Monday Manna

A Pause to Pray.....

As one year ends and another begins…

Good morning, my friends, and all the gifts of Advent to you this morning — hope, peace, joy, and love…

These are the final days before Christmas, and so today is going to be another short post…an A & S & P day — Art and Song and Prayer. I know your days are full, and yet taking just a few minutes to breathe, pause, pray….it can be enough to reground the hearts and eyes of our souls right where they need to be. To scoop all the stress, the sadness of recent current events, the longing for a new year filled with break through and blossoming, and place it in the lap of the Lord.

First of all, this song — “Your Peace Will Make Us One.” Deepest thanks to my friend, Traci Smith , for sharing it with me this last week. I was so profoundly moved by it, getting goose bumps as soon as it began (and definitely crying during the part about God mothering during the night). As Traci said, the meaning was profound with the beautiful subversive lyrics superimposed over a familiar tune that originally had very different lyrics. This is my prayer as we end the year and begin a new one. How we ache for it…

And then I share this prayer each year, and while it’s a “Parent’s Advent” prayer, I feel it extends to all of us who are feeling the pressure to fulfill expectations in this season. So receive this moment as a time to breathe in fully, sense your heartbeat, and feel Emmanuel with you.

A parent’s Advent prayer from Ash and Starlight: Prayers for the Chaos and Grace of Daily Life, Second Edition.

Dear God,

I now stop what I’m doing,

what I’m thinking,

what I’m scrambling to plan

and hustling to finish

so that I can

be here.

Be here in the safety and warmth of your love.

This love that holds me fast and keeps me centered.

What I want to be a season of joy for my children

so quickly becomes a season of

increased expectations for me—

not because they expect things,

but because I do.

It’s the pressure I put on myself to

make things perfect,

and memorable,

and happy,

and “special.”

But, you came to me amidst darkness and stars—

reminding me how darkness and light

are most beautiful together.

And, in that holy, mysterious and messy night,

you redefined perfection,

promising me that leaning into the mystery

and laying down in loving awe

compose the most faithful response.

You tell me the best gift I can give

my children this Christmas is

to look with love into their eyes.

To pause throughout the day

to pray over them.

To envelop them with arms

of fierce grace when I feel

most angry or annoyed.

To sit in wonder for a moment (or many)

and marvel at all that shaped

our family this year.

To give thanks

and allow tears to fall

and dreams to rise.

To take my pilgrim band

by their hands and walk together,

deep into the heart of Bethlehem

shining bright within our souls.

This will be more than enough,

because you’ve made a manger

in which my heart will rest and find

your heartbeat becoming mine.

Amen.

Matthew 2:10–11 * Matthew 6:31 * Luke 2:15–20

“Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has

taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.”

—Luke 2:15b

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Ash and Starlight, plus other good things…

* MY ETSY SHOP ~ Clothes, art prints, cards, personalized prints, and originals! I send a portion of each sale to World Central Kitchen which provides hunger relief. You can view the shop here.

*SECOND EDITION OF ASH AND STARLIGHT ~ Find the updated edition of my book here at Chalice or at the Bookshop link.

*MONDAY MANNA ARCHIVES ~ Monday Manna each week is free! Paid supporters of Monday Manna can view previous Monday Manna reflections here, or for the really old stuff, go to my website.

*WHAT DOES MANNA MEAN? ~ Check out an earlier post to learn how this little bit of “daily bread” got its name…

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I will be taking a break from Monday Manna, over the next several weeks as we enter into holiday break with our kids and travel to see family. It’s also a time for me to reflect and prepare for the new year. I cannot thank you enough for all the support and companionship you have offered this year as we’ve journeyed together, and I anticipate with joy what we will share in 2026. In the meantime, I am sending you resilience and love, dear ones.

Love and Light,

Arianne

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