We are trusting that 2021 will usher in a season of healing. Watching for signs of light that break through the darkness, we give thanks that vaccines have been approved and are being distributed amongst our most vulnerable and front-line workers.
Let us pray:
Loving and compassionate God,
Lord of all health and wholeness,
we are fearfully and wonderfully made.
Thank you for your miracle of healing.
You gift our bodies with incredible means of protection and repair,
immune systems that shield and heal us,
wounds that heal, bones that knit, tissues that repair themselves.
Thank you for your miracle of healing.
You gift our world with plants and herbs that cure our diseases.
They provide our medicines and pain killers,
They form the basis of our antibiotics and antiseptics.
Thank you for your miracle of healing.
You gift us with the wonder of preventative health.
Masks that protect us and others from infection.
Water and soap to cleanse our hands and the surfaces we touch.
Thank you for your miracle of healing.
You gift us with the power to reconcile and be reconciled.
Ways to bridge bridges and not walls,
Ways to listen and learn and seek forgiveness for the wounds we have inflicted.
Thank you for your miracle of healing.
(pause as you bring to mind times when you have experienced God’s healing presence.)
Scripture readings: choose from the following:
Psalm 139, Exodus 1: 22-27, Matthew 8: 14-17, James 5: 13-16.
This Sunday’s worship text is Mark 1: 21-28
(pause to pray for those who are in need of healing.)
God of health, God of wholeness, God of love,
Heal our bodies, Heal our souls, Heal our spirits, Heal our world.
May we embrace this week knowing we are touched by the God who heals. Amen
(this prayer was adapted from a resource from godspacelight.com)
Month: January 2021
January 24th, 2021
God of Life, we are the church united as we pray from different locations,
connected through something more marvellous than technology–
your Spirit filling us with life and hope and vision.
We come before you with thanksgiving.
Thank you for the many kindnesses we have experienced
in this time of physical distancing:
neighbours connecting with one another,
some households learning about togetherness,
others learning new quieter rhythms.
Thank you for the joy of good food, the beauty of music.
this winter season which delights with its
Pink-hued sunsets, icy patches for skating, and the brilliance of cardinals.
We thank you for sustaining life deep in the root systems of barren trees which in due season will bring forth new life… In this winter season, we give thanks there is new life even now that waits to be….
As we offer our thanks we also come together with lament;
this virus has caused so much loss of life around the world.
So many suffer, so many families grieve,
10 months in and we are weary and we don’t know when it will end.
We lament the financial burdens of this pandemic,
and that it has fallen heavily on the poorest,
with inequalities standing out more sharply than usual.
We lament the loneliness and fear experienced
amongst the most vulnerable especially those who reside long-term care.
We lament that children are not in classrooms,
and how deeply they are missing their friends and routines.
Listening God, we pray for front-line and essential workers.
Keep them safe and strong, fill them with extra measures of compassion
As they care for the sick and families at a distance.
Strengthen parents who are home schooling while juggling work loads.
We pray for government officials and local health units
working hard to get immunizations into people’s arms.
Grant us all the grace of waiting our turn,
the grace of gentleness amidst challenging time, the grace of loving kindness toward one another.
We pray for our congregational leadership, treasurers,
And Stewardship and Finance committee as
we prepare for our annual financial meeting next week.
Generous God, we thank you that you have unleashed
generosity amongst us in order to further your mission.
We pray your blessing upon the ministries of this congregation
and the finances that support each one.
May we be wise stewards of all that you have blessed us with.
God of comfort hear our prayer for the sick, the weak, the lonely, the grieving and all who stand in a place of need. And all of our loved ones who reside in long-term care or congregate settings. Keep them safe, encourage their spirits, protect them and surround them with loving kindness. Grant grace and strength to their families at this difficult time. We pray for those whose needs we carry in our hearts. We pray for families supporting loved ones from a distance due to covid restrictions. May connections be meaningful and care run deep.
We also pray for our Households of Faith.
Fill their hearts and home with your love and grace and encourage them each new day. Keep them safe and well.
Encourage them we pray as they look forward to the time when they can be together again with family and friends. Keep them safe and well.
Fill them with peace and care for them and their family as they cope with school and work. Keep them safe and well.
Jesus, walk with us this week. We trust in you, because you have been with us, showing us the faithful path in good times and bad, We are grateful you are faithful to remain with us. Amen.
January 20th, 2021
“Abide in my love and you shall bear much fruit” (John 15:5-9)
This year’s “Week of Prayer for Christian Unity” focus includes these words of Jesus, spoken prior to his passion.
It is the great desire of God, expressed by Jesus, that we might come to him and abide in him.
Jesus waits for us tirelessly, hoping that, united to him in love, we will bear fruit that will bring life to all.
Faced with the difference of ‘the other’, we risk withdrawing into ourselves and seeing only that which separates us.
As we pray let us remember the call of Christ. May we turn to his love, to Jesus who is the centre of our life
for the path of unity begins in our intimate relationship with God.
In peace let us pray: Lord, you are the vinedresser who cares for us with love. You call on us to see the beauty of each branch united to the vine, the beauty of each person. And yet, too often the differences in others make us afraid. We withdraw into ourselves. Our trust in you is forsaken. Enmity develops between us. Come and direct our hearts toward you once again. Grant us to live from your forgiveness so that we may bear good fruit and praise your name. Amen
Here is a link to access further resources for “The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.”
https://www.weekofprayer.ca/2021-wpcu-resources
January 17th, 2021
Holy One, Father of Christ who asked the disciples,
“What are you looking for,” and who offered the invitation to “Come and See,”
open our hearts to what you reveal and give us the courage to follow.
By Your Spirit aid us in our journey,
so that like John, our words and deeds point to the Lamb of God.
For those who are suffering, let us point to Christ through comfort.
For those who are hungry, let us point to Christ through bread.
For those in the grip of despair, let us point to Christ through hope.
Lord God, you call your people to tasks we would not ourselves choose. Give us the grace to love you enough to follow when you call. You know our weakness and have promised to give resources for that which you ask of us. We praise you for your generous care. Like Samuel, let us say “Here I am.” God of surprising light, here we are.
Lord God, hear our prayer for all who stand in need of healing, hope, and wholeness. We pray for our loved ones in long-term care, front-line and essential workers. Keep them safe and strong in mind, body, and spirit. May strength be renewed, may hope burn bright, may comfort and peace abound. We pray for all who grieve. May God’s comfort surround them at this time of loss. We pray for those awaiting diagnosis, surgery, or treatment. Grace each one with strength for the journey and a wide circle of support. For needs named and for those we hold deep in our hearts, we offer our prayers……
We also pray for our Households of Faith.
Lord God, we are surrounded, with people who need to hear the gospel story, people who need to meet the one from Nazareth, Jesus our Lord. As we worship virtually and live deeply into this time of being the church in the community, may we reach out and care generously. Make our words and actions gracious and inviting. Like Philip, let us say, “Come and see.” God of surprising light, here we are. Amen
January 13th, 2021
In follow-up to this past Sunday’s scripture – Jesus’ baptism – and in response to unsettledness and violence in the world, here is a prayer offered by Nadia Bolz Weber:
God, You once tore open the heavens and descended as a dove upon Jesus and a dirty river full of repentant people. I don’t want to tell you how to do your job, but now would be a good time to tear open the heaven and send down that dove again.
Send your Holy Spirit to stir up repentance in your people:
Who would rather double down than admit we were wrong; Who fill with pride at being one of the few who “know the real truth”; Who only manage to point to others and never ourselves, (and are maybe a tiny bit grateful for the obvious, overt racism, violence and xenophobia of others since it conveniently takes the spotlight off of our own)
I pray that you send your Holy Spirit comfort your people:
Who are grieving our dead; Whose rightful rage might be corroding the edges of our hearts – because those hearts are still needed elsewhere; Who have had to break up with abusers or draw boundaries with unstable people in the past and know in our bodies how ugly this all gets; Who have joyous news they feel they cannot share; Who are trying (and failing) to still love those who voted differently than themselves; Who literally or figuratively find themselves (yet again) sweeping up the detritus of others’ racism, violence, and ignorance
Send down that dove, Lord, but help us look to the needs of our neighbor and not to the escape hatch of heaven to find her. Amen
January 10th, 2020
God of new beginnings and endings and all moments in between be with us this coming year. Through the waters of baptism you name us beloved – you confer our identity as your beloved children. May this identity grow and be shaped richly as we journey with you. May ‘beloved’ flow to the deep places of our hearts and being and may we embrace deeper understandings of our identity. May we be open to how you reveal yourself to us and shape and transform us as your holy called people.
As we embrace this new year beginning, may we relearn lament and strive for joy. May we show up with courage and faithfulness for our lives and our callings as your people. May we be restored and renewed, the wilderness places becoming our cathedral and our altar.
As we embrace this new year beginning, may we say good-bye to the things that do not serve us – the selfishness, the fear, the illusions of control, the bitterness, the doom-scrolling, the self-pity, the martyr complex, the us-and-them fire stokers.
As we embrace this new year beginning may we say hello to wisdom, to kindness, to justice, curiosity, wonder, goodness, generosity, possibility, peace making.
As we embrace this year we pray for the sick, those who grieve, and those struggling to hold onto hope amidst isolation and loneliness.
We also pray for our Households of Faith.
Good and gracious God, throw open the doors of our lives to the disruptive, wild, healing Holy Spirit. May this be a year of unclenched hands and new songs, of vaccines and reunions, of good food and laughter, of kind endings and new beginnings. May we be given a mustard seed of faith knowing it will be enough. All this we pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.
January 6th, 2021
Today is Epiphany, an occasion to celebrate that the Light of the World has come!
It is my prayer that the light of God and the peace of Christ be with you all.
Due to provincial lockdown we are spending more time in our homes than ever before.
As we embrace this New Year, it’s challenges and opportunities, here is a special house blessing for the year:
God who is Three, God who is One,
Give blessing to the house that is here.
Bless it from roof to floor,
from wall to wall, from end to end.
May your Spirit alone dwell within these walls,
to bring joy and laughter to all who enter here.
We call upon the Sacred Three
to save, to shield and surround this home.
The circle of God around it,
The peace of Christ within it,
The life of the Spirit above it,
this day, this night and every night.
May the Triune God be the guardian of this place.
Peace be here in the name of the God of love.
Welcome be here in the name of the Christ of peace,
Joy be here in the name of the Spirit of life.
God who is One, God who is Three,
Bring light for the day and rest for the night
We call upon the Sacred Three
to welcome, guide and nurture all who enter here.
The circle of God, around friend and stranger.
The peace of Christ within guest and host,
The life of the Spirit above all who stand at the door,
this day, this night and evermore.
(adapted from a blessing in Celtin Daily Prayer)
January 3rd, 2021
Lord, as we begin a new year we remember what has gone before and we anticipate new beginnings. Like the wise men on their journey, we face uncertainty about what is to come. As we move into the unknown, help us to learn from the lessons of yesterday, and fill us with a vision of what we can be as we move forward.
We ask that you keep the Advent candles of Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love burning in our hearts. Above all, help us to continue to be drawn to the light of the Christ candle, which reminds us that You are the light of the world and in You there is no darkness.
Lord, shine Your light into all those places where we experience anxiety, worry and despair. Bring us your comfort and your peace.
Shine Your light into all places of conflict and tension – in families, in friendships, in workplaces, in our communities, and among nations. Bring us to forgiveness and reconciliation.
Shine Your light of love upon all those who stand in a place of need. We pray for all who grieve. Bring them to wholeness.
We pray for our households of faith. We pray that your peace and joy will surround each one whether at work or at rest, in their relationships and in their homes. Bring them to gratitude and contentment.
Help us to walk boldly into the future, knowing that You are our Light. You are Emmanuel – God with us. Amen
(prayer provided by Diane Peters)