PRAYERS FOR SUNDAY NOVEMBER 6TH

THIRD SUNDAY BEFORE ADVENT

Call to Worship

Come, let us praise God together!
For God is great, and worthy of our praise!

Let us tell stories of God's power and majesty,
God's mighty acts throughout history:
for God is great, and worthy of our praise!

Let us remember the compassion

God has shown toward us;
God's mercy and unfailing love, generation after generation:
for God is great, and worthy of our praise!

Let us pass these stories to our children and grandchildren,
so that they, too, may come to know and love our God.
For God is great, and worthy of our praise!

Let us worship God together!

Prayers of Approach, Thanksgiving and Confession

For ever and ever, Lord God.
That is Your promise to us.
A promise made before time began.
A promise kept until beyond eternity.
A promise that brings us here today.
Because forever starts today, God.
It rose with the first glimpse of dawn.
It breathed in the stirring of the morning air.
It sang in the waking chorus of creation.
And it lives in all of us
because You, in Your goodness,
have made it so.

This moment in time, God, is nothing in the grand scale
of Your awesome plan.
But it is our opportunity to recognise that every second,
of every minute of every hour,
of every day is everything,
because of Your limitless love.

Thank You, Lord God,
for promises made and kept
even when we have failed to keep
our side of the bargain.
Even when it feels the world teeters
on the brink of disaster
we know that You will never
abandon Your people
for You have shown us again and again
that You are a faithful God.

Hanging in there
can be tough, though.
We often feel like giving up.
at those times when life
seems too hard or too painful;
when those around us suffer.

Remind us of the words of prophets
that have sustained Your people
throughout generations
and have come true again and again
in Christ Jesus.

We praise all that You are, Creator God.
We stand amazed at all that You give
and we celebrate Your faithfulness
to us in our failure to appreciate
the price of Your promises
and the cost of Your creativity.

When You created the world, Lord,
You presented it to us as perfect.
A place of growth and fruitfulness.
but we misused it and left it broken and disjointed.

When You breathed life into humanity
You chose and cherished us.
But we broke away from Your gentle arms
and dismissed Your love.

When You came to us,
You wept with us, You suffered for us
and You gave up Your all for us.
But we forgot the vastness of Your sacrifice
and took it for granted.
We cannot fathom the scale and the nature
Of Your forgiveness
Yet still we seek it and need it.
And still You offer it.

For ever and ever, God.
That is Your promise
as proclaimed in Your Son, Jesus Christ.

So here today, we proclaim ourselves
a forgiven people,
refreshed by Your grace
and ready to serve You.
We proclaim ourselves forever people.
Committed to sharing in Your work.
We proclaim ourselves Your people,
now and always.                                                                Amen

The Lord`s Prayer

Prayers of Intercession

Today, loving God,
we pray for all those who are troubled
in body, mind and spirit.
May they know Your presence,
and be reassured by Your words.

We pray for our world,
its leaders, its policy makers
and its protectors.
Help them to make wise decisions
based on justice and tolerance.

We pray for ourselves
that we might see light
in dark and difficult places
and that we might be the light
when others grope for meaning.

And we pray for one another here, Lord.
Those beside, behind and before us,
that we might wait in trust and love together
and that we might go from here
to share Your promises
with all we meet.
In Jesus'name.                                                                  Amen.

The Dismissal

Go to celebrate the God
who is our home forever.

Go to follow Christ's example
in loving God, self, and neighbour.

Go with the Holy Spirit
to change the world with love.

Go to seek God's kingdom
in all you say and do.

The Grace

PRAYERS FOR SUNDAY NOVEMBER 13TH

REMEMBRANCE SUNDAY

Prayers of Approach, Thanksgiving and Confession

Gather us into Your presence, God of peace.
We trust that Your vision for the world –
the great creation of Your imagination,
entrusted to us as a place for our flourishing –
is still there behind all the challenges of our lives.
We come today

remembering that even in the darkest of days,
Your flame of hope and new life flickers
drawing us on to find the good
and to illuminate the world with Your Gospel of love.

Eternal God
You forget nothing.
All the days and events which have been lived
were done so under Your ever-loving and all-seeing eye.

You have journeyed with us and with our forebears,
and so while we must take the time

to consciously remember,
You do so without forgetting a moment that has been.

We give thanks this day for Your faithfulness

to Your people in every land and age,
for Your presence with them in the dark days

that they have faced,
and we come to praise You that no matter

what challenge lies before us,
You have promised to be with us.

We give thanks for all the good in our lives.
On this day, we hold with gratitude                                    the service of those who are peacemakers
in their service of our country.
We are grateful for a vision

that will hold the darker forces of our humanity in check
with an ethos of cooperation,

harmony and mutual flourishing.

We give thanks for the dedicated service of our armed forces in all the generations,
remembering especially those who still remain with us          from the Second World War and subsequent conflicts.

We thank You for their testimony
which reminds us of the tragedy of conflict.
Help us to hear it even as we honour the sacrifices made in search of the good.

On this day when we are drawn together

from many backgrounds,
and with faith flickering, strong, or with no faith,
we thank You that there are times and causes
around which we can all rally for the common good.
Help us to find that common ground more,
and to work through our differences.
May the example of Jesus, His boundary-crossing life,
His open-hearted embrace of all peoples,
be the inspiration for our weary and wounded world.

In scripture, Your faithful people have penned the dreams and challenges of our deepest thinkers,
our most creative and perceptive voices.
So we give thanks for the people who will look at our world
and will be the dreamers.
We pray too for the fixers:
for the people who will take the dreams

and make them reality.
So we hold before You all of our leaders,
praying for tenacity, energy, and an open-eyed, open-hearted vision for our communities and the world.

We live in You, the great mystery of our being
which is beyond our understanding – yet revealed 

in the life, death, and resurrection of Your Son.
You are there underpinning our lives,
offering to us all that we need to live well.
All too often we grasp after our prosperity and our safety,
building walls of self-sufficiency,
storing up great resources in the barns of our nation,
finding "the other" and difference to be a threat to us.
We fall into ways of war when Your ways are ways of peace.

On this day of Remembrance,
when we pay tribute to those who have given so much
when war became the way,
we confess the faults of nations who have gone to war
and missed Your ways of peace,
and hold all of this before You now.

Assurance of Pardon                                       

God of all,
Your ways are of mercy,
Your heart is for reconciliation,
so help us to accept the hand of forgiveness that You offer.
Help us to leave behind what has weighed us down,
to seek the ways of friendship and peace,
and to trust that You want the best for us.
Bring us the peace of being part

of Your offering of forgiveness,
and to embrace our role of being peacemakers

in the course of our ordinary lives.       

Amen

The Lord`s Prayer

Prayers of Intercession

God of peace
We come this day in solemn remembrance

and prayerful witness to the courage, self-sacrifice and devotion to duty of those who have given of themselves in service to others.

We remember those who lost their lives                            and the grieving families and friends they left behind.

We remember also those who came home                        but who lost something of themselves on fields of battle.
Those who lost limb, or reason, or sense of self.

We pray that Your comfort will be known                            by all who have seen the realities and dangers of war.

Ease the pain of those who grieve,
being renewal to those whose health in body or mind has been diminished.

We seek Your blessing upon members of our Armed Forces  and upon their families.
Grant to them safety in the fulfilment of their duties,
defend them as they face dangers of many kinds,
and grant to them wisdom and courage                              as they work for peace and justice in our lifetimes.

We remember those who faced and continue to face            significant challenge at home.

We pray for families torn apart by war,
for those forced to leave the familiar and seek safety and refuge elsewhere.
For those whose homes have been destroyed,
or who cannot return due to dangers caused by conflict.

We pray for lands where neighbours have become enemies,
where brothers have picked up weapons against one another and we seek Your reconciliation and peace.

We give thanks for the times and places                            where we can see seeds of peace growing.

We pray that Your Church will speak out with passion          for the sake of those who are voiceless.                              Save us from silence or complacency and inspire us by Your Holy Spirit to prepare the way of the Lord today,

and always.                                                                   

We pray these things in the name of Christ,

Amen

The Blessing

God grant to the living grace,                                            to the departed rest,                                                          to the Church, the King, the Commonwealth and all people,  unity, peace and concord,                                                  and to us and all God’s servants, life everlasting;                and the blessing of God almighty,                                 

the Father,

the Son,

and the Holy Spirit,                                                          be among you and remain with you always.                        Amen.

PRAYERS FOR SUNDAY NOVEMBER 20TH

CHRIST THE KING

Call to Worship

In the Psalms we hear the word of God:
Be still and know that I am God…

We are reminded:
The Lord of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our refuge…

In the still moment, in the presence of God,
we wait and listen for the Word of God for us today.

Prayers of Thanksgiving and Confession

For Jesus Christ, the image of the invisible God,
we give You thanks, dear Lord.
In Him we know You in Your fullness,
as loving and compassionate,
as creator of all,
as reconciler of things which are far apart,                          broken and ruptured.

Thank You for His message of hope,
His steadfast living out of all You stand for,
His Spirit, which draws us into new communities                of compassion and healing.

We thank You for human companionship,

which builds up and restores the soul.
We thank You for people around us

who show us the way of the kingdom of God.
For those whose work is to provide us with what we need,
who care for us when we are sick
and delight us in so many ways by being just who they are.
And for the random kindness of strangers
which turns the ordinary into a moment of joy and meaning.

We thank You for the blessing of our environment,
and of sustenance for mind, body and soul.
For colour and beauty in nature,
and things we see and hear and feel
which bring us pleasure,
make us stop for a moment,
want to share and enjoy –
thank You, dear Lord.

Living God,
in the stillness of Your presence

we know ourselves in new ways.
We see more clearly

where we have chosen the way of the world
rather than the way of Christ.

We have compromised when we should have stood firm,
and judged others by standards

to which we rarely hold ourselves.

We have been quick to anger and slow to love.
We have not lived as people

who know the kingdom of God is among them.

Loving God,
You have given us confidence

to turn back to You as forgiven people,
through the life, teaching,

death and resurrection of Your Son Jesus.
Like prodigal children we are ready to begin again
and like the loving parent in the story Jesus told,
You are watching for us to return,

ready to take us into Your arms.

In the stillness of Your presence

may we know ourselves in new ways,
as loved and accepted and forgiven.                                    Amen.

The Lord`s Prayer

Prayers of Intercession

On this Christ the King Sunday

we remember that Christ's kingship

does not shy away from the agony of the cross,

the vulnerability of the incarnation,

the risk and betrayal of human relationships

in times of danger and threat.

In our prayers for others,

we are committing those we pray for

into the hands of One who knows the frailties

and troubles of human life.

And so we pray with compassion

for those who hurt and fear and cry today
because they have been let down by systems or circumstances or the ones they love.

We remember those whose lives

are most affected by climate change,
who face hunger, thirst,

fire or flood in the heart of their homes.
Grant wisdom and conviction to those who hold the power to make a difference,
on global, national and individual levels.

We pray with love for those who are lonely or in pain,
and for those who care for family and friends

in times of need.
We acknowledge the stress of being a carer
and the sometimes conflicting feelings

of those who are cared for.

Bring comfort and encouragement, dear Lord,

to situations of conflict,
and rest for those who bear the heaviest burdens.

We pray with faith for those we love the most,
and for those who have no-one to name them before You.
May Your presence surround and bless them

today and always.
May they know they are loved and known and seen by You.

For those who grieve the loss of one they loved,
we pray especially that You will encourage them

with strong memories
and a confidence in Your loving purpose,

which holds all souls in life.
May we all take comfort from Your words,
"Today you will be with me in Paradise."

We give You thanks for the witness of those who knew and followed You as their Lord and King,
and showed us what it meant to be a Christian.
May they know of our grateful love for them,

now and always.

Amen.

Blessing

Creator God, Christ the King, Living Spirit,
go before us to give light to those who sit in darkness
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

And may the blessing of God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
surround you and keep you,
now and ever more.

Amen. 

PRAYERS FOR SUNDAY NOVEMBER 27TH

FIRST SUNDAY OF ADVENT

Call To Worship

A new year dawns, a saviour comes.

A time to prepare, a time to get ready.

A time to reflect, a time to repent.

A time to begin again, a time to start afresh.

A time to worship and adore.

Prayers of Adoration, Confession and Assurance of Pardon

Lord God, you tell us that you are coming among us,

and we are excited.

You come to be our King. You come to be our Saviour.

You come to be our Shepherd. You come to be our friend.

And we know, Lord Jesus,

that you come for everyone in our family,

our church, our community, our land and our world.

Help us to make you known by word and deed

so that people will be ready for your coming.

And when you come, Lord Jesus,

come and make your home in our hearts,

that we shall be healed.

We live in a chaotic world, Lord,

for though you have shown us the way of life,

we have not walked in it.

We have gone our own separate ways, done our own things.

We thought we could live without you.

We have pretended not to need you.

We have tried our independence.

Now loving God, forgive what is past;

renew what is, and lead us into the future of your Son,

for he only is Lord, and there is no other.

He is the truth that sets us free.

God of our lives help us to walk in his ways.

To all who turn to him he says: “Your sins are forgiven!”

He also says: “FollowMe!”                                                 

Thanks be to God.                                                          Amen

The Lord`s Prayer

Prayers of Intercession

Creator God,

we give you our thanks for your creativity,                          your generosity in sending us your Son                              and for continued support

through your gift of the Holy Spirit.

We pray for all the sick, the lost,

the lonely, the grieving.                                      

We pray for the homeless,

and for those who bring hope through shelters and hostels. May they find Hope and be filled with your peace.

Holy God, you call all nations to you and we pray for all nations, that we may live together in peace together.

We pray for diplomats

and those who seek to resolve conflict without war.

Loving God, heal our brokenness,

so that we may put aside our anger

and genuinely seek peace.

Where we are at odds with those around us,

give us grace to seek reconciliation.

Help us we pray to open ourselves to your presence, encouraging us to work for peace and justice

for which we hope for each day.

Fill us with your Spirit so that we can be among those who create a community of wholeness and Shalom.

In the name of Jesus

for whom we wait in patience.                                            Amen

Blessing

In the waiting,

may we hold onto the enduring of love,

the persisting of hope,

the remembering of joy,

the offering of gratitude,

the receiving of grace,

and the blessing of peace.                                                  Amen

The 

The Grace

Minister ~ Rev Alan Kennedy 07733153203 01612703296 alanrk1690@gmail.com