AN ADVENT PRAYER
Come, Lord Christ as once you came,
Leaving glory, wealth and fame.
Come, amid your people dwell,
Be for us EMMANUEL.
Come, Lord Jesus from above,
Be again God’s gift of Love.
Make this earth Your citadel.
Be for us EMMANUEL.
Come, Lord to our needy race
Once again reveal your face.
Heal our spirits, make us well.
Be for us EMMANUEL.
Come, Lord Christ, receive the praise
That from joyful hearts we raise
To the Hope of Israel!
Be for us, IMMANUEL!
Come, Lord. Hear creation cry.
Sound the trumpet. Split the sky.
Let the final anthem swell
Be for us IMMANUEL.
Come, Lord, make Your home in me.
Make me holy. Make me free.
Speak the Word — all doubt dispel.
Be for me IMMANUEL!
John M. Nielson
Can be sung to the hymn tune Hendon
(Take My life and Let it Be)
ADVENT QUOTES
“The Lord is coming, always coming.
When you have ears to hear and eyes to see,
you will recognize him at any moment of your life.
Life is Advent; life is recognizing the coming of the Lord.”
– Henri Nouwen
“A prison cell, in which one waits, hopes –
and is completely dependent on the fact that the door of freedom
has to be opened from the outside, is not a bad picture of Advent”
– Dietrich Bonhoeffer, God is in the Manger
AN ADVENT BENEDICTION
May you go, conscious of the Love of God the Father
Who sent to you the Son, the Prince of Peace.
May you go empowered by the Holy Spirit
To live with faith in spite of the turmoil of life.
May the Advent of our God give you strength
Both now and forevermore.
AMEN.