"Glory be to God on High!" - 25 December 2016
Glory be to God on high: and on earth peace, good will towards men. We
praise you, we bless you, we worship you: we glorify you, we give thanks to you
for your great glory!
Great King and Sovereign, look upon our country and the nations of this
world; move over the plans and intentions of our Oklahoma State Senators, such
as Mark Allen, Randy Bass, Micheal
Bergstrom, Stephanie Bice, Larry Boggs, Josh Brecheen, and Bill Brown; and
world leaders like Xi Jinping; Juan Manuel Santos; Azali
Assoumani; Joseph Kabila and Denis Sassou Nguesso; Luis Guillermo Solís; and Kolinda
Grabar-Kitarović. May all come to know your peace on earth,
becoming men and women of goodwill.
O God of armies, send forth your angels to preserve and protect our greater
Oklahoma City area firefighters, police officers, Sheriffs, deputies, and Troopers,
and also our military members, particularly those who are close to danger, at
home or abroad.
Yahweh rapha, Lord our healer, sustain and direct our doctors, PAs,
nurses, First Responders, and specialists – especially those who are on call or
working right now. Thank you for their help and availability; and may they know
they are appreciated and do good work.
You, whose steadfast love is great above the heavens; whose
faithfulness reaches to the clouds (Psalm 108.4), pour out the rains and
showers we sorely need, that we may rejoice in your care and goodness.
O LORD who hears our prayer, who sees our tears, who is the One who
heals us (1 Kings 20.5); there are many who are immobilized by tragedy,
unbearable conditions, physical and mental anguish, and privations; and there
are several who are carrying around deep sadness and grief; ….; Please raise
them up, delivering and restoring them, hip and thigh, body and soul, inside
and out, that they may find good cheer in your Christ and in your kindness, and
happily and freely serve you all the rest of their days.
O LORD, who invites all to seek you while you may be found; to call
upon you while you are near; who invites the wicked to forsake his way, and the
unrighteous man his thoughts; who beckons all to return to you, that you may
have compassion on them, and to abundantly pardon them (Isaiah 55.6-7), by your
Spirit’s enlivening, turn around the hearts and lives of those who have
consistently rejected you that they would embrace Christ Jesus freely offered
to us in the Gospel.
O our God, our rock, in whom we take refuge, our shield, and the horn
of our salvation, our stronghold and our refuge, our savior who saves us from
violence (2 Samuel 22.3); help your Church in this world, including this
congregation, as well as Grace
Church; Grace Covenant Church; Grace Worship Center; Grace Presbyterian Church;
Grace United Methodist; Gracelife Church; and Grafted Branch Church. As
we have come to Jesus, and point all people to Christ most poignantly today,
may we remember that he is our peace and has drawn us out of our tribalism and
ethnic pride, to become one new man in him.
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