Take Lavinia’s Favorite Advent Prayer to Your Next Holy Hour
Pray: Come, Holy Spirit, open my heart and mind to hear your word today.
Read the Word: Luke 1:68–79 (The Canticle of Zechariah)
(Read it in your own Bible to get the context, and so you can make notes)
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel;
for he has come to his people and set them free.
He has raised up for us a mighty savior,
born of the house of his servant David.
Through his holy prophets he promised of old
that he would save us from our enemies,
and from the hands of all who hate us.
He promised to show mercy to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant.
This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham:
to set us free from the hand of our enemies, free to worship him without fear,
holy and righteous in his sight
all the days of our life.
You, child, shall be called prophet of the Most High,
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
to give his people knowledge of salvation
by forgiveness of their sins.
In the tender compassion of our God,
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death,
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.
Ponder the Word: Read several times, lingering where it touches your heart. What catches your attention? What do you hear the Lord saying to you?
Pray with the Word: Bring to the Lord what you have heard, and talk to him about it. Ask for his grace. Thank him for his loving care.
Live the Word: How does what you read touch your life? What can you do this week to put it into practice?
