Pastoral/Congregational Prayer - 25 November 2012


This was the pastoral prayer from last night. If you find it useful, then please feel free to employ it.
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For thus said the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, “In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.” “The LORD is in his holy temple; let all the earth keep silence before him” … [silence]... Now Lord, in quietness and trust we come and make our requests to you.

We have an abundance of things for which to give you thanks. We have life, health, friends, family, and love; children who have recovered from serious sicknesses; mothers who have recuperated after giving birth; friends and family who once were unbelievers and have become disciples of Christ; business and work situations that have turned around with promise of becoming better and more stable; aging parents who are well, and able to pass on memories and joyful recollections; and the new and sometimes noisy changes in our church. Help us to continue to have a heart of thankfulness; Lord, hear our prayer.

Merciful and mighty God, we implore your refreshment, restoration and rehabilitation for those who are sick, ailing and failing; for those who are distressed by exploitations of various kinds; for those who are sludging through suffocating mental darknesses that feel endlessly bleak and dismally ceaseless …[silently mention names]... Lord, hear our prayer.

God of love, we cry out to you, to save, revive and rescue those who are dead in their trespasses and sins, along with those who have drifted away, and need your saving grace to richly revive them in Christ ...(silently mention names)... and we implore you to create occasions for us to lovingly tell them the Good News of Jesus. Lord, hear our prayer.

Lord God, sometimes we are distraught at what appears to be national insanity; passing laws that promote the cheapening of life; destroying the value of God-ordained marriage; pampering criminals; and then feel as if those laws punish the honorable citizen. We implore you to kindly blanket our land; the nation’s inhabitants; magistrates; judges; aldermen; executors and legislators with a durable sobermindedness and soundness, that we may all prosper in this more perfect Union, with an established Justice, insured domestic Tranquility, sound common defense, and stable general Welfare, that the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity may be secured; Lord, hear our prayer.

Father, several of our teens here are looking to soon head to college. As they and their parents deliberate over the opportunities, thinking through what is most advantageous, help them. Bless their reflections that this may be a time to draw them closer to each other, as well as a time for showing them how to make good life decisions, where even in college choices they decide in a way that will glorify you, and in which they can enjoy you. Lord, hear our prayer.

O GOD OF LOVE, who through your Son has given us a new commandment that we should love one another even as you do love us: We beseech you to give us in each day of our life on earth, a mind forgetful of past ill will and a single heart to love our brothers and sister, for the sake of your Son, Jesus Christ; Lord, hear our prayer.

All of these prayers we offer to You through Your Son, Jesus Christ, as we now sing:
"Hear our prayer, O Lord, hear our prayer, O Lord; incline thine ear to us, and grant us thy peace. Amen" (Trinity Hymnal 728).
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Mike

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