December Prayer
“Be Watchful and Pray - For our Neighbor”
“God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you
have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to
help them.” Hebrews 6:10
It is at this time of the year, we pause to give thanks for the love, hope
and joy we find in Jesus—our Savior and friend. Jesus did not come for
just you and me. He came for all people. He came for the downtrodden
as well as the wealthy. He came for those who live next door to us as
well as those who live in other parts of the world. He came to show us
that these people, regardless of their background, are all our neighbors,
and that we’ve been given the opportunity to show God’s love for them
by being a friend and helping to meet their needs.
How can we do that? We must stay alert and be watchful for those
around us, for many are hurting financially and emotionally. They are
individuals who struggle each day to make ends meet. They are
grandparents trying to raise their grandchildren. They are spouses and
children living in abusive situations. They are individuals who due to
unfortunate circumstances, find themselves homeless or unemployed.
And, there are the homebound, the lonely and those suffering from
medical conditions. They may sit next to us in church, be living next
door to us, or even the stranger we meet on the street. God has placed
them all before us, giving us plenty of opportunities to care for them.
So we pray for the gift of mercy and the willingness to have
compassion…to befriend a stranger, to feed the hungry, to clothe the
poor, to look after the sick, and to provide shelter to those who have
none. Just as Jesus said in Matthew 25:40, “Truly I tell you, whatever
you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did
for me”. May our eyes be opened to see the needs of those around us
and our hearts be opened to respond to those needs. In doing so, we
will also be sharing Christ’s love with them.
As we exchange gifts this year with loved ones, let us remember the gift
God gave us in Jesus. The gift that we are never alone, that we have
hope for the future and that we are loved. Now let us share that gift with
those around us. What better gift can we give others this Christmas
than to show Christ’s love through what we do.
When we live ready, when we live watchfully and prayerfully, we will
be able to bear fruit in opportunities that come our way.
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