Dear Baby Jesus, Set their Hearts Aflame

                “My dear Lord, I imagine You today lying in the manger, an innocent baby, surprising the world by coming clothed as an infant - helpless, unable to walk or talk, completely reliant on Your creations to care for You. Mary and Joseph humbly and whole heartedly took on that care. The animals also played an unexpected role in Your care, providing whatever they could, even if it was just the warmth of their bodies and breath in the stable. They didn’t need the intelligence and skills of humans to be able to serve their creator. Next came the shepherds, simple and yet sure in their trust in the angel’s words and in their adoration for Your divine gift lying in the manger. They didn’t need further explanation or proof or history lessons or wealth, they knew in their hearts who You were and they came to give thanks and adore. Then came the Kings who brought vast knowledge and wealth, and they also came with a single purpose to see and adore, to see the Lord incarnate. They traveled far and wide and avoided obstacles and dangers to see what was below the shining star with complete trust that the infant was the Savior of the World. All these people, completely unrelated and from very different cultures, all came with a united purpose. This is the way You created us, to be united as one in prayer, love and adoration for You, and to receive Your love and adoration as well, and to share that love for each other.

“Oh dear baby Jesus, how can there be those who reject You - those who do not believe and those who want to kill You? They were there when You first came and they continue now. How is it that they lose the purity of love for You as the Creator? How do they not recognize You and their need to love and adore You? Oh dear baby Jesus, touch all Your people’s hearts, ignite within them the holy flame of love, setting their hearts ablaze with burning love and desire for You. Dispel their doubts, their fears, their rationalizations, and instead, grant them confidence, courage and understanding that You are the Lord, the Lord who created us and loves us unconditionally. Grant them peace and joy as the love wells up inside them and overflows to all those around them. Show them Your pure love and fill them with hope of life eternal with You. Oh dear baby Jesus lying in the manger, I know You can do this without needing to walk or talk. All You need from Your people is their hearts, their unconditional love like Mary and Joseph, and the unwavering trust of the shepherds and the Kings who gazed upon You when You came clothed as an infant.”

Love Me Completely

                “My Lord, my God, my heavenly King, what do You ask of Your people today?”

                “That they love Me with all their minds and souls, that they love Me completely without hesitation, without holding anything back. Love Me as I love You and let Me transform your lives like the time I fed the multitudes with just a few loaves of bread and fish. Give Me your love, even a drop of it and let Me magnify it. I will make it grow and fill you so that you can share it with others. Love is My gift to you, My Christmas present, just as I sent My only son to you over 2000 years ago. The infant in the manger was My gift of love to all of you. See how I magnified Jesus’ love for Me and for all of you. Through the love of Jesus, all humanity has the opportunity to live with Me for all eternity. That pure, perfect unfailing love was incarnate in the baby Jesus and perfected during His brief time on earth; it culminated in the horrific death on the cross and then, rising from the dead, that love amplified and is offered to each and every one of you. All I ask is that You receive My great love and allow Me to stoke that fire in your souls. Let Me fill you with that pure love and let Me transform Your lives and those around you. Love Me with all your hearts, minds and souls and love Me completely, without hesitation, without holding anything back.”

Advent is a Time of Hope and Preparation

                “Oh Lord, come Holy Spirit come and fill the hearts and souls of Your people. Breeze through my soul that all will be cleansed so that I can hear and receive whatever message You wish to send. Dear Lord in heaven, I am Your servant and eagerly await Your words.

                “Advent is a time of hope and preparation. People today especially need this time to stop focusing on themselves and the mini kingdoms with which they live in and instead, to remember You and why we have been given the gift of life in the first place.

                “As I was driving my kids to school this morning in the pouring down rain on the freeway, I thought of all those driving by me in their own little four wheel bubbles, unaware of the lives and trials of the people driving next to them. They were all strangers driving to different places for different reasons and purposes. There was a break in the storm and a full rainbow appeared. Oh Lord, it was a beautiful gift in the middle of the dark grey clouds, shining and spectacular that only You could create. It made me smile and feel warm inside, even if just for a moment. I had to point it out to my kids who were consumed in their own bubbles. If I had said nothing, they never would have seen the beautiful gift You silently placed in the sky. Then I wondered how many people on the road might have missed Your gift and I thought of the importance of proclaiming Your presence and the gospel message.

                “Oh Lord, how many times do Your people walk right by the gifts You send? How many of Your blessings go unnoticed? How many times do Your people encase themselves in the worries or the temporary pleasures of the mini kingdoms they have built for themselves? How often has this occurred over the centuries? How many people missed the blessing of Your coming over 2000 years ago?

                “Lord, I pray that during this season of Advent, that all Your people will prepare their hearts for the coming of a blessed infant King. May they look beyond their temporary lives on earth and recognize the incredible blessing of Your coming in the unlikely, unexpected path of a helpless infant of whom we can’t help but adore. May no one miss the baby’s cry, the cry that reaches into our hearts and begs us to love and care for the helpless babe who brings nothing more than love which blossoms into salvation for all of us. May we look for Your rainbows amidst the storms and may we open our hearts to Your pure love.”

Love is God’s Greatest Gift of All

                “Come Holy Spirit come, fill my heart, my mind and my soul that I may write the words of our dear Lord for all to hear.”

                “My child, my dear, I love you more than you can know. I know your days can be very hard. This world offers may miseries but trust in Me, I will always send you subtle glimpses of Me and My love. Look for them always, like hidden treasures. They will help you find your way in this corrupt world. This is only temporary and the sadness and misery is only temporary. I have given you the gift of time that you might be able to process everything slowly and completely. For Me, there is no time. I see all from beginning to end and into eternity. Our future together is so beautiful, it would overwhelm you and melt you if you saw it all at once. I am preparing you, forming you and shaping you like clay in my hands to be ready for our eternal life. Trust in Me, have faith and most of all, act always with love for that is my gift to you and to all my beloved people. Love is more powerful than anything on earth and it will shield you, protect you, fortify you and give you life. Without love, there is only chaos. Love can do more in your heart than you could ever expect or imagine. Trust in my love, it will conquer all and will be the framework from which the eternal world is built upon. Do not try to control it; it is a free moving force that only I can wield and I choose to send it through all your hearts. I choose to join us all through love. It is my most precious gift and I give it to my beloved.”