December 7, 2025
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Happy Sunday,
As we kick off the second week of Advent—a season of longing and expectation—the Christmas hymns of the Church are playing on loop at low volume (sometimes high) in my mind and home. So as I’m processing the shooting of two National Guard members in Washington last week, these lyrics from “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel”1 are echoing:
“O come, O King of nations, bind
in one the hearts of all mankind.
Bid all our sad divisions cease
and be yourself our King of Peace."
This hymn and other classics are not all Christmas cheer. Most highlight the deep darkness in which we wait for our Savior, so that by the time we get to the refrain, we’re bursting with the sweetness of His light and ready to shout “Rejoice!”
His light makes even the deepest shadows—like violence against the young public servants Sarah and Andrew—flee. “That light shines in the darkness, and yet the darkness did not overcome it” (John 1:5 CSB).
Bring your cares to the One who overcomes the darkness:
God our Healer,2
You are near to the brokenhearted.3
Draw near to Sarah’s family and friends, comforting them in their darkest valley.
Bind up and heal Andrew’s wounds;
strengthen him for a full recovery.
Reveal Yourself, their Strength and Consolation,
and encourage them with eternal hope.4
And in obedience to You, we pray for the perpetrator, Rahmanullah.5
You created him, You know him, You love him.
Now, transform him and turn him toward repentance and life.
Bring healing. Bring reconciliation. Bring justice.
Evil plans to do violence are not hidden from You.
Derail any terrible plots in progress even now.
And put our hearts at rest.
Grant peace and courage to all who saw or heard this attack,
and to all the National Guard members called to keep serving in its wake.
Grant wisdom to politicians and authorities responding to this shooting,
so that they steer with clear eyes and righteousness rather than reacting in fear.
The wrongness of this world is right in our face—
and only You can put it right.
So we cry, “Come, O Come, Emmanuel.”
“Disperse the gloomy clouds of night,
and death’s dark shadows put to flight.”1
Amen.
Yours in Christ,
Steph Juliot
Recommended Reading
1. This reflection on O Come, O Come, Emmanuel
2. Exodus 15:26
3. Psalm 34:18; 147:3
4. Psalm 23:4; 2 Corinthians 1:3-4
5. Matthew 5:43-44
Recommended Resource
I’m in the era of chores + audiobooks after bedtime rituals, and I love sneaking in a Scripture session. But listening to a robot read Leviticus is… suboptimal. Dwell’s audio Bible is so much better. I can choose my favorite human voice (shoutout to Gregory), background music, translation, and my sweet-spot speed. Check out Dwell.*
*from TPO’s partners
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