Advent can be hectic so we invite you to pause and reflect on the great mystery of God’s love for creation as we pray to dis- cern God’s traces in our busy world. Pray as ADVENT CANDLE is Lit. All: God of Life, Emmanuel, you breathe life into all creation and into each of your children. As you guide our path to Christmas, reignite in our life, a longing for your love, hope, joy, peace and presence. May our expectant faith radiate a welcoming beacon of your love in the darkness, hope of salvation for a thirsting world.. Amen. +++++++++ Sing or listen to: As the Deer Pants for Water (Ps.42) As the deer pants for the water So my soul longs after You You alone are my heart's desire And I long to worship Thee Chorus: You alone are my strength, my shield To You alone may my spirit yield You alone are my heart's desire And I long to worship Thee ADVENT A shoot shall come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a branch will bear fruit. Isaiah 11:1 SEASON of CREATION ALL: We pray to experience the consolation of Advent and the joyous waiting in hope of all creation. Pope Francis reflected that life is full of fear: “Fear of neigh- bour… fear of the other… fear of violence… fear of not making it, ...of not being accepted...fear that we cannot make a differ- ence … fear that we cannot change the world...fear of not find- ing work etc. Advent responds with the Gospel of anti-fear. If fear makes you lie on the ground, the Lord invites you to get up; if negativity pushes you to look down, Jesus invites us to turn our gaze to heaven, from where HE will come. ALL: We are not children of fear, but children of the living God “...We welcome the invitation of the Gospel to stand up, to get up...from the sofas of life: from the comfort that makes us lazy, from the mundane that makes us sick inside, from the self-pity that darkens. Stand up, let us all look to the sky. Open our hands to our neighbour, and our hearts to God and experience the consolation that we give in His name, heal our fears.” ALL: Come Holy Spirit, Transform us to build communities of kindness and together may we care for our common home Leader: if time allows invite participants to share their response. Closing Prayer. Come Holy Spirit, breathe upon our troubled world. Enflame once more the embers of our weariness. Shake us out of complacency. Whisper our names once more and scatter your gifts of grace with wild abandon. Break open the prisons of our inner being, and let God’s justice be our sign of liberty. Come Lord Jesus, Lead us to places we would rather not go; expand the horizons of our limited imaginations. Awaken in our souls dangerous dreams of your new to- morrow and rekindle in our hearts the fire of prophetic enthusiasm. Come Holy Spirit, bring your justice, light and peace to our thirsting world. May your promise invigorate every effort to care for our com- mon home, now and forever. All: Come Lord Jesus, Come. AMEN