We ask Him during Advent to stir up His might for four different
reasons.
(1) _To protect and deliver us._ "Stir up Thy might, we beseech Thee O
Lord and come: that by Thy protection we may deserve to be delivered
from the threatening dangers of our sins and by Thy deliverance be
saved." (The "Collect" for Advent Sunday.)
We ask Him to show His might by _protecting_ us from dangers and by
_delivering_ us from sin. We want to spend a good Advent, we want to
prepare well for His Coming, then there rise up before us the
"threatening dangers of our sins"--those old temptations that are sure
to come back again as soon as we begin to put forth fresh effort. Are we
to be discouraged, to dread them, to say we are sure to fall again, and
thus give the enemy a hold over us? No, but to believe that our God Who
is coming will protect us in the day of battle, that though to humiliate
and to strengthen us, He may still permit the temptations, yet He will
Himself be our shield and buckler, and will deliver us if we trust in
His strength and not in our own--"Stir up Thy might, O Lord, and come to
protect and deliver."
(2) _To free us from adversity._ "Stir up Thy power, we beseech Thee O
Lord and come, that they who confide in Thy mercy may be more speedily
freed from all adversity" (The "Collect" for Friday in Ember week).
The adversity from which the Church prays to be freed here is probably
the same as she continually teaches us to pray for deliverance from in
her Litanies: war, pestilence, famine, floods, earthquakes--all things
which damage the peace of nations and the produce of the earth, great
national disasters. From all such the world will never be free till the
Advent of her Lord, till God stirs up His power and comes to save it.
Meanwhile for our consolation we can remember that it is when God's
judgments are in the earth that the nations learn justice (Isaias XXVI.
9). Adversity is a great teacher and trainer for Heaven, and as we
advance in the spiritual life we see more and more that many things
which are adversity to the body are prosperity to the soul. We should
naturally like to be freed from the adversity of sickness, poverty,
failure, loss of friends, of health and strength, but all these
adversities have their work to do. "These are they who came out of great
tribulation," and it is probable that but for the tribulation many would
never "have washed their robes and have made them white in the blood of
the Lamb" (Apoc. VII. 14). Let us strive to be amongst those who _trust_
Him, who _confide_ in His mercy, who believe that He knows what is best
for them, and who gladly let Him arrange all for them. He _will_ stir up
His power and speedily free them one day, but it will not be till the
flail of adversity has done its work and the corn is ready to be
garnered in the heavenly barns.
(3) _To save us._ "Stir up Thy might O Lord and come to save us."
In the Masses for the third week, that is Ember week, the prayer occurs
five times, twice in the Mass for the third Sunday and three times in
that for Ember Saturday. The time of the birth of the Saviour is drawing
nearer, and the Church is beginning to be importunate. Stir up Thy
_might_; for though He is coming as a little helpless infant, He is God
"mighty to save."
(4) _To accelerate His Coming._ "Stir up Thy might, we beseech Thee O
Lord and come; and succour us with great power, that by the help of Thy
grace, the indulgence of Thy mercy may accelerate what our sins impede."
(The "Collect" for the 4th. Sunday of Advent).
We ask Him to stir up His might in _coming_. His Advents show His
Omnipotence. Only a _God_ could come to this world to save it, only a
_God_ could come to a soul and raise it to the supernatural state. These
are miracles and we ask Him to stir up His might to come and work them.
It is our sins that hold Him back and hinder His work both in our own
souls and in the world. We want them to do so no more and so we ask for
His succour and indulgence.