Holy God, creator of the heavens and the earth …
Holy Trinity, forever our guide and our stay …
Eternal God, the anchor of all our hope …
Loving God, our inspiration, and our courage …
Deliver us, we pray, from the distractions that dull our spirits and weaken our faith … deliver us, we pray, from all that moves us away from peace, away from love, away from hope …
Deliver us, we pray, unto your self … that we might, in these few moments of prayer and pondering, recenter ourselves in Christ, reclaim our spiritual legacies, regain our composure, and renew our confidence …
And so to face the world with a sense of what’s real and what isn’t … what matters and what doesn’t … what needs to be done, and what can be set aside … give to us, we pray, the priorities of Christ our LORD … to be prophets of truth, heralds of love, champions of faith, defenders of freedom, messengers of learning, wisdom, and knowledge.
We pray for family and friends … where healing is needed, may there be grace … where peace is needed, may there be mercy … where there’s hurt and sorrow, may there be the touch of friendship, and the gentle presence of your Holy Spirit.
We pray for our nation, dear God - for our President and Vice President … for members of Congress, for judges and juries … may there be a great presence of mind in our midst, deep convictions for the welfare of the nation, a commitment to preserve our Democracy, to be a beacon of hope for the world … living proof - that justice for all, is possible.
We pray for all who are in transition … from one job to another, from a home here to a home elsewhere … and for those who cross the threshold of this church, established members and faithful visitors, some new to the neighborhood, looking for you, loving God …
For each of them, this day, and for those with us via YouTube … may they all, in their own way, hear the gospel … behold the glory of Christ, experience the power and redemption of Lent … may the wonder and beauty of faith rise up strong in each of them … may the call of Christ be their joy, may the life of Christ be their assurance, may the peace of Christ be their strength.
In the name of our LORD Jesus Christ who taught us to pray, saying:
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors; and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment