November 28, 2016

O Come Emmanuel

Lord be with us, and be with our children.

For the little ones growing in the womb, we ask for health and growth. May their birthdays bring joy. O Come Emmanuel

For the babies and the tired mothers, we pray for Your rest and peace. O Come Emmanuel

For the busy toddlers with their wide-eyed curiosity, we ask for safety and patience. O Come Emmanuel

For the school kids, Lord we ask for Your help with skills and challenges. Lord be their confidence, not in their abilities but in being a child of You. May they awaken to Your presence.
O Come Emmanuel

For the teenagers, Lord, for driving and friends and tests and life passions--O Come Emmanuel! Be with them. Give them patience in the journey. Help them trust in You. Help us parents trust in You. Do not let us make happiness an idol. Help us all to be mission-oriented for You. O Come Emmanuel!

For the ones who have left the home, Lord we pray they would not forget what they have been told. Help them to find their way. O Come into their lives, Emmanuel.

And for the military child, O Come Emmanuel we pray. Be the home-base for the traveller. Lord, be the friend for the new kid. Be the identity for the one in transition. Be the protecting parent when we fail. Lord they so need You to be real in their lives. O Come Emmanuel.

Lord we thank You for these blessings. We thank You for helping us make this military family life work. We thank You for great adventures, for close ties to each other. We thank You for working in the lives of our children, in spite of our best efforts, above all our fears.

We pray for the men and women of our military, all somebody's child. Lord please keep them safe. May their hard times be the gateway to when they meet You. O Come Emmanuel.

We pray for the veterans and their personal battles they continue to fight. Lord, may the spirit of suicide be restrained. We ask for Your mighty heavenly army to wage this war. Open the eyes of our veterans to see God with them. O Come Emmanuel.

For all our Christian leaders, from the Chief of Chaplains office on down, may this season's message be loud and clear. O Come Emmanuel!

We can bring these requests because You love us enough to call Yourself Emmanuel--God with us. You desire to be with us--how astonishing is that! And as little ones long for Christmas, so we long to be with You. Thank You Lord Jesus. Amen.