Pray for More Love

The 2nd Sunday of Advent
Today’s Readings: Bar 5: 1-9; Ps 126; Phil 1: 4-6, 8-11; Lk 3: 1-6

When I was ordained a priest, there was a place in the ceremony where I had to go and kneel down in front of the bishop who was sitting on his throne in the cathedral in Peoria. He took my hands in his and asked me if I promised to be respectful and obedient to him and his successors. I said, “I do.” Then he looked me in the eye and said these powerful words: “May God who has begun the good work in you bring it to fulfillment.”

Like most of the words that Catholics use in the mass and in our prayers and blessings, this line is straight out of the bible. These are St. Paul’s words in Philippians 1:6—the words in our second reading today.

If you think about it, this is an incredible blessing… an amazing prayer. God began his good work in me. When? When I was ordained a deacon? When I accepted his invitation to go to seminary? When I converted and got baptized? When I was born? When I was conceived? Or maybe… when Christ died for me and bought me the chance for heaven 2,000 years before I was even a thought in my parents’ minds.

Whenever it was—and I guess the precision of the answer isn’t really all that important—God started something good that I could somehow share in… and my bishop was praying that this good would be brought to fulfillment—in other words, that I would make it safely to paradise.

That’s a pretty good blessing to receive, don’t you think? Wow!

Sometimes people tell me that they want to advance in the spiritual life but they’re not sure how to pray. Let me tell you, praying is the easiest thing in the world. If you’re in doubt about how to pray, just ask God for more love. The world needs it and so do we. Our loving prayers are the greatest gift we can give another person.

The verses we just heard in Philippians are actually a prayer written in prison by the apostle Paul for his cherished friends. That prayer continues to send love and blessings many centuries later—just the way I received it at my ordination.

And now I’d like to suggest how you might take this same prayer and use it as a wonderful gift of love to others.

With Christmas fast approaching, consider praying this prayer for everyone on your Christmas card and shopping list as your secret gift. Trust me in this: your life will never be the same and you will experience a more fulfilling Christmas season. Your prayer just might be the best Christmas gift your friends will ever receive. Make a note of the passage: Philippians 1: 4–11*. . . or go ahead and tear out the page from the missalette.

How does Paul pray for his friends? He prays for their love to abound, flourish and overflow in growing knowledge and discernment, wisdom and purity. As a loving friend and spiritual teacher, he asks God to help his friends every day of their lives, until the day of Jesus Christ’s return. He ends up by confidently asking God to motivate his friends to bring loving justice and righteousness to the world. He knew their lifestyles of loving activism and devotion would bring great glory and praise to God. This is holy boldness at its very best!

All of us—no matter who we are, no matter what our circumstances and challenges may be—are created to praise God through our lives. So consider appropriating this prayer for your own use as well. But pray it with great care. It is revolutionary and radical, because it has the potential to change the world. This is the kind of prayer that could heal racism and homophobia, poverty and world hunger, put an end to abortion. It could heal broken relationships and bring reconciliation to both individuals and families and nations. A prayer like this could help us experience the mind and heart of Christ.

God’s love in our lives is the most powerful life force on earth. It is a love that can motivate us to live heroic lives, overthrow injustice, and overcome impossible odds—all the while living sacrificially for the greater good of others and the whole world.

This holy season of Advent is a time of preparation for Christ’s coming at Christmas—and for his coming again in glory. What better preparation than to pray that our love will abound and flourish daily… that this love will be a source of blessing for the world… that it will transform and energize our own lives and the lives of others?

Let us pray today to our wise and loving God for more love in our own life and for our friends. May the Lord’s loving wisdom characterize our lives and guide our steps. May his love influence all our choices in life and empower us to see justice served without partiality or arrogance. And may our wonderful God be praised and honored as we strive to live a lover’s life with his powerful help. Amen.

*Philippians 1:4-6, 8-11
Brothers and sisters: I pray always with joy in my every prayer for all of you, because of your partnership for the gospel from the first day until now. I am confident of this: that the one who began a good work in you
will continue to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus. God is my witness, how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus. And this is my prayer: that your love may increase ever more and more in knowledge and every kind of perception, to discern what is of value, so that you may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ for the glory and praise of God.