Prayers at Christmas Time

If we could, would we write a rule or enact a law that says, “You can’t be sick at Christmas time.  All cancer must be healed.  All stomach bugs and respiratory flus are forbidden.  No broken bones or failing organs are allowed.” 

Would we then add the following addendum, “No one may feel hopeless, alone, depressed or filled with anxiety at Christmas time.”   Why not add a last addendum, “No one may be suffering in poverty.  No jobs will be lost or bills unpaid.”  I sometimes think we would write these; if we could. 

As one of God’s intercessors, it feels some days that the prayer requests become much more intense at Christmas time.  For many, there is an expectation that with Christmas coming, we must pray that all will be healed and all will be right before Christmas arrives.   But, God’s answers to our prayers don’t always show up in the way we imagined.

If Mary was praying that night long ago, I feel confident that she would’ve prayed, “Father God, please provide a nice room at the Inn.  Your son is about to be born!”  God did provide, but not in the way she might have prayed.  He provided a stable.  But, God knew the shepherds would be the first to hear the news and what better place for a shepherd to find his Savior than in a stable.

Prayers at Christmas can be challenging.  It seems at this time of year, we become a little more controlling in how we believe God should answer them.  God’s wisdom is still greater than ours.  His thoughts are still higher than our thoughts.  He is still God and we are still not.  But, here is the good news.  God IS still answering prayers.  He IS still with us in whatever we are walking through.  He IS still loving us even when his answers to our prayers come in ways we didn’t anticipate.

You see, we don’t have to get everything right before Christmas.  Jesus Christ came into a world where everything wasn’t all right before Christmas.  But, because he came, we have hope that walking with him, one day, we will know what it is like when everything is all right.  So, let’s keep praying, keep trusting, and keep hoping even when everything is not yet alright.  God is good and in his perfect timing, and his perfect way, we will see the answers to our prayers.

By Jacqui – One of God’s Intercessors