Month: May 2021

Creator of life, we give thanks for this spring season of cultivating and planting, growing and greening, blooming and blossoming.

We thank you for the mystery of seeds so small, dry, seemingly lifeless and yet within, holding the promise of new life.

We thank you for seeds of faith that have been sown and nurtured, through family, mentors, teachers, friends.

We thank you for diverse journeys of faith for healthy roots that hold us steady We are grateful for questions that unsettle us and invite us to go deep We are grateful that we can be dissatisfied with easy answers.

Creator of life, grow something new within us.

Christ of love,

For your parables and teachings that challenge us

For keeping company with the marginalized which has modelled a way of life For your healing touch, words of wisdom, and engaging conversations, For your self-sacrificing love that saves us and does not condemn, we offer our praise.

Redeemer of all, grow something new within us.

Christ of love, hear our prayers for those in need of healing, hope, and wholeness, and those whose needs we carry deep in our hearts.

We pray for all awaiting appointments, medical treatments, and those awaiting test results.

We pray for caregivers including those supporting loved ones in long term care.

We pray for all who are suffering due to covid pandemic: the lonely, the sick, the over-whelmed.

We also pray for our households of faith:

Christ of love, hear our deep lament, our deep sorrow

In light of the discovery of 215 Nation’s children’s bodies in Kamloops B.C.

God have mercy.

Christ have mercy.

Spirit have mercy.

Open our hearts to hear the agonized cry of traumatized people

Their call for justice

Their pain, their inconsolable grief.

May we be honest about institutional sin

And work honestly and humbly

toward reconciliation and the healing of relationships.

Spirit of guiding,

We thank you for your accompanying presence,

windy, moving, uncontained,

unbounded, all-embracing,

comforting, disrupting, transforming.

Spirit of guiding, guide our congregation on our discerning path.

We strive to be your faithful people.

Guide the Elders in their leadership.

Guide us to listen deeply and love one another generously.

Guide us with clarity as we take next steps

Guide us as we live within the tension of holding multiple understandings,

bind us together as one body, your body, bearing witness to your love

always.

Spirit of guiding, grow something new in us.

Triune God,

Creator of life

Christ of love

Spirit of guiding

You come to us in diverse ways.

Open our hearts to your presence

Open our hands to serve

Ignite within us a fire of love

Thank you for hearing our prayers which we offer

In the name of the Triune God.

Amen.

As the rain refreshes the earth today, it is my prayer that God will grant you a refreshed spirit and renewed mind.
May God open the eyes of your heart to see the world as God sees the world – its beauty, diversity, abundance, and the sustaining presence of the Holy Spirit. May God’s refreshment seep deep into the pandemic parched places of our hearts and lives with a generous sprinkling of hope, light, and joy. May the greening be abundant and life-giving.

Come, O Holy Spirit, come. Come, Holy Spirit, and fill us with your love.
Open our eyes to see the renewing presence of God all around us,
in the melody of song birds, in the growing and greening of spring,
in the joys and celebrations of our lives,

in the tragedies and struggles that break our hearts.

Come, Holy Spirit, and comfort those who grieve. 
Grant all who grieve the peace that only you can bring.
Stir within us a trust in life beyond death,
as we ponder the mysteries of Christ’s resurrection
and the hope we have in new and everlasting life.

Come, Holy Spirit, and bring wholeness to the sick.
Strengthen those who are weak; heal the wounded and broken;
give rest to the weary. Comfort the anxious, the lonely. Including all those in long-term care

We pray for restored strength, patience, and peace.

May your compassion hold all who suffer due to covid – the sick, the recovering, the bereaved… the isolated….and front-line workers…  

We also pray for our Households of Faith.

Amidst fullness of life, may quietness and peace flow freely each day. Grant perseverance for ongoing virtual learning, changing work environments, and the stresses of life amidst covid 19.

Come, O Holy Spirit come, and inspire our warring world to seek peace,
to love our enemies, to commit to the common good of all.

We hold in prayer the leaders and people of Israel and Palestine and pray that a path to peace in which the dignity of all persons is upheld.  

Come, O Holy Spirit come, and ignite a fire in our dry bones,

with a passion for justice that cannot be quenched
until all of your children are loved,

until all who hunger are fed
until no one is marginalized or oppressed,
until everyone has the opportunity to thrive,
until the world is transformed and renewed.

Come, O Holy Spirit come, and revive your church.

Liberate us from complacency and apathy;
inspire us with Christ’s vision for a world reborn;
help us to recognize our gifts for ministry
and to develop and use them in service of others;
transform our hearts and our minds; fill us with love that overflows;
remind us that there is no greater calling
than to love you with all that we are
and to love our neighbors as ourselves.

Come, O Holy Spirit come, give us a glimpse of God’s kingdom
emerging around us and drawing us into the new things,

New life, new possibilities, new visions and new dreams.

It is for your kingdom that we now pray,

filled with your Spirit, using the words Jesus taught us.

Our Father who art in heaven..………. Amen

This Sunday we celebrate the birth of the church with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.
Let us pray:
“Lord, send the gift of your Spirit to fill this place
and myself
and the world.
Touch me with truth
that burns like fire,
with beauty
that moves me like the wind;
and set me free, Lord
free to try new ways of living;
free to forgive myself and others;
free to love and laugh and sing;
free to lay aside my burden of security
free to join your mission of justice and peace;
free to see and listen and wonder again
at the gracious mystery of things and persons;
free to be,
to give,
to receive,
to rejoice as a child of your Spirit.
And Lord,
teach me how to dance,
to turn around
and come down where I want to be,
in the arms and heart of your people
and in you,
that I may praise and enjoy you forever. Amen
(prayer by Ted Loder)

God of resurrection life,

in this Easter season we pray with gratitude for the gift of courageous imagination.

We pray with thanksgiving for dreams that seem impossible,  –  because we have begun to believe with you, all things are possible.

Thank you for your faithfulness through changing times and changing seasons.

You are faithful through all the stages of life.

For infants and children,  we pray that they may they be guarded from evil and be nurtured in love and grace

For youth with dreams and wild imaginations,  guide them on paths of purpose that build the world you imagined for humanity from the beginning of time.

            Help them through these days of interrupted education, 

help their teachers impart knowledge wrapped with wisdom

For all who awaken to go to jobs each day we ask for strength

For those who awaken but can no longer work because they have no job.

those who endure boredom at home 

because of lock downs, or illness  give patience and peace

In silence we name those among us who suffer from illness,  those who anxiously await test results,  those who are  recovering from surgery,  those who struggle with the stress and emotional anguish of life. Help each of these imagine walking on the road to wellness.

We pray for our Households of Faith.

They are patiently waiting for summer and a time when we can be with family and friends. May your love fill their hearts and home and grant them peace.

 Lord God we thank you for your church and calling us to be part of a supportive community. Thank you for Mennonite church Eastern Canada.  May its mission and influence be multiplied.  We pray for church leaders,  for Leah Reesor Keller. Thank you for her ministry gifts.  Continue to lead her as she leads MCEC.

As your people we pray for your world.  You have called us to be peacemakers.

Though conflict often seems far away and out of our control, you have filled our hearts with images of peace where lions and lambs live together safely.

We pray for Israel and Palestine.  May all people in that land learn to live as sisters and brothers.  May children of Arabs and Jews play together in safety and one day shape a country at peace.    

These things we pray in the name of the prince of peace. Amen

(prayer by Jamie Gerber) 

Mothering God, you conceive us, give birth to us. You claim us as your own, call us by name, and have placed a seal upon our hearts.

You are our source of nurture. Your love is patient and kind.

You smile on us,

protect us,

feed us,

give us words to say,
show us how to walk,
cheer for us in our successes,
wipe our tears when we fail or suffer.
You encourage us,

dream big for us,
and love us for who we are.

We thank you for your mothering love.

Good and Gentle God,
we pray with gratitude today for our mothers,

for those all who have mothered us,

and for all the women who have joined with you in the wonder of bringing forth new life.

You who became human through a woman, grant to all mothers the courage they need to face the uncertain future that life with children always brings.
                Give them the strength to live and to be loved in return, not perfectly, but humanly.
                Surround each with faithful support and guide them as they provide for the physical and spiritual growth and needs of their children.

                Grace mothers with joy and delight in their children to sustain them through the trials of motherhood. Most of all, give them the wisdom to turn to you for help when they need it most.

                We also pray for those for whom today is tinged with pain…… women who have suffered maternal loss, those unable to conceive, those who longed to bear children but due to circumstances feel the ache of empty arms. We pray for those who experience distance from their mothers whether physical or relational. We pray for those who mourn the death of their mothers and we pray for mothers who are mourning the loss of a child including the loss of dreams, hopes, and future. Comfort and hold each in your warm and compassionate embrace.

God of compassion , our hearts reach out to you today to hold those who are suffering, those who are grieving, the fearful, the anxious, the lonely, the isolated.  

We pray for our Households of Faith.

God, continue to draw near to all your children as we draw near to you….     We are grateful that you are the God who hears our prayers before they are even formed into words. We pray in the name of Jesus. Amen 

Today, May 5 is the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG).
The Ontario Native Women’s Association (ONWA) honours all Indigenous mothers, daughters, aunts, sisters,
grandmothers, nieces and cousins. On this day of national importance we can honour the MMIWG by embracing and supporting community healing. What part of community healing will you take part?
As Anabaptist we strive to walk in the shoes of peace with our actions and our words.
Perhaps your commitment to peace will involve researching the “REDdress Project” inspired by Jamie Black.
Perhaps you will feel nudged to learn more about Canada’s history including Indigenous Peoples’ history in Canada.
Perhaps you will consider the societal and familial impact of violence against women.
We hear God’s call to seek justice, to work for peace, reconciliation, and restoration. What is your response?
May our journey of faith with Jesus lead us to honour all of life, build connections, nurture relationships, embrace diversity, and participate in the healing of creation. Amen

God, we are thankful for the gift of your calling on our lives, for the gift of faith that urges us to keep hoping, keep striving, toward your kingdom.

There’s so much to lament in this world, to get upset about, to worry us. Will there be enough hospital beds? Will the vaccines arrive for us? What about others? How are businesses doing? What about the kids and the teens and the young adults – we’re tired of the disruption of learning, and life! We can only imagine what it’s like in places where life is insecure to start with. God hear our prayers for healing, for provision, for wise leadership, for daily struggles, and for the time ahead. We pray for patience, and we pray for energy.

Our hearts reach out to hold those who are suffering, and those who are grieving.

We pray for those whose needs we carry in our hearts.

Amidst many challenges, open our eyes to see as you see, God. Fill us with compassion and wrap us in your care. Open our lives to serve your kingdom, even as we are receiving your love and care as your children, ourselves. May the love that flows into us, flow out as well.

We also hold our Households of Faith in prayer.

Continue to be with all our loved ones in long-term care as well as their caregivers. Grant them strength and patience for the living of these days.

May we believe in your kingdom ways, God, to the extent that we have the courage to actually implement them in our lives. May our hearts and our hands, our words and our actions, line up, as we strive to live lives of integrity and purpose.  

All this, and the unspoken prayers on our hearts we pray in the name of Jesus, who taught his disciples to pray: Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory. Forever and ever. Amen. (thanks to Jane Kuepfer for offering today’s prayer)