Prayers for the week commencing Sunday 1st May 2022

Prayer of Praise

(from Psalm 30)

Great and glorious God, only to you do I offer worship and praise.

I cry to you in times of need and you answer me. I seek you in times of distress and you comfort me.

Loving God, to you I give unqualified and unbounded thanks.

I remember all the great and marvellous things that you have done in my life.

Holy God, I acknowledge those moments when you have chastened and corrected me,

When you showed your anger towards my failings and my wanderings.

Yet I remember a lifetime of experiencing your unfailing goodness towards me,

I rejoice because you have remained faithful to me even when I have not remained faithful to you.

Almighty God, when I was afraid of where life was heading you did not hide yourself from me,

You provided strength and security when I needed them most,

When I felt that there was no hope left and only darkness lay ahead of me,

You restored hope in my life and joy in my living.

I will not be silent; I will sing praise to you.

LORD, you are my God; I will give you thanks forever. Amen.

Prayer of Confession

Merciful God, we are conscious of our inadequacy before your holiness and of our unworthiness to receive your unmerited favour towards us.

We are ashamed of our sins that have caused you despair and disgust.

Merciful God, we covert the things of this World, the transient security and illusionary happiness from possessing things and experiencing pleasures,

And do not savour the delights of being in your presence. Forgive us.

Merciful God, we give credibility to the claims of the importance of belonging to race or clan, of holding onto status and privilege, or of particular social or political beliefs,

And, in doing do, deviate from our worship of you by putting our trust and hope in the gods of this Age. Forgive us.

Merciful God, we give credence to the false promise that we can achieve goodness and greatness by our own efforts and abilities,

And, in doing so, begin to believe that we can become gods ourselves. Forgive us.

Merciful God, we neglect the consequences of our words and our actions,

And grieve when we realise that we have hurt and upset others by what we do and say. Forgive us.

Merciful God, we turn away from the despair and the hurt of the needy,

And neglect to show compassion to the very people who you sought to love. Forgive us.

Merciful God, we turn away from your calling to serve you in the World,

And neglect our responsibility to bear witness to your plan for saving people from their sins, achieved through the death and resurrection of your son, Jesus Christ. Forgive us.

Merciful God, we are reminded of your lovingkindness and compassion to all who believe.

Release us from our guilt and give us peace of mind of sins forgiven and forgotten. Amen.

Assurance of Forgiveness

(from Revelation 5: 9 & 12)

The Apostle John records the words of the Heavenly beings who attend the throne of God, singing their praises of Jesus, saying:

“The Lamb who was killed is worthy to receive power, wealth, wisdom, and strength, honour, glory, and praise, for, by your sacrificial death, you bought for God people of every tribe, language, nation, and race.”

Let us rest on this assurance that by the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ, our sins have been forgiven and that through Jesus Christ we have been brought into the very presence of God.

Thanks be to God.

Prayers for Others

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

We pray for the Church, that, empowered by the Holy Spirit, we may give convincing witness to the freeing and healing power of the Risen Christ.

We pray for greater discipleship, that we may not be limited by past failures but be open to your new invitations for service and rely upon you to bring to fulfillment the mission entrusted to us.

We pray for growth in trust, that we may surrender our disappointments and failures to you so that we may be renewed and raised up for new opportunities.

We pray for the grace of awareness, that you will open our minds and hearts to recognize Christ in the people, events, and experiences of daily life.

We pray for all who face suffering or persecution for being a Christian, that your Holy Spirit will strengthen them to give faithful witness to Christ and to your love for all.

We pray for all who exercise ministry in the Church, that their actions may be rooted in love, service, and commitment to Christ as they assist fellow Christians in deepening their discipleship.

We pray for a spirit of openness and acceptance, that we may welcome the stranger and immigrant into our communities and help them to build a new life.

We pray for all who earn their living on the seas, that you will protect them from harm and increase the quality and quantity of fish for the good of the Human family.

We pray for insight and courage, that we may bring the witness of the Gospel to the social and political issues of our day and that the Holy Spirit will give us words to effectively communicate the truth.

We pray for Peace, that you will turn hearts from violence, open minds to the pain that it causes, and open new opportunities for dialogue and understanding.

A prayer for Ukraine

We pray for the people of Ukraine, who find themselves in the midst of a war that is not of their making. Some have had to witness horrendous scenes, that will remain etched in their memories forever.

We pray for the millions of people who have been displaced within the country, and in neighbouring countries.

May they be guided to safe havens, and find a welcome in those places where they have sought refuge. Many have lost loved ones. Many have lost their homes. May they find peace and solace for what they have lost. We pray too for the loved ones they have had to leave behind to defend their country.

We pray for those who are trapped in Mariupol, that a safe exit might be negotiated for them.

We find it difficult to find forgiveness in our hearts for those who have wrought such havoc, but if Jesus could pray for his tormentors, may we find room to forgive the Russian president and his military commanders, and those who have committed atrocities. We pray that your Spirit might work in their hearts to change their plans.

We pray too for the leaders of the nations who are trying to assist Ukraine. May they be given the wisdom to find a way to end to the aggression, without escalating the situation.

A prayer from the World Council of Churches

We pray for the people of Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia. We give thanks for the long history of Christianity in these lands, for the way Christians have witnessed to their faith during long years of repression and persecution, for positive developments these countries have undergone since the end of the Soviet era, and for those who pursue peace and reconciliation in the face of old suspicions and animosities.

We pray for greater respect for the human rights of all the peoples living in these countries, for just changes for those living in situations of poverty and discrimination, for the healing of past wrongs and distorted memories of what has occurred, for a prophetic witness of the churches in relation to new challenges, and for the Georgian Orthodox Church, that it may rediscover a rich relationship with the family of churches worldwide.

Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia | World Council of Churches (oikoumene.org)

Leprosy Mission

We pray for the work of The Leprosy Mission in Mozambique, as it strives to improve the livelihoods of those affected by leprosy through their projects and partnership with the government.

We ask for your blessing as it works in close cooperation with the Health Department to support the Leprosy Control Project in the province of Cabo Delgado, which features the innovative use of mobile phone technology to facilitate data recording.

We ask that you will bless its work with ALEMO, a leprosy peoples’ organisation, to improve the livelihoods of its members through enhanced agriculture methods, training, and advocacy.

We ask for your protection for Umoja (Swahili for ‘unity’) facilitators in the North Zone, during this time of ongoing conflict in the region. May they be able to continue to promote ‘Umoja’ in their new communities.

We ask for your blessing on the ‘Ready4PEP’ activities in the district of Chiure, which im to work with contacts of people who are affected by leprosy, so as to significantly reduces their risk of developing the disease.

We pray that you will open the way for them to work with partners in the province of Zambezia.

We ask that you will encourage more people to support the initiative of The Innovation Media Hubs in more communities, providing them with the means to access helpful information and training through tech hubs in remote villages.

(The Leprosy Mission Prayer Diary 2022)

Uniting World

We pray for the Church of North India as it strives to break down barriers of caste, class and gender, so as to overcome economic inequality and exploitation.

We ask for your blessing on their activities during Covid-19 lockdowns to provide emergency rations and to help families to remotely access school resources.

We ask for your blessing on projects among lower caste communities supported by Uniting World that provide education, access to knowledge about political and social rights, clean water and sanitation.

(Uniting World)

Scripture Union

We pray for the Scripture Union chaplains attending the Far North and North Queensland in-service days. Please bless the chaplains with a time to be refreshed and renewed in their vision for your ministry in schools in their regions.

We pray that you will bless those attending the Katherine Christian Convention this week-end, that it will be a time of challenge and renewal. Bless the work of Scripture Union as they run the Children’s program, that your Spirit will be working in the hearts and minds of the children who attend these activities.

(SU Prayer guide)

We pray for Ian and the other leaders of Religious Education classes at Bald Hills State School, that they will be encouraged and equipped to present the Gospel message to the children. May the Holy Spirit work in the minds and the hearts of the children in the classes that the hope of the salvation that you offer will become real to them.

We pray for Kylie Conomos, that you will motive her and support her as she seeks to address the physical and spiritual needs of the children the families and the teachers associated with the Bald Hills State School.

We pray for those whom we have not seen for some time we ask that they will experience your closeness with them each day.

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