body…
the fulfillment of healing from a chronic illness…
the fulfillment of an end to substance abuse…
Giving God,
give us the courage to do your work in the world
and to share the peace coming to us in the manger this evening.
We pray this night especially for those who have traveled to be here…
for those who have lost loved ones in the past year…
for those who struggle with mental illness…
for those who fight alcoholism’s onslaught…
for those who will be traveling in the coming days and weeks…
for those who work on Christmas:
especially medical workers, police, and emergency personnel…
for those who cannot make it home for Christmas…
hear us we pray, O God,
Restore us and make your face to shine that we might be saved.
In all that we do and in all that we are,
send your Spirit to send us forward with the majesty of this night
and to share the grace we find with everyone we encounter.
This we pray in the name of your Son, who taught us to pray saying:
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 debts as we forgive our debtors;
and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil,
for thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever. Amen.
God of all Goodness and Grace,
tonight, you break forth into a world waiting in wonder.
So long we have waited,
so long we have watched,
so long we have wondered what tonight would bring.
To you we ascribe all thanksgiving and praise
for you alone are our hope and our salvation.
You alone are the light that has come to rescue us from ourselves.
You alone are worthy of our worship and you alone are our King!
Come to us on this blessed evening and hear our joyful welcome!
Come to us, Holy Savior, and send your Spirit to tell us a story,
the story of salvation’s birth and hope’s fullest fruition! Amen.
Let us pray to the Lord our God saying:
“Restore us, O God, and make your face to shine upon us that we might be saved.”:
Our souls magnify you, O Lord, and our Spirits rejoice in you, our Savior!
For you have looked upon the lowliness of your servants,
you have heard our cry and saved your people.
We shall be called blessed because we are called by you to be a blessing to others.
Your mercy is from generation to generation.
Your mercy called Adam and Eve into being.
Your mercy kept vengeance from taking Cain’s life.
Your mercy saved Noah and his family from the flood.
Your mercy caused Sarah’s womb to be fruitful.
Your mercy gave Joseph’s dreams the power to save a nation.
Your mercy heard the Israelites’ cry and called Moses to action.
Your mercy charged Mary with the most special of tasks.
Your mercy strengthened Joseph to care for her.
Your mercy creates Jesus, who has come to save us.
We give you thanks for your mercy; may it continue to shine upon us!
Restore us, O God, and make your face to shine upon us that we might be saved.
We remember this day those upon our hearts that crave your shining face,
who long for the light, who need your power to drive out the darkness:
for those who suffer from depression and other mental illnesses,
for those who cannot bring themselves to forgive others,
for those who cannot forgive themselves,
for those who seek refuge, but have been denied shelter,
for those who seek shelter, but have been denied a home,
for those who have lost loved ones in the past year,
for those who have lost physical and mental abilities,
for those who care for aging spouses and loved ones,
for those who have been living with cancer and other debilitating illnesses.
Restore us, O God, and make your face to shine upon us that we might be saved.
We ask that you would strengthen us as a congregation:
as we seek to be the best stewards of the money with which we’ve been blessed,
as we struggle with the financial burden of an aging building,
as we search for the truth of your word and do our best to live it out in our lives,
as we hold in tension that which we have been with that which you call us to be,
as we serve one another and those with whom you called us into fellowship,
as we continue to grow together as a congregation in a period of transition,
as we wait, watch, and wonder in preparation of the coming of your Son.
Restore us, O God, and make your face to shine upon us that we might be saved.
Gracious God,
as we finish this advent journey,
may we wait with Mary’s joyful anticipation
as we prepare to welcome your Son, our Savior,
into this broken world in need of his redeeming.
Gather us, guide us, and keep us as your people.
Send us into the world that Christ’s hands might be our own,
and his mind one with ours in all that you would have us do.
Restore us, O God, and make your face to shine upon us that we might be saved. Amen.
Submitted by Rev. Stephen M. Fearing, Shelter Island Presbyterian Church, NY
One: We come into your holy place, O God, hoping for a glimpse of your presence
All: Silence us when we allow our voices to drown out yours.
Silence us when our words in the sanctuary and our actions outside do not line up.
Into that silence, speak again your word of life and your call to live the gospel.
One: Help us to be still and know that you are God.
Make space in our hearts and minds to trust your word—and not just our hearts and minds,
but also our choices and actions.
All: Tune our voices to sing of your glory, to share your good news.
And then open our lips, and our mouths shall proclaim your praise. Amen.
Submitted by Rev. Teri Peterson, the Presbyterian Church of Palatine, IL
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