O come, thou dayspring, come and cheer

Our spirits by thine advent here;

Disperse the gloomy clouds of night

And death’s dark shadows put to flight.

~ O Antiphons

Fourth Sunday of Advent

There sometimes can be a lot of depression swirling around at Christmas.

People can feel lonelier because we’re expected to be cheerier and we just don’t feel it.

This blog is meant for us to pray and reach out and notice these folks.

In the gospel today Mt 1:18-24  Joseph has a dream that confirms the conception of the child Mary is carrying, but

it didn’t take away their problems of what to say to the neighbors and all the hardship they would have to face.

Let’s be with folks who have lost a loved one and still miss them.

With kids who are shuffled back from one parent to another to “celebrate” the holidays.

With soldiers far away from home and their families at home without them.

And so, may we pray:

There are sometimes dark clouds in our lives, Lord.
Pierce the gloominess of our lives with Your very own Light.
May we allow You to dawn on us and in us this day.
May we be ready for Your dawning in a new way in our lives this Christmas.
May this celebration of Jesus’ birth bring meaning and joy in the midst of our worries and concerns.
And may we BE the dawning of  your light and love and justice
in our homes, our neighborhoods, our jobs, our world.

And there are dark and ominous clouds over our world right now, Lord.
Pierce our greed and hate and fear and complacency and violence with hope, Lord.
May we pray earnestly for a new dawn for our beloved country and our world.
May we BE the dawning of  your light and love and justice in our land.

Lord Jesus, come!
May the light of that dawning transform our lives and our land.
We need Your Light and Your Love more than ever.

And now for your listening enjoyment here is the great Mormon Tabernacle Choir singing “Unto Us a Son is Given” Turn up your speakers and enter full screen.

With love,

Bob Traupman

contemplative writer