A Prayer for Family Holiday Gatherings

esus, you grew up in a family
that did not always understand,
who questioned you and no doubt squabbled;
hear our prayer for family gatherings this year.
Thank you for families that get along,
showing unconditional love and support:
families that are flexible and adaptive,
that can stand any storm.
Bless all who are travelling to gatherings
that they can’t wait to get to.
And then there are other families,
where tension, suspicion and judgement
vie for power with love and acceptance.
Sentences begin with “You always…”

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A Prayer for Times like These

or a world where lies are accepted at face value;
hear our prayer, God of truth.
For a world where racism in high places is tolerated;
hear our prayer, God of the oppressed.
For a world where people with disabilities are mocked;
hear our prayer, God of the disadvantaged.
For a world where the rich hold the reins of power;
hear our prayer, God of the poor.
For a world where men violate women with impunity;
hear our prayer, God of the downtrodden.
For a world where the earth is ignored and neglected;
hear our prayer, God of the voiceless.
For a world where nations interfere in enemies’ elections;
hear our prayer, God of the disenfranchised….

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All I Want for Christmas: A Prayer List as I Go to the Mall

his Christmas I would like…
the clear conviction
that beauty is for beholding
and that I don’t have to own
everything that gives me pleasure.
I want to have joy in gift-giving,
seeking to delight those I love.
I would like protection from over purchasing:
and reminders that more gifts
don’t always bring more delight.
I would like contentment this year,
and freedom from envy as I look at things
that I cannot afford to buy.
I would like mindfulness for Christmas,

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Final Goodbyes (for Mimi)

Immanuel,
thank you that you are God with us
even in our final good-byes.
Thank you for the ebbing of life,
which is as holy as its birth,
even with all the indignities
that infirmities bring.
Thank you for loved ones gathered,
for memories shared and savoured,
and for quiet vigils,
sweeter than all words,
where all we do is breathe.

And at the stillest moment of all,

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Message from the Manger

We love you in the manger, Jesus.
Your little hands and feet,
your soft breathing,
your eyes closed in sleep.
You may be a revolutionary,
but we like our revolutionaries in diapers.
Forgive us, Lord,
for preferring a Saviour that doesn’t talk;
a Saviour that has no words of judgement
for our callousness to the suffering of others,
whose arms aren’t tossing over tables,
whose feet aren’t leading us to Jerusalem.,,,

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A Prayer for When I am Self-destructive

Lord, I am an instrument of your peace.
Where there is self-hatred, let me sow love;
where there is negative self-talk, kindness;
where there is loathing of my body, acceptance;
where there is nursing of old injuries, release;
where there is envy of others, gratefulness;
where there is perfectionism, humanness.
 
O Divine Mother, grant that I may not so much seek
to be self-hurting, as self-healing;
to be self-denying, as self-cherishing,
to be numb, as to feel.
For it is in being loved by you, that I know I am lovable;
through your confidence in me, I confidently face each day,
it is in being yours now and eternally, that I live in peace.
 

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Song of Peace Prayer

Thank you for the gift of music,
for melodies and harmonies, for voices of every pitch.
Thank you for composers and poets,
for instruments and musicians.
Music is the soundtrack of our lives,
it delights us and helps us express our deepest emotions.
You give each of us a song to sing each week:
we confess that we abandon your score,
giving up your loving notes in favour of our own tune.
We fail to harmonize with those around us.
We want to be part of the work you are composing,

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Was that Joy?

Joy may be like a fountain,
but it has no on/off switch.
We can’t manufacture joy
or produce it on demand.
Running after joy is
like running after the wind;
you can’t catch it.
Joy is wild and treasured,
like a rare shy bird
that suddenly appears.
It can be fleeting,
or its presence can rest with you…

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The Good Book

I was always captivated by
“Once upon a time”:
the magical invitation
into a world not mine.
The world of giants and talking animals,
the world of spies and zookeepers,
pirates, pioneers and pilots–
I followed them through deserts and oceans,
deep space, rush hour traffic,
mountains and subterranean caverns.
I puzzled things out with Nancy Drew,
yearned for justice with Black Beauty,
cried with Jane Eyre,

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About Carol Penner

I am a Mennonite pastor currently teaching theology at Conrad Grebel University College in Waterloo, Ontario. I’ve served congregations in Ontario and most recently, Alberta.

I love to write and to lead worship! If you are finding my writing helpful, I would love to hear from you! Feel free to use or adapt the material here, it is all written by me. If printing material, please credit “Copyright Carol Penner www.leadinginworship.com” (and say whether you modified it). If publishing, please contact me for permission. Contact me at carol@leadinginworship.com

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