Merciful God, in these Advent days, teach us how to love. May we never close our eyes to the goodness of the world. May we never close our hearts off to joy. May we never close our hands and fail to reach out to others. May we never close our ears and refuse to listen. May we never close our minds and fail to learn. But may we love. May we find wonder and mercy once again. And may we love this child of yours into the world, and follow him, not just at Christmas, but always. Amen.