Prepare the Way of the Lord....

Luk 1:5  In the days of King Herod of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly order of Abijah. His wife was a descendant of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. ......

Luke 1:57  Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son.

 Luke 1:67  Then his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke this prophecy:

68  "Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has looked favourably on his people and redeemed them.69  He has raised up a mighty saviour for us in the house of his servant David, 70  as he spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old, 71  that we would be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us. 72  Thus he has shown the mercy promised to our ancestors, and has remembered his holy covenant, 73  the oath that he swore to our ancestor Abraham, to grant us 74  that we, being rescued from the hands of our enemies, might serve him without fear, 75  in holiness and righteousness before him all our days. 76  And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, 77  to give knowledge of salvation to his people by the forgiveness of their sins. 78  By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from on high will break upon us, 79  to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace."

John, the son of Zechariah and Elizabeth, is born to prepare the way of the Lord by giving knowledge of salvation, forgiveness, light to those in darkness, and guidance in the way of peace.

As we enter the season of Advent, we too are invited to “prepare the way of the Lord”. Instead of allowing shopping malls, ‘end-of-year-specials’ advertising and Christmas jingles to become the stuff of our preparation – let us choose the way of John: forgiving those who have hurt us; bringing light to those who face their darkest fears at this time of the year; and working for peace in our communities.

For thought: Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God. Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned. The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness; prepare ye the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
(Isaiah 40: 1-3)

Georg Friedrich Händel  MESSIAH (1742)
A Sacred Oratorio