John 13:34-35 and
Loving God,
we come to worship today because we love you,
and we want to love you more.
We come to worship needing love in our lives:
love for family, friends, strangers, enemies.
In this hour of worship,
touch our hearts,
fill our hearts,
open our hearts
We come to God each week with prayer and supplication with thanksgiving.
This morning I will lead you in a guided silent prayer.
Even though each of us prays in our own hearts,
our prayers are not solitary
when we join together as the people of God,
praying as one in many voices.
God,
creation is so much with us,
sights, sounds, tastes, fragrances;
we pause to give thanks for something
in nature that gave us joy this week. [PAUSE]
You have brought people into our lives,
2 Corinthians 9:7 and
God of grace,
it is our delight and our devotion
to give these gifts to you.
All we are and all we have
are yours alone.
Accept this joyful offering
as a token of our abiding love:
use it to bring peace, justice
and comfort to all the world, Amen.
Psalm 98:4-9 and
Here we are Lord!
We come into your house this morning
praising your faithfulness,
giving thanks for your mercy,
seeking the joy of your presence.
Thank you for creating us
and giving us life and breath today.
Thank you for your son Jesus Christ, our Saviour
and for the Holy Spirit
whose presence here
unites us as your people.
Fill us with your peace today. Amen.
For each of your beloved children
who this night are poised to take their own life,
we pray this prayer.
For those plagued by despair,
for those haunted by hopelessness,
for those immersed in mind-numbing pain,
for those confused by bewildering delusions,
for those mired in violent memories,
for those pushed to the edge by grief,
for those bullied because of their sexuality,
od of Comfort:
We pray today for men and boys
whose lives have been scarred by abuse and violence.
We pray for boys bullied and molested
by people who should be their friends.
We pray for boys sexually abused and exploited
by people they trust who should protect them.
We pray for boys who cry their tears alone
with no one to comfort them.
We pray for men who have suffered physical assault
and have fear as a constant companion.
God of every country, thank you for this country:
for its beauty…from coast to coast to coast,
for blue oceans on three sides,
for great prairies, vast forest and stretching tundra,
for every rushing river and great lake
for Hudson’s Bay and the islands of the north,
all created by you, giving glory to you.
Thank you for all the creatures with whom we share this country;
the polar bear and the bowhead whale, the mighty moose and the fox,
the Canada goose and the honey bee, the Coho salmon and the beaver.
Thank you for Canadian people, rich in cultural diversity,
from First Nations and many nations….
od, we come in prayer to you burdened with our unhappy business:
all the deeds done under the sun that we would rather not remember,
the sound of sin in our world.
The explosions caused by bombs made in our own factories.
The cries of the hungry that are not fed in our own communities.
Our own hurtful words hurled at those we love.
The echoing silence of creatures who we have driven to extinction.
Hearer of all, you know too clearly the sorrows of our world!
Forgive us our sins, and help us right the wrongs we’ve done….
Like the disciples at Emmaus,
we offer what we have.
They offered their company,
their table, their bread.
We invite you to be with us, Jesus,
as we offer you our love,
our devotion, these gifts.
May our eyes be opened
to your holy presence among us,
now and always. Amen.
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
Get regular resource updates and special announcements!
