This Eucharistic Prayer Companion is designed to help you spend thirty minutes to an hour in meditation and silent prayer with Jesus during Eucharistic adoration. Even if you cannot be physically present in a church or adoration chapel with the Blessed Sacrament, you can unite yourself spiritually to Jesus in the Eucharist as you spend this time in prayer.
THE GRACE I SEEK: to wait with Mary for the celebration of the Nativity
IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, AND OF THE SON, AND OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. AMEN.
Pause for a few moments before Jesus in the Eucharist. Allow yourself to become aware of Jesus’ gift of himself to you. Imagine Jesus looking at you, gazing into your eyes with a look filled with love. He sees deep into your heart. Bring your whole life to Jesus. Share with him your fears, your hopes, your wounds, your failures, and your love. Jesus is listening attentively to you. Speak to him with trust. There is no limit to how deep your friendship can be with him. After speaking from your heart, stop, wait, listen. Rest in his loving gaze.
Thank Jesus for the gift of himself in the Eucharist.
ASK FOR THE GRACE: Jesus, I ask you for the grace to find strength and comfort in the loving presence of Mary, your Mother and mine.
Read slowly, 3–4 times, pausing between each reading. Notice the words or phrases that stand out for you. Pay attention to any feelings you may have as you pray and proclaim God’s Word. Allow the words of Scripture to speak to what you are living right now. Ask the Holy Spirit to speak to you through this passage.
“Thus says the LORD: You, Bethlehem-Ephrathah too small to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel; whose origin is from of old, from ancient times. Therefore the Lord will give them up, until the time when she who is to give birth has borne.” (Micah 5:1–2a)
Allow yourself to sit with these questions for a while, being attentive to how the Lord is speaking in your heart.
This reading invites us to take notice of the small and insignificant. Bethlehem was a tiny and unimportant town. Yet, Micah prophesied that in Bethlehem would be born the “ruler in Israel whose origin is from of old.” Micah also points to Mary, the virgin Mother who would give him birth. Do you feel small and insignificant and wonder if God notices you? Have you ever been surprised by a gift God has given you at a time when you felt alone and unimportant? How would you respond to God asking you to carry out a mission? Would you respond in disbelief or would you respond as Mary did, in faith?
Read slowly, 3–4 times. Again, allow the words of Scripture to wash over your mind and heart. Let the Holy Spirit speak to you in a personal way through this passage.
“When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, ‘Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled.’” (Luke 1:41–45)
Mary had been told by the angel that her elderly cousin Elizabeth was with child, and she immediately went to assist her. Mary carried Jesus in her womb, and what began as an errand of love became a moment of great joy for both of them. “For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears,” Elizabeth cried, “the infant in my womb leaped for joy.” This joy will resound once again in the song of the angels who announce the birth of the Lord. In these last few days before the celebration of Christmas, in what way can you, like Mary, bring Jesus to someone in search of him? Where in your life do you need to receive joy? How can you bring joy to someone else?
Share with Jesus the thoughts and feelings that have surfaced as you have prayed with the Word of God. Open your heart to him. Jesus wants to know your dreams, your desires, your fears. You can share anything. Jesus will receive it with great love. Then remain in silence with the Lord. Allow him to speak in the silence, in your heart. Be grounded in his presence. If it helps, write down what you sense the Lord communicating to you during this time of prayer.
Pour forth, we beseech you, O Lord, your grace into our hearts, that we, to whom the Incarnation of Christ your Son was made known by the message of an Angel, may by his Passion and Cross be brought to the glory of his Resurrection. Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. (Collect, Fourth Sunday of Advent)
At every Mass, Jesus offers himself to the Father for us. During the Offertory, all of our needs and desires, our whole selves and all that we offer to the Lord, are laid on the altar to be united with the offering of the priest and, through him, to the offering of Christ. This Sunday, ask Mary to open your heart. Offer the Lord your desire to be found watchful in prayer and exultant in praise of him.
Mary is the model of charity, the one who brings the fullness of joy which comes from Jesus and from the Holy Spirit. Think of one person in your family or among your friends and coworkers who is struggling to find joy in their life. Talk to them about Mary, maybe even inviting them to pray a Rosary with you in anticipation of the Nativity.
Would you like to print a copy of this resource to bring with you to the chapel for prayer? Click here to download the Eucharistic Prayer Companions for the Advent and Christmas Seasons in English or Spanish.
