The Twelve Days of Christmas begin on Christmas Day itself, leading us to TWELFTH NIGHT, the eve of Epiphany, traditionally celebrated on January 6, though in many places, including the US, it is celebrated on the closest to that date, which this year was this past Sunday, January 2. But on the old calendar, this is Twelfth Night and so the last in our Night Prayer series for these 12 days!
On the twelfth day of Christmas,
the good Lord gave to me:
Epiphanies of glory,
Gifts of the Spirit,
Jesus' hands to help me,
God's Word abiding,
Mercy after mercy,
New Year beginning,
Hope for tomorrow,
Friends as good as gold, Faith in God above,
Angels sent from heaven,
Shepherds keeping watch
And a Child born in Bethlehem town!
Is it your very nature, O God,
to reveal yourself?
to make yourself known?
to disclose your divinity?
to uncover your glory, offering glimpses
of your infinite grace, your primal beauty,
your incomparable strength, your exquisite justice,
your invincible power, your endless mercy,
your dazzling brilliance, your consummate wisdom,
your everlasting kindness - of even your infinite being?
Is such your nature, O God,
or is it that you simply cannot be contained?
That your glory bursts all boundaries,
your light consumes all darkness,
that your very being slips infinity,
suffusing, seeping into every nook and cranny
of all that you've created?
Whatever the case, O God,
I'm grateful for epiphanies,
for each and every manifestation of your presence,
your love, your care, your healing touch;
for every self-disclosure of your beauty:
in the natural world and in every living soul,
in poetry, music and in all the arts,
in your love calling us to love
as you have first loved us,
in the work of justice and the harvest of peace,
in the healing of wounds, great and small,
in every word of pardon and every act of mercy,
in your fingerprints,
left warm upon the whole of our experience,
in sacrifice freely made, rendering holy
the smallest of each human deed,
in Jesus, the epiphany of all you are,
all you offer and all's that ours to receive...
Put a thousand guiding stars up in the heavens, O God,
to point me to the many times and places
where you reveal yourself to me,
in epiphanies of glory
as pure and bright and brilliant
as the star that shone one wintry night
on a Child born in Bethlehem town...
Protect me, Lord, while I'm awake
and watch over me while I sleep,
that awake, I might keep watch with you
and asleep, rest in your peace...
Amen.
Show Me Your Face by Paul Wilbur
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Moses stood on a mountain
Waiting for you to pass by
You placed your hand over his face
In your presence he wouldn't die
All Israel saw your glory and it shines down through the age
Now you've called us to boldly seek your face
Show me your face, Lord
Show me your face
And then gird up my legs, that I might stand in this holy place
Show me your face, Lord
Your power and your grace
I will make it to the end, if I could just see your face
David knew there was something more
Than the ark of your presence
In a manger messiah was born
Amongst kings and some peasants
And all Israel saw the glory
And it shines down through the age
Now you've called us to boldly seek your face
Show me your face, Lord
Show me your face
And then gird up my legs that I might stand in this holy place
Show me your face, Lord
Your power and your grace
And I will make it to the end if I could just see your face
If we could just see your face
Show me your face, Lord
Show me your face
And then gird up my legs that I might stand in this holy place
Show me your face, Lord
Your power and your grace
I will make it to the end if I could just see your face
And I will make it to the end if I could just see your face
I will make it to the end
Abba, show me your face
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