Prayer of Praise  

(Opening Prayers p63, Uniting in Worship Red Book p296 to p298, The Book of Common Worship p298, The Book of Worship p55) 

  Almighty God, we are not ashamed to call you Lord, for we want to declare to the World that in you we have found refuge from the storms of our life, that in you we have found the source of righteousness and purity, that you are the living God.  For your glory fills all Heaven and Earth.  There is nowhere in all of your Creation that we cannot see your handiwork, that we cannot glimpse the evidence of your wisdom and foresight and intellect.  We are humbled in your presence, because we cannot fully comprehend your greatness nor can we completely conceive all that there is to know about you.  Yet, loving God, we feel the warmth of your embrace and the welcomeness of your compassion.  For you are a mighty God, yet your mightiness is also in your capacity to love.

  Living God, in Christ you make all things new.  You transform the poverty of our nature by the riches of your grace, you mend the brokenness of our lives by your healing, you stop our wandering and direct our paths through your truth.  Through Jesus Christ you announce freedom from our sins and freedom from our cares and concerns.  We marvel at the power of your Word, we delight in the peace that is ours through the Gospel, we rejoice in our fellowship with you.

  Gracious God, when Jesus was born you revealed to both Jew and Gentile the completion of you plan to bring about reconciliation and redemption for all Humanity.  You announced through the choir of Angels and the visitors from the East, the wonders of your work to bring the light of your majesty to the darkest corners of our world and the darkest corners of our souls, and to cleanse the sin from the deepest parts of our world and the deepest parts of our souls.  With joy we claim the healing and the wholeness that you have provided in each of our lives.  With joy we sing your praises, for you are our God and Saviour.

  Incomparable God, in you there is only light and life.  Through you there is refreshment and renewal in our lives.  From you we receive mercy and forgiveness; from you we receive abundant blessings, all for which we are truly grateful and for which we offer you our unending thanks and praise.  To your glory we pray, Amen.

Prayer of Confession 

(With love to the World w/e 31/01/2016, The Book of Worship pp55, Prayers for the Seasons of God’s People Year c pp44 & 45, Amish Prayers p45)  

  Merciful God, we come before you contrite in soul and spirit because we know that we have failed you in so many ways. 

  We confess that there is so much in our lives, in our thoughts, in our words, and in our actions, that displeases you and saddens you.

  Merciful God, forgive us for when we have failed to listen to you, for when we have turned away from you and pretended that we can no longer hear your voice.  Forgive us for when we have refused to heed your advice and scorned your wisdom, for when we have turned away from you and pretended that we knew all the answers.

  Forgive us for when we have failed to trust you, for when we did not have the courage to obey you, for when we have turned away and rejected your love.  In your mercy, forgive us.

 Merciful God, forgive us for when we have failed to be your witnesses to the World around us.  Forgive us for when we were more afraid of stepping on people’s toes than on challenging their self-assurance.

  Forgive us for when we have failed to be your calming voice in the surrounding turmoil, for when we have failed to be your revealing light in the surrounding darkness.  In your mercy, forgive us.

 Merciful God, forgive us for our pride that prevents us from stooping to help someone or from getting our hands dirty.  Forgive us for our laxity in being regular in reading the Bible or spending time in prayer with you.

  Forgive us for when we are not excited when a new day dawns, because each day is a gift from you to be treasured.  In your mercy forgive us our sins and our shortcomings. 

Cleanse us from all that darkens our souls and prevents us from true fellowship with you and with others.

  Through your Spirit may we be diligent to live out our faith in our words and our deeds, in our conversations and our relationships.  In your name we pray.  Amen.

Assurance of Forgiveness 

(from Psalm 19: 12b, 13b and 14b) 

  The writer of Psalm 19 clearly states that it is only God who can remove from our live our hidden faults and our wilful sins.  It is God who is our redeemer and the one who frees us from the hold of sin in our lives.  Having confessed our sins before God, let us hold onto this truth, assured that God has listened to our pleas and that God has answered us by forgiving our sins and cleansing our souls.

  Thanks be to God.

Prayer for others

Let us come before God with our cares and our concerns.

Let us come before God with our cares and our concerns.

Almighty God, we pray for the Church, that we may recognize our identity as members of the Body of Christ and manifest the Good News in our lives, our families, and our workplaces.

We pray for openness to the Holy Spirit, that we may nurture and develop the gifts that the Spirit has given us and use them to build up the Body of Christ and in service of others.

We pray for the gift of discernment, that leaders and every member of the Christian community will listen for your invitation to further the mission of Jesus in all the ways which the Human family needs healing and enlightenment.

We pray for pastors and preachers, that you will inspire them with words that will renew the faith of those who hear them and encourage them to greater trust in your providence.

We pray for greater openness to your Word, that we may allow your Word to enter our deepest selves, enlighten the darkness of our hearts, and free us to live as your daughters and sons.

We pray for all who are discerning their vocation, that you will lead them to people and experiences which will help them recognize how you are calling them to use their lives and gifts in the service of others.

We pray for the members of all levels of our Government, that the Spirit will move them to greater cooperation, guide them in addressing the greatest issues in people’s lives, and inspire them with ways promote justice and the common good.

We pray that we may recognize all of creation as God’s gift to us and grow in awareness of our responsibility to care for the Earth and exercise good stewardship of the Earth’s resources.  Teach us to use our resources for the relief of suffering and want, and not for personal gain or profit.

We pray for all who struggle with emotional and mental illness, that they may come to a time of where they receive your peace and relief from their struggles.

We pray for healing within churches, that you will free us from rivalries and past wounds so that we can work together in serving Christ who brought forgiveness to all.  Inspire your Church to be a true witness to the World of your grace and mercy to all of Humanity.  May it have the courage to confront false idols and prophets, and highlight that other religions are but the deceit of Satan.

We pray for those who are ill, that they will experience healing and wholeness in their lives, and may they experience support and assistance from those who are close to them. 

We pray for the doctors, nurses, pharmacists and other care givers who are treating those suffering from Covid-19 and its effects.  Please give to them the guidance and understanding that they need to promote healing for those under their care.  Give them the energy and endurance to sustain their work each day.  Encourage them with the understanding that they are your workers, undertaking your tasks od bringing healing and relief to those who are suffering and in need.

We pray for those in Tonga and Fiji who have suffered from the effects of the recent volcanic eruption.  We pray for swift delivery of goods and services to meet their immediate needs for clean water, food and shelter, and so that repairs to homes and infrastructure can take place.

We pray for peace and a reduction in international tensions, that you will give all leaders a bigger vision, remove fear from their hearts, and remove troops from borders in Eastern Europe.

Copyright © 2021. Joe Milner. All rights reserved.<br> Permission is hereby granted to reproduce for personal or parish use. – https://liturgy.slu.edu/ 

(Raymond Chapman in Leading Intercessions Year C p92, David Hostetter in Prayers for the Seasons of God’s People Year C p43)

We pray for the peoples of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen, amidst the ethnic, religious, social and international tension in the Persian Gulf and in and around the Arabian Peninsula.  We pray those who continue to pursue peace in the midst of such strife and terrorism, that you will strengthen their efforts, that you will bring fruit to their efforts, and that the world will be led to give weight to moves for peace.  We pray for the encouragement of Christians who practice their faith in these Nations even when they are a small, often discriminated minority.

We prayfor women and others in these countries who are deprived of basic freedoms and human dignity, that those in authority and power will realise their error and accept your standard that all people have equal value and dignity.

We pray for those who misuse or exploit religious identity for extremist political ends, that they will kneel before you , repent of their error, and turn around and work for reconciliation.

We pray for the wise use of the benefits of oil and other natural resources for the sake of all and not for a select privileged few, for the sake of eliminating want and disease.

We pray for the emergence of stable democratic societies based on the rule of law, social justice, and respect for religious and other freedoms for all peoples.

Send your peace, O Lord, which is perfect and everlasting, that our souls may radiate peace.

Send your peace, O Lord, that we may think, act, and speak harmoniously.

Send your peace, O Lord, that we may be contented and thankful for your bountiful gifts.

Send your peace, O Lord, that amidst our worldly strife we may enjoy your bliss.

Send your peace, O Lord, that we may endure all, tolerate all in the thought of your grace and mercy.

Send your peace, O Lord, that our lives may become a divine vision, and in your light all darkness may vanish.

Send your peace, O Lord, that we your children on earth may all unite in one family.

(from http://www.worldhealingprayers.com/6.html)

(https://www.oikoumene.org/resources/prayer-cycle/bahrain-kuwait-oman-qatar-saudi-arabia-united-arab-emirates-yemen)

We pray for the sustaining and support for The Leprosy Mission Bangladesh’s projects providing leprosy control, community-based rehabilitation, advocacy, research, and leprosy referral services.  We pray for the ongoing success and benefits from their research into leprosy as a major pathway to achieving zero leprosy transmission, disability, and discrimination.  We pray that they will have the necessary resources.  We pray for the success of the support TLM Bangladesh gives to the National Tuberculosis Programme in two districts to reduce the prevalence of tuberculosis.

The pandemic unsettled regular service provision for persons affected by leprosy in Bangladesh, we pray for the team as they work through these challenges and for staff wellbeing as they maintain services in the field, for their physical and mental wellbeing.

(Leprosy%20Mission%202022%20Prayer%20Diary.pdf)

We pray for the Scripture Union chaplains and staff from the Queensland office who attended prayer retreats this week, that they will be refreshed and renewed to take on their roles in the coming year.  We pray that you will uplift them in body, mind and spirit as they undertake their roles in serving the children and youth of this state. 

We pray for the work Scripture Union is undertaking in the ACT, that you will guide people with the right heart to maintain and develop the programs in schools.  We pray for the staff and volunteers in the SU office in Tasmania, that you will watch over them as they serve in your name.

We pray for the Religious Instruction classes at Bald Hills State School, thanking you for the enthusiasm of the leaders.  We pray that your Holy Spirit may be at work in the minds and hearts of the children who attend RI classes this coming year.

We pray for Kylie Conomos, the Chaplain at Bald Hills State School, that you will guide her as her interacts with the pupils and children at the School, that she will be aware of needs and of how to respond, that she is refreshed physically and spiritually as these holidays end, so as to cope with what each day presents.

We pray for your blessing on the continuing deliberations of those on Church Council as they consider how the Congregation is to move forward in the future.

Loving God, we bring these prayers to you, trusting in your compassion and care.  To your glory we pray.

Loving God, we bring these prayers to you, trusting in your compassion and care.  To your glory we pray.

The Lord’s Prayer

Our Father in Heaven, hallowed be your name,

your kingdom come,

your will be done, on Earth as it is in Heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us.

Save us from the time of trial and deliver us from evil,

For the Kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours,

Now and forever.  Amen.