Transcription

 

[Mike]

Welcome to Bridgeway Christian Church's Daily Advent Prayer. My name is Mike, and I've been a part of the Bridgeway community for 17 years. Today is Sunday, December 7th, and on Sundays during Advent, we will pray through the weekly theme, which is peace this week.

We often imagine peace as something that arrives in quiet moments, like the silence after the kids are finally in bed, sitting by the ocean at sunset, the warmth of a fireplace on a rainy day, or even a clean kitchen and a checked off list at the end of the day. But long before Jesus was born, the prophets told us that peace would come through a person. Isaiah declared that the Messiah would be called the Prince of Peace in Isaiah 9, verses 6 and 7.

And on the night of his birth, the angels announced peace on earth as the first words over his arrival. At Christmas, we remember that Jesus didn't just bring peace. He is our peace.

Peace took on flesh and entered into a restless world. As Jesus prepared to ascend to the Father, he spoke over his disciples, my peace I leave with you, my peace I give you, not as the world gives. It's John 14, 27.

This tells us that peace is truly accessible, but is given by Jesus and must be willingly received by us. Advent reminds us that peace isn't something we chase or manufacture. It's the presence of Christ coming near.

This Advent, we remember that peace isn't a feeling we chase. It's a Savior who has come near. Join me today as we pray for peace to take root in us.

Jesus, Prince of Peace, still our hearts in your presence today. You know how easily our thoughts race, how quickly anxiety rises, and how often our hearts feel unsettled. But you've come to bring peace the world cannot give, a peace that steadies us, guards us, and leads us.

Help me to receive the peace you offer so freely. I open my hands and say, yes. Lord, let your peace rule in our hearts today.

Where we feel anxious, calm us. Where we feel overwhelmed, quiet us. Where we feel disorganized or hurried, gather us back to yourself.

Guide our feet in the path of peace, just as you promised. Holy Spirit, form the peace of Jesus in us. A peace not dependent on perfect circumstances, but a peace that calms our reactions, slows our hurry, and helps us move through this season with grace.

Teach us to rest in you, and to carry that rest into our homes, workplaces, relationships, and rhythms. Anchor us in the truth that you are with us, working in ways we cannot see, holding the people we love, and guiding our feet into the path of peace. Make us people who carry your peace into every conversation and room.

Fill us, God of peace, with a deep sense of your presence, so thoroughly that peace settles in our bones and overflows to others. Amen.