Monday Meditation:
Compassionate God,
in this time of darkness,
we wait with hope for the One
who will come and show us your light.
 
As we revel
in the merriment of the season
and the sparkle of decorations,
remind us there are also many
for whom the holiday season
is not one of joy and good cheer.
 
We pray for those
who cannot see Your light in the darkness.
Show them that hope lays, Holy One,
not in the commercialism of Christmas,
but in the concept of the Christ child.
 
We pray for those
who grieve this Advent season,
facing the first Christmas after losing a loved one.
Shroud them in Your comfort.
Through the story of the Christ child,
let them touch the eternal.
 
We pray for those
who struggle to feel joy
because they’re mired in mounting bills,
and in despair for lack of employment.
We pray for the greedy,
that they will loosen their iron-fisted grip
on the world’s resources.
Let both the oppressed and the oppressor
see the light, Lord.
Let us all see the light.
 
We pray for those
whose family dynamics make holidays
not a time of festive joy,
but instead a time of stress and anger.
We pray that through your grace,
hearts might be softened,
old hurts might be released,
and a door to reconciliation might be opened.
 
We lift our joys and give our concerns
to your tender care
for those in our congregation,
in our cities,
in nations around the world,
and for people enslaved everywhere.
 
Burst forth into the now, God,
as you do in the story of Jesus’ birth.
Let your consciousness bloom into our world,
changing our reality forever.
Help us all see beyond the physical.
Help us believe in the metaphysical.
 
For it’s in the seams
between reality and imagination
that a new consciousness blossoms,
that a new world vision takes root,
that the Light of the World
finally shines brightly on,
in and through
each of us.
Amen.