ADVENT FIRST WEEK
PRAYER SERVICE
CANDLE OF HOPE–PROPHESY CANDLE
ARISE, AWAKE, AND ACT
The long awaited day has come. The preparation of Christmas is on. We the people of Christ love to make our hearts worthy enough to celebrate this day in a meaningful way.
Advent is always a new beginning for the church and for each of us. It is a time for renewal, of growing in intimacy with Jesus. We look forward to and prepare for the Word being made flesh in our hearts so that truly he will be for us, Emmanuel——–“God is with us”. Let this advent be a season of total surrender to God, by which we become the true messenger of Christmas. Let this advent be a season of our total transformation, through which we become the true commandos of peace and harmony. And also let this advent be a season of constructing new community of God, by which His kingdom flourish on this earth.
Mary, the loving Mother of the
universe played a significant role in the mystery of God becoming human. We
feel blessed when we honor her at the beginning of our every prayer service.
What could be the best greeting other than the angelic words? She being the
author of receptivity made everything possible for God. Her genuine gesture of
accepting word of God reflected in her day to day life. She is the icon of
faithfulness in all generation. Let us venerate her by singing
Hymn :
Mangalam Mangalam
On
this first Sunday of Advent, as we prepare our hearts to commemorate baby
Jesus’ arrival as a precious and divine gift to the entire humanity, let us
elevate a sense of anticipation. Throughout this week we pray that HOPE would
rise up in our midst and it prevails forever.
Jesus promises his
vision which will be carried out by his followers as he invites us to be the light of
the world. He is the true source of light where peace and fraternity meet
together.
Light is the symbol of divine presence. It not only dispels the darkness but
also illumines the soul. It elevates our minds to know the quality of light and
rejuvenates the hearts to embrace its radiance. Come let us light the first
candle of advent, the candle of hope. I invite ———–to light the
candle.
Hymn: ————
Mother Mary had a hope that she
will be blessed with the great opportunity of becoming the tabernacle of God,
the divine child. Her total surrender to the Lord made her to say Yes. This
truly gives hope for all of us that we too can involve in the plan of
God. With the same hope let us pray the
Psalm 80: 2,3,15-19
People waited for
the Lord with hope to redeem them from slavery. They waited to see the Lord of
peace who will deliver them from problems. They longed to invite the Lord who
will give importance to the unwanted, ignored, side lined, forsaken and
neglected. They had an aspiration that the Immanuel will lead them towards the
path where justice flourishes and injustice perishes. Expressing our waiting as well let us sing
Hymn: Come Immanuel, come to —-
Let us pay heed to the reading taken from the Gospel of Mark
READING Mark 13:33-37
We too are called to
prepare our hearts with hope and to become the sharer of hope. This Gospel passage is the true challenge for us to become worthy to welcome our Lord. Let us pass for a while and personalize it .
SILENCE
Gathering the people of mother Church, let us all pray for the very gift of hope. Our response will be Lord , help us to seek your Kingdom
1. May the administrative team of our church find sufficient time to keep the people awake in order to keep themselves available for the Lord. We pray—
2. May all the consecrated people spend valuable time with the Lord through which they all may become the true messengers of God. We pray—–
3. May all the people suffering in the name of the Lord be strengthened so that they may bear witness and add glory to the Lord. We pray ——
4. May the poor and downtrodden be noticed by the leaders and take effective steps to free them from all the tragedy of poverty. We pray—-
5. May all of us part take in this advent prayer service all over the world prompt enough to have hope for the Lord with the hope of establishing God’s kingdom.
CONCLUDING PRAYER:
God the magnificent lover of people and giver of all goodness we thank and praise you for bringing us to participate in the first week advent prayer service. We honor you for your bountiful graces we receive during this season. Envelope us with the hope that will help us to read your words these days and ponder upon. Make us to pursue your love, your warmth as we step into the new journey of our preparation. This prayer we commit in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
