Daily readings and prayers for the nine days before Christmas. Visit all the stations in the Garden, or check back here for a virtual prayer time. The full list of daily links can be found here.
Today's prayers
O Emmanuel
O Emmanuel, our King and our lawgiver,
the hope of the nations and their Saviour:
Come and save us, O Lord our God. (cf Isaiah 7.14)
Matthew 1. 18–23
Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly. But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet:
“Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
and they shall name him Emmanuel,”
which means, “God is with us.”
Prayer
O Lord, Word of God, You, whose glory is complete, came to us in perfect humility as a child in the womb. Your love for us and Your humility is unsurpassed and brings us to our knees in prayer and worship. Your incarnation forever changed the world.
O Lord, infant Jesus, inspire us to be repulsed by sin! You, Lord, are holy but we are not. We pray that you will make us holy and keep us from temptation this Christmas. We also pray for these intentions… (State your intentions here)
May Your Holy Will be done in my life and with these intentions.
We pray that the work of salvation that Your first coming began
will reach fulfillment in each of us.
All Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now and forever shall be, world without end. Amen.
[artwork by linda witte henke]