There’s an ancient little prayer that some Christians insert into the Lord’s Prayer right before the doxology. There are a lot of variations, but one version strikes me as a perfect Advent prayer.
Deliver us, Lord, from every evil, and grant us peace in our day. In your mercy, keep us free from sin and protect us from all anxiety, as we wait in joyful hope for the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ.
As we wait in joyful hope! Like Mary, waiting for her baby to be born, we wait in joyful hope. Like Jesus’ first followers, waiting for him to restore the kingdom, we wait in joyful hope.
But God’s idea of a king isn’t the same as humanity’s idea of a king. God surprised the waiting world by bringing forth a humble shepherd king, born in a stable, not a royal palace; laid in a manger, not a silken crib; crowned with thorns, not gold and jewels.
That’s how our Savior, Jesus Christ, came to us the first time. Now we wait in joyful hope for the promised second coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ.
This message is an excerpt from a monthly devotion by Audrey Novak Riley. Today we remember Nicholas, bishop of Myra, who died around 342.
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