Three Prayers

Luke 1:1-2:20; Matthew 1:18-2:18

Having heard the whole story of Christmas, from the first angelic word to Elizabeth to the Holy Family’s run to Egypt, three prayers come to mind—

-a prayer for comfort

-a prayer for joy

-a prayer for peace on earth

—being mindful that God (cleverly disguised as Morgan Freeman) once remarked that such prayers are great for Miss America wannabes, but reveal precious little about what’s on our own minds and in our hearts—unless, that is, we are mindful about what such prayers actually mean for the very real here and now in which you and I dwell. 

A PRAYER FOR COMFORT

There is so much to take comfort in within the Nativity. It begins with the simple assurance that God knows us fully and completely from the inside rather than as a spectator looking in. In Christ, God became man and dwelt among us, as St. Anselm noted. In that becoming, God entered every facet of our existence from dirty diapers to every nuance of human existence, from the frustrated messes of human engagement to the glorious highs of human creative imagination to the miraculous wonders of love twining hearts together. God entered even the brokenness of being human, even its suffering and pain, knowing it in the purest biblical sense and then transcending it, carrying us with him.

So what does that mean for you mean right here and now? For all you parents still facing a long night helping Santa get that stuff beneath the tree in the necessary state for tomorrow, God knows you, and knows you well. God knows the frustration of the missing piece. God knows the short temper when the bolt won’t hold. God knows the panic of realizing that there was one essential gift everyone thought everyone else was getting. God knows it all—the chaos of human celebration. And if God knows the chaos of this night, God surely knows what it is like when the proverbial stuff smacks into the proverbial fan for real, be it a sudden impact at work, at the doctor’s office, or in conversation with a beloved. God entered it all. God entered it, redeeming it with healing too profound for words—recall what God said through the prophet Isaiah—

Comfort ye, comfort ye, my people….tell (them) their warfare is ended…

A PRAYER FOR JOY

As we awaken to the presence of real and actual comfort in God’s presence with us, there can be real and actual joy. When the angels erupted in ecstatic praise over the catatonic shepherds below, their joy was real. God was doing something ridiculously wonderful in Bethlehem. All the veils between heaven and earth were torn asunder. All the barriers between God and us destroyed. All the chasms between our life and God’s holiness bridged. All was well as it had never been well before. Hope sprang into fruition—God was here, God was with us, and God’s love would rule creation. 

 But we still need a lot of reassurance on that point don’t we? The world…well, the world is the world as it was, is, and will be. Our lives in that world…well, there are also as they were, are, and will be. So where does this joy spring? It is there in breathing—we are alive, so we are with God, and if we are with God, then there can be deep and everlasting joy. Remember, joy is drinking deeply from the waters of the oasis we so happily saw arise on the horizon. We allow God to refresh, restore, and renew us. That comes with seeing things as they are. After rising from being bowled over, the shepherds went and saw what all the noise and fuss was about. They found a baby with two worn out, overwrought parents—not much a spectacular—imagine the moans from the marketing department—but they had the right eyes to see it for what it was. Here was the promise made and kept. Here was all they needed to know to know that God was with them in every way imaginable. So, look deeply into this story, look deeply into our gathering, look deeply into all that it is—the Word is completely the same. Hear it and rejoice!

A PRAYER FOR PEACE ON EARTH

Which brings us to the final prayer—as we see reason for joy in discovering that God is right here among us as we are, we can risk the hope that the impact of this night reverberates through all that is the world. God is reconciling the world to himself—and us within it—so there can be peace on earth that is lasting, profound, and real. Matthew gets to this part of the story by telling the whole story and painting the whole picture. His is a scary story, but that is what makes it frighteningly real. God had much to overcome as God met us as we are, and the truth is we do not take easily to being transformed and transcended—frightens us, truth be told, and when we are frightened all bets are off—we just might do anything.

But that meets us here and now, too. We live in a frightening context. We are told by TV, newspapers, and the internet that we should be afraid of everyone and everything, even seemingly innocent children. Well, recall the first word from each angelic messenger in the story of this night—FEAR NOT! God is turning our world inside out and upside down. Barbara Brown Taylor, one of the great preachers of our time, remarked that the best way to see God at work and at play is to stand on your head—that’s just the right perspective to see what needs seeing. Which is what Christmas does when you stop to think about it—we bring the tree inside and put the lights outside, for crying out loud! Once we accept being upside down, we see that things as they are are not necessarily as they have to be.. New vistas are present, new outlooks possible, and new dreams arise to be dreamt. Do it—let it be so—let peace begin with each of us—here and now. As we practice peace among ourselves, we slightly shift the course of the world, we alter its direction, and we regain control from all the mad kings and frightened pundits who seek control over us. Then there can be peace—lasting peace, peace touching on shalom.

Let it be so.

Let us pray—for comfort, for joy, and, yes, for peace.