“After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary, his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.” (Matthew 2:9-11 ESV)

A season of hustle and bustle is upon us. From gift buying to end-of-year work projects, we seem to have little to no time to slow down and take a breath. Nothing is wrong with this productive way of living; even the three Wise Men worked hard to get to Jesus and bring him gifts! But that shouldn’t distract us from the fact that we need to rest; we need to take a deep breath and remember what this season is truly about. After the star had stopped moving, the Wise Men were able to finally stop and rest, and it was only then that they felt unexplainable joy. Similarly, we need to rest this season, and then we will be able to feel the true joy of the holidays. Here is a short prayer to ease you into a spirit of rest and holiday bliss.

Heavenly Father, 

Thank you for loving us so incredibly much that you sent your one and only Son to this earth on our behalf. Thank you for thereafter teaching us how to love the people and world around us, even if we aren’t perfect at doing it. 

We pray for a few things as we head into the holiday season. Firstly, we pray for peace, whether it be in our hometown or around the world. We ask that you grant us peace in our own lives amidst all of the end-of-year work and stress. Secondly, we pray that we will be able to find an opportunity to rest and to take a breather in this busy and overwhelming season. Finally, we ask that after all of that, you will grant us joy and the ability to find joy in even the smallest of things. Those things are what the holidays are really about: peace, rest, and joy, all for the sake of celebrating Christ’s birth!

We ask for your hand of protection as we go into the coming days and weeks.

It is in your name we pray.

Amen.