Praying About The Things We Long For In This Season

Normally at this time of year we would be busy with a number of Christmas programs inside prison and in the community.  One of the favourite videos we often played in prison is   an old black and white one of a little girl singing,  “All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth, my two front teeth, see my two front teeth!  Gee, if I could only have my two front teeth, then I could wish you ‘Merry Christmas.’" 

The words of that song give us an opportunity today to reflect on what gift we think would bring us fulfillment on Christmas morning. 

The truth is, we experience fulfillment only when God’s desires become our desires.  How does this happen?  Our desires start to change when we give our will and our life over to the care of God.  Through Jesus our relationship with God is restored and we are made righteous and acceptable in God’s sight. 

As we follow God’s will for us, the power of His Holy Spirit changes us from the inside out and we grow to be more like Jesus in all our ways.

God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Corinthians 5:21

As we approach Christmas, God invites us to wholeheartedly desire to do His will in every area of our lives.  As we make this fundamental shift in our thinking and behaving, we will experience the kind of satisfaction Jesus spoke about when He said, “My food, is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.”  John 4:34

Jesus demonstrated through His life and death that when God’s will is our desire, the outcome is always positive. 

Let’s pray to follow Jesus’ example today:

Heavenly Father, Our desire is to do Your will and to walk in Your ways.  Please strengthen us by the power of Your Holy Spirit to do what pleases You. 

Help us to be people who not only say we trust Your input and guidance for our lives, but who actually put that wisdom into practice in all our affairs.  Give us eyes to see and ears to hear Your voice.  Give us willing hearts to follow wise counsel from Your word and from others who faithfully follow You. 

We long for this Christmas of 2021 to be the most fulfilling one yet.  All we want for Christmas this year is to know You and to fulfill the purpose for which we were born and which Your birth on Christmas Day more than 2000 years ago makes available to us.  Amen