January 1: Blessings for the New Year

New Years Day: January 1

 

            We ask God to bless this New Year. May we continue to grow and learn within God’s care. We request help and motivation in achieving our resolutions and bettering ourselves. May this time be one of hope rather than stress and pressure. We pray for a fulfilling year for ourselves and for all those we love. May God continue to nurture the earth and help us make this year better than the last. May God heal all this past year’s wounds and prepare us for the potential of the new.

Photo by author, taken at the Kek Lok Si Temple in Penang, Malaysia during Chinese New Year 2016

December 31: Thankfulness for the Past Year

            In midst of the excitement of preparation for the New Year, we pause to give thanks for this past year. We remember the many gifts and experiences that populated the year. We give thanks for God’s hand in all our accomplishments and gifts. We honor the people God brought into our lives and the relationships we have strengthened during this time. We pray God will continue to bless us in the New Year.

Photo by author, taken at the Kek Lok Si Temple in Penang, Malaysia during Chinese New Year 2016

December 28: Meditation on the Birth of Christ

Christmas Recess: December 21-January 2 

            May God grant us time on this day to meditate on the Nativity of Jesus. Let us reflect on the hope of the scene of seemingly ordinary people gathered around a newborn baby. With this image, we see humanity reborn in the most unlikely of places. We are reminded that renewal, even on the grandest of scales, is not impossible. We give thanks to God for unending hope in the form of Christ’s Birth and maintain the belief in God’s transformative power in our own lives. We celebrate this holiday by holding this image in our minds and proceeding in the days following with the same sense of love and promise.

Photo by author, taken during Christmas in Christ Chapel 2016

December 24: Appreciation of the Stillness of the Night

            We take this time to give thanks for the quietest part of the day God has given. We acknowledge the powerful peace created by the night’s stillness after the chaos of the day. May the quiet and the darkness grant us rest. We remember the peacefulness of the night Jesus was born and give thanks for all the nights like it. May God grant us many more nights such as this one to relax and spend time with our families. May God bless our rest tonight and prepare us for the coming morning.

Photo via Christ Chapel Facebook Page

November 23: Peace Among Family Members

Thanksgiving Break: November 23-27

           As we approach a time where relatives reunite and celebrate with each other, we ask God to foster peace and understanding between family members. May we act with patience and empathy towards our parents and our siblings and may they treat us the same. May family dinners and holidays be points of connection rather than tension. We ask for God’s guidance in navigating conflicting personalities and dissenting wills. May God help us in balancing the times when we must assert ourselves and the times when we must sacrifice for the people we love. We pray that these reunions ultimately bring us stronger, more joyful relationships among family.

Photo by author