Worship – Congregational Prayer

God of Peace Congregational Prayer

God of love, wrap your arms around children who are hiding
from the violence of our families or our communities.
God of justice, cast your eyes on our hidden deeds done in darkness,
so that we may be convicted of our sin and turn to you in repentance.
God of creation, lend your strength to the hidden rhythms of our world,
to restore its natural balance and  harmony.
God of comfort, bring healing to the sick and grieving in our midst
so that they may feel your peace in stormy times.
God of hope, speak your words of light to the despairing among us,
even to those who hide that darkness deep within themselves.
God of all ages, hear the hidden prayers of our hearts,

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Good News Congregational Prayer

Thank you, God, for the good news you proclaim every day:
the good news of beauty and life, proclaimed by every creature.
We hear this good news in the song of the red winged blackbird balancing on a reed,
we see it in the green life galloping up in every plant and tree,
we smell it in the damp earth, we taste it in the tang of rhubarb.
Your world, new and fresh each day…
thank you for giving us life and breath to enjoy it.
Thank you for the good news we have been hearing this week;
for those among us who have experienced healing,
for conflicts that have been resolved,
for the hungry that have been fed,
for your work through millions of people,

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Great Caregiver Prayer

God our Creator,
when we entered this world as tiny babies,
you gave us caregivers who watched and waited on us,
who fed and clothed us, who taught us how to live.
We pause in this moment of silence to give our own thanks
for one special person who has changed our life:
For their work, and their love which has shaped us,
we give you thanks! [Silence]
[or alternatively if you have a small congregation, invite people to come and light a candle in memory and thanks for a caregiver]
We pray today for caregivers;
mothers, fathers, grandmothers and grandfathers,
aunts and uncles, brothers and sisters and cousins,

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Giver of Light Prayer

All praise to you, God, the giver of light!
We give thanks for the sun, whose rays give life,
and the moon that illuminates our darkest nights.
Praise for fire, the flickering flames of candles and lamps.
We give thanks for electric light
that twinkles around the world, shining into space.
Thank you for starlight that travels light years
and for lasers which circle the globe in fibre optic cables.
You give us light, which is bright and serviceable and pure.
We cannot live without light.

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Whole Body of Christ Congregational Prayer

God of grace:
Thank you for Alberta, our beautiful province,
land of prairie and boreal forest, rolling hills and  towering mountains.
Thank you for our connection to this land,
our favourite spots and places, where we seek out beauty and peace.
Thank you for Alberta’s connection to the rest of Canada,
its connection to our continent, its oceans,
for the atmosphere we share with the whole world,
for the deep heat of the earth’s core
that is the base of every country on earth.
Thank you for the unity of the world,
even as we love certain parts of it,

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Advent Darkness Prayer

God, you created this cold and dark time of waiting,
where the sun is far away and our part of the world sleeps.
Thank you for trees whose structural beauty is revealed in nakedness,
and for evergreens, giving us pleasure in this gray season.
Thank you for snow, blanketing the earth in white.
Thank you for all the animals, snug in their winter beds,
and for birds which are travelling from Canada to tropical places.
Thank you for the harvest whose stored bounty we still enjoy;
root vegetables, apples, and even last spring’s harvest of maple syrup.
Thank you for the dark of night, and all the stars of heaven.
Thank you for the sound of the wind.

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Prayer for a snowy day

God, thank you for heaps of clouds,
with all their many colours of gray,
the way they drop snowflakes willy-nilly,
blanketing us with white.
Thank you for the sounds of winter;
the echo of a train whistle,
the tick, tick, tick of icy crystals hitting the window,
the squishy sound of snow under under our boots.
Jesus, we want to follow in your footsteps,
placing each foot carefully in the place where you walked.
Your tracks leading straight to the place
where people are hurting,

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Call Congregational Prayer

Thank you God for the glorious weather we are having;
summer is still calling us to come out and play.
Tall trees are still filled with dark green leaves with just a hint of yellow,
combines are harvesting long golden windrows,
there is a fragrance of mint in the garden,
we’re enjoying the golden taste of fresh corn,
and the cool breezes on days that still feel hot.
You extend a call to live each day to the fullest.
Jesus, we also hear your call to love, expressed again and again
through many kind hands and warm hearts around us.
Thank you for giving us intricate networks of family and friends and church 
who embody your love, and invite us to love in return.
Open our eyes to this call, which is not narrow, but as wide as the world.

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Crossroads Congregational Prayer

We come to prayer this morning
at the crossroads of summer and winter.
Summer still shines, asters blooming with yellow and orange vividness,
warm days calling us to walk outside and enjoy the sun,
fresh fruit and vegetables still fill our tables and delight our tastebuds.
And yet, the nights grow cold, we see our breath in the morning,
yellow and red creep into the leaves of the trees,
the days get shorter, the earth tilts
and there’s no stopping the coming of winter….

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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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