Month: October 2022

Eternal God,

you are the maker of us all, and we are your creation,

people formed in your image, as individuals and community,

fed, nourished, and strengthened at your table of grace.

We worship you today in recognition of your calling,

of your caring to invite us to share in your creative and healing work.

We are here because we have heard you speak in and amongst us.

Help us, Lord, to ever serve you with all our hearts, minds, and strength.

God of all our moments, of our days and our nights,

you speak and you act in the world around us,

not only to call all people to you,

but also to direct and guide us in the way of healing and wholeness.

Awaken us Lord, to hear what you would say to us.

Open our ears, our eyes, and our hearts to your presence.

Help us to know when it is your voice we are hearing

and when it is our prejudices or desires to which we are paying heed….

Lord, we pray that your church may rise up with renewed commitment

in answer to your call,

that your people may be instruments of your grace and love,

invitational, open, inclusive.

We pray for those who are hurting and for those whom life is hard.

Comfort the grieving…

Grant patience to those who await appointments or test results

Hold with hope those who are living with unexpected diagnoses

Provide strength to those who struggle with declining health

Keep the weary close to your heart

We also pray with celebration the joys of life…..

Life shared with family and friends at the table…

Good food, laughter, a meaningful connection

We are thankful for purposeful work….

Loving relationship….

Meaningful encounters…

Amidst our joys and sorrows

You come…. You weep with those who weep

You celebrate with those who celebrate.

Grant us deep measures of care for one another

As we journey the ups and downs…

Unknowns and new beginnings

Lord hear our prayer….

Bless us and all those committed to continue the work of Jesus,

who came to heal, save, and teach us how to live and how to love,

and who taught us to pray as one family, saying…

Our Father….

We pray for our loved ones who are experiencing limitations due to aging bodies including loved ones in long-term care. Support each family and grant deep measures of compassion and patience.

As flu and covid infections have increased this fall, we pray for wisdom and patience . Protect the vulnerable. Bring about recovery and complete healing for all those who are suffering and provide strength and compassion for health care professionals.

We pray for our households of faith. We give thanks for each person and their giftedness. Draw near to each as they draw nearer to you. Meet them at their deepest places of need. We pray for healthy balance amidst full schedules, joy in relationships, and peace that holds them secure in your love.

We offer all our prayers in Jesus’ name. Amen

Loving God, we hold in your healing presence those who suffer pain and ill-health, with their families, friends and those who care for them:

                May they know the deep peace of Christ

 We hold in your healing presence those who suffer in mind and spirit, and all who care for them…

                May they know the deep peace of Christ

 We hold in your healing presence those suffering due to broken relationships, we pray for the marginalized, the silenced…

                May they know the deep peace of Christ

 We hold in your healing presence those struggling with isolation, anxiety, mental health challenges….

               May they know the deep peace of Christ

 We hold in your healing presence those struggling to overcome addiction or abuse, those supporting and working with them, and all whose suffering has distanced them from those who love …

                May they know the deep peace of Christ

 Loving God, we hold in your healing presence those facing bereavement and those who are walking through the dark valley of grief.

                May they know the deep peace of Christ

 We hold in your healing presence and peace those whose needs are not known to us but known to you.  In silence, we name in our hearts those whose pain we carry….

               May they know the deep peace of Christ

 God of compassion and love, we offer you all our suffering and pain. Give us strength to bear our weakness, healing even when there is no cure, peace in the midst of turmoil and love to fill the spaces in our lives.

 Glory to God from whom all love flows, glory to Jesus who showed his love through suffering, and glory to the Holy Spirit who brings light to the darkest of places.         Amen.

                We pray for our loved ones who are experiencing limitations due to aging bodies including loved ones in long-term care. Support each family and grant deep measures of compassion and patience.  

                As covid infections have been increasing this fall, we pray for wisdom and patience as this long journey of pandemic continues. Protect the vulnerable. Bring about recovery and complete healing for all those who are suffering and provide strength and compassion for health care professionals.

                 We pray for our households of faith: Darlene Bast; Mary Jane Bast; and Arnie & Barb Bender. We pray that you will draw near to each one, meeting them at their deepest places of need. Where there is pain, we pray for comfort. We also pray that your joy will fill their hearts and home.

We offer all our prayer in Jesus’ name. Amen

Gracious God, we come to you this morning with praise and thanksgiving on our lips.

“You are exalted, forever exalted on high. I will praise you.

You are exalted, forever exalted and I will praise your Name!

You are my God, forever your truth shall reign.

Heaven and earth rejoice in your holy name.

You are exalted, forever exalted on high.”

Oh God, we celebrate that we are your children, your people, and the sheep of your pasture. Thank you that we can rest in your presence, we can bring all our needs to you in prayer, knowing that you hear us, and we rejoice that in all things you work for our good. We celebrate that you are a transforming God, and we invite you to mould and reshape us into your image, as individuals and as a church. Holy Spirit, speak into our hearts and minds; give us the courage to walk in obedience to our Lord. May your will be done on this earth, in our lives, as it is in heaven.

Oh God, this morning we would pray for peace in our world, in countries where war shatters lives, where persecution tears communities apart, and in families where conflict bears anger and pain. We pray for all in our community who grieve the loss of loved ones through death, whether currently or in the past. May the memories of loved ones bring peace and comfort by your grace Oh God. We also pray for those who this morning are discouraged, lonely, living in fear and uncertainty. God of hope, Jesus, Prince of peace, may your presence bring renewal, hope and peace into their lives.

Lord, we give thanks for answered prayer.

This morning we also wish to bring the following Household of Faith families before you God.

We ask all this in the name of Jesus.

Amen

A Thanksgiving Prayer:

Give thanks to the Lord for He is good.

God’s love is everlasting.

Come, let us praise God joyfully.

Let us come to God with thanksgiving.

For this world you have created; for all things great and small, beautiful and awesome; for seen and unseen splendours;

We thank you, Lord God.

For human life; for talking and moving, thinking and sharing  together; for common hopes, joys and hardships shared from birth until our dying;

We thank you, Lord God.

For work to do and strength to work; for the comradeship of labour; for exchanges of good humour and encouragement;

We thank you, Lord God.

For marriage; for the mystery and joy of flesh made one; for mutual forgiveness and burdens shared; for secrets kept in love;

We thank you, Lord God.

For family; for living together; for celebrating and eating together; for family adventures and family pleasures;

We thank you, Lord God.

For children; for their energy and curiosity; for their brave play and startling frankness; for their sudden tender hearts and spontaneous joys

We thank you, Lord God.

For the young; for their high hopes; for their irreverence toward worn-out values; for their search for freedom; for their courageous faith;

We thank you, Lord God.

For growing up and growing old; for wisdom deepened by experience; for rest in leisure; and for time made precious by its passing;

We thank you, Lord God.

For your help in times of doubt and sorrow; for healing our diseases; for preserving us in temptation and danger;

We thank you, Lord God.

For the church into which we have been called; for the good news we receive from the Word; for our life together in this body of Christ;

We praise you, Lord God.

For your Holy Spirit, who guides our steps and bears the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience and so much more; who prays for us when we have no words, and prompts our grateful worship;

We praise you, Lord God.

Above all, O God, we give thanks for your Son Jesus Christ, who lived and died and lives again; for our salvation; for our hope in him; and for the joy of serving him;

We thank and praise you, Eternal God, for all your goodness to us.

Give thanks to the Lord, our God and King

God’s love is everlasting.

   We pray for all in our community who grieve the loss of loved ones through death, whether currently or in the past. May the memories of loved ones on this Thanksgiving weekend bring peace and comfort by your grace Oh God.

   We pray for Orie A. as he continues to receive treatments and recovers from hernia surgery. Keep him strong and may his healing proceed without complication. We pray for Vicki G. on her cancer journey, Judy St. who endures ongoing health challenges.

Lord, we give thanks for answered prayer!

This morning we also wish to bring the following Household of Faith families before you God. We lift up Paul, Jenny & Vicktoria Abell, Jim & Sharon Adams, and Andrea Albrecht, and Josh Kneller. Thank you that each of these individuals is created in your image, and that you love them with an everlasting love. We pray specifically for Vicktoria who deals with chronic pain which impacts the whole family. We pray for hope, for healing and for wisdom to know what to do. May your grace be poured out on all and may this weekend of Thanksgiving be a time of joy and celebration, of rejoicing in the gift of family, and may your peace reign in their lives.

We ask all this in the name of Jesus.

Amen

Creator God, we celebrate and rejoice in the goodness of your creation and the beauty of all that you have made. We echo the praise of the Psalmist David as he proclaimed in Psalm 104, Praise the Lord, O my soul.

Lord my God, you are very great;
    you are clothed with splendor and majesty.

² The Lord wraps himself in light as with a garment; he stretches out the heavens like a tent
³     and lays the beams of his upper chambers on their waters.
He makes the clouds his chariot and rides on the wings of the wind.
⁴ He makes winds his messengers, flames of fire his servants.

⁵ He set the earth on its foundations;  it can never be moved.
⁶ You covered it with the watery depths as with a garment;

   the waters stood above the mountains……..

He makes springs pour water into the ravines; it flows between the mountains.
¹¹ They give water to all the beasts of the field, the wild donkeys quench their thirst.
¹² The birds of the sky nest by the waters; they sing among the branches.
¹³ He waters the mountains from his upper chambers;

    the land is satisfied by the fruit of his work.
¹⁴ He makes grass grow for the cattle, and plants for people to cultivate—
    bringing forth food from the earth……..

How many are your works, O Lord!

Praise the Lord, O my soul. We choose to praise the Lord

Yet Lord we grieve today with those who are suffering as creation groans, hurricanes and floods destroy, drought and fires cause havoc. We lift up your children from Pakistan to Florida, Ethiopia to Eastern Canada, those who today grieve the loss of property and the death of loved ones through disaster. Grant perseverance and comfort, may country and world leaders make wise decisions and may each of us hear your call as to how we may make a difference in our world and community.

We also pray for those who grieve the death of loved ones; God may your presence bring peace and comfort. We pray for those facing health issues, bring healing and renewal, perseverance and strength. Thank you for medical staff, for those who serve in Hospitals, Nursing and Retirement homes. May they serve with wisdom, grace, and love. We pray for those who are lonely and discouraged, for those who battle mental health issues, and for all who do not yet know you as Savior and Lord. And Lord, if you choose to work and love through us to meet the many needs in our world, grant us obedient hearts and discerning minds to serve as you would lead.

O God, today we also bring the following specific needs.

Lord grant comfort; may Your peace reign, and may your presence bring healing.

We also pray for our Households of Faith

May your peace and presence surround these families, may your grace and power be their strength, and may you Holy Spirit live in and through each individual.

God, we give you praise in the name of Jesus.

Amen