Prayer for dreams within our hearts – Matthew 1: 18- 25
Matthew 1:18-25
1:18 Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be pregnant from the Holy Spirit.
1:19 Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to divorce her quietly.
1:20 But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.
1:21 She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”
1:22 All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet:
1:23 “Look, the virgin shall become pregnant and give birth to a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel,” which means, “God is with us.”
1:24 When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took her as his wife,
1:25 but had no marital relations with her until she had borne a son; and he named him Jesus.
God of promise,
you have given us a sign of your love
in the gift of Jesus Christ, our Savior,
promised from ages past.
We believe as Joseph did the message of your presence
whispered by an angel, and offer our prayers for your world.
We pray for peace.
We pray for love.
We pray for hope.
Grant that all people may one day recognize
that Peace, Love, and Hope
are not distant dreams but daily realities—
ways of living shaped by your grace.
Strengthen us to do all we can
to bear these gifts into the world
until your dreams become our shared reality.
May Jesus—Emmanuel, Son of Mary—
be more than a dream within our hearts.
With apostles, prophets, and saints,
save us, restore us,
and lead us in the paths of grace and peace,
that we may carry your promise into the world.
Amen.
