"The whole world seems on edge"

I want to share with you this prayer that Steve Ertelt has featured at Life News: What everyone horrified and saddened by these shootings should do is take a moment to pray for a respect for human life and an appreciation of one another as human beings. The Christian writer Max Lucado has penned some very thoughtful words in his own prayer to God, demonstrating a clear yearning for love in a time of hate. "It's a good thing you were born at night. This world sure seems dark. I have a good eye for silver linings. But they seem dimmer lately," he writes. "These killings, Lord. These children, Lord. Innocence violated. Raw evil demonstrated." "The whole world seems on edge. Trigger-happy. Ticked off. We hear threats of chemical weapons and nuclear bombs. Are we one button-push away from annihilation?" Lucado continues. "Your world seems a bit darker this Christmas. But you were born in the dark, right? You came at night. The shepherds were nightshift workers. The Wise Men followed a star. Your first cries were heard in the shadows. To see your face, Mary and Joseph needed a candle flame. It was dark. Dark with Herod's jealousy. Dark with Roman oppression. Dark with poverty. Dark with violence." "Herod went on a rampage, killing babies. Joseph took you and your mom into Egypt. You were an immigrant before you were a Nazarene," Lucado prays. "Oh, Lord Jesus, you entered the dark world of your day. Won't you enter ours? We are weary of bloodshed. We, like the wise men, are looking for a star. We, like the shepherds, are kneeling at a manger," he concludes. "This Christmas, we ask you, heal us, help us, be born anew in us."