Prayer of Praise and Confession:   

God of power and might, of love and grace and mercy; by whose spoken Word the World came into being. and without whose guidance we are lost; we stand in awe of you and in adoration lift our voices to you.

We believe that You are our strength; You are our shield;

In our helplessness, we trust that You are our refuge.

In our vulnerability, You are our shelter.

In the midst of darkness, You give us light and rays of hope.

In our pain and suffering, You give us the ability to live in hope with courage; and the wisdom to overcome all difficulties.

Generous God, giver of all good things, with humility and thankfulness we recognise that all we have comes from you.  You are the one who looks after us and provides for our needs.

We give you our heartfelt and everlasting praise for your gracious gift of forgiveness of our sins, of the cleansing of our souls, and of a restored relationship with you.  We give thanks for the many people who have gone before us as witnesses to your great love through serving those in need.  We give thanks for present witnesses who continue to join in your mission of compassionate care and loving service.

Yet we come to You, O God, and confess our weakness and vulnerability.  We confess that we have persevered in our sinfulness and negligence.

We confess that we have neglected Your commandments, that we have offended Your love, that we did not show mercy to each other, that we were not able to curb our greed.  In the midst of the busyness of our daily life, we forget the distinction between good and evil, between truth and falsehood; we neglect the poor, the marginalised and those who we define as different from “us”.

God of mercy, forgive us and remove the taint of sin from our lives.  God of hope, heal us, restore us, and sustain us by Your divine grace.

We come into the light of your Presence, and open ourselves to the healing power of your Spirit, laying bare our brokenness, our deficiencies, and our pain.  Almighty God, trusting in your mercy and grace, we humbly and reverently bring this prayer to you.  Amen.

29%20August%20Blue%20Care%20Sunday%20liturgy.pdf

(© Sahr Kemoore Salia, general secretary, Council of Churches in Sierra Leone, Freetown, Sierra Leone)

Assurance of Forgiveness  

(from Blue Care Sunday 2021 liturgy)  

God has heard our prayer, He has seen our regret and the brokenness of our heart.  Hear then and put your trust in Christ’s words of grace to us: Our sins are forgiven!  We have been reconciled to God.

Thanks be to God.

Prayers for Others

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

Almighty God, we pray for the Church, that we may experience an ever deeper conversion of mind and heart as we allow your Word to instruct and free us.

We pray for a deepening of gratitude, that we may be grateful to you for every blessing and gift, and develop them fully for your glory.

We pray for the gift of spiritual freedom, that you will liberate us from the defences of legalism and rationalism so that we may serve you wherever you calls us.

We pray for wisdom, that you will teach us how to live the virtues of the Christian life and manifest them in new ways in our contemporary society.

We pray for a greater knowledge of ourselves, that you will help us discern our motivations and make life-giving choices each day.

We pray for all who hand on the faith, particularly preachers, teachers, and parents, that they may share their faith clearly and convincingly, and lead others into an experience of your great love.

We pray for conversion from our hypocrisies, that we may recognize where we say one thing and live by another so that we may come to greater integrity and wholeness.

We pray for all who have experienced the evil of human hearts, from unjust laws, from hidden oppression and slavery, that you will heal the pain of those who have experienced abuse, discrimination, or human trafficking and fill them with hope for the future.

We pray for all who have suffered from cover-ups or neglect by Church leaders, that you will comfort and guide them, help their truth to be heard, and guide us in supporting them.  May the Church give leadership in not only doing good, but also in saying what is good, so that the Gospel is not despised as worthless.  Save the Church from preaching what it does not practice.

We pray for all who are suffering from natural disasters and for those assisting them, that you will calm the wildfires and the floods, help the people of Haiti to recover from the recent earthquake, and sustain all who are helping them.

We pray for the people of West Timor who have suffered loss and injury following a recent cyclone.  Please guide those who are rebuilding homes and communities, who are providing aid and care to the homeless and bereaved.

We pray for refugees and displaced persons, particularly those fleeing Afghanistan, that you will guide them to safety, protect them on their journeys, and help them find welcome in new communities.

We pray for greater respect for and stewardship of the Earth’s resources, that we may treasure the natural resources that you have given us and wisely use them for the good of the Human family.

We pray for an end to the Covid-19 pandemic, that you will curtail the surge in the Covid virus, send healing to all who are ill, and give strength and courage to all medical personnel.

We pray for safety in schools, that you will watch over all schools, protect students from violence, and bullying, and help all to grow in knowledge and self-awareness.

We pray that our Society will value the loving care of parents towards their family.  Guide and encourage us to put the dignity and value of each person above economic prosperity and corporate profits.

We pray for peace, that the Holy Spirit will renew the dedication of those working for peace and help all to work together to defeat the common enemies of disease, ignorance, and poverty.

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

(also from Leading Intercessions by Raymond Chapman p75 & 76, and Prayers for the Seasons of God’s People Year B by David Hostetter p174 & 175)

We pray for the work of Blue Care throughout Queensland:

that you will oversee the welfare of the residents in their Residential Aged Care Facilities,

that you will oversee the safe operating of their Retirement Living Facilities,

that you will bless the operating of their Community Care Centres,

that you will guide and support those in leadership positions as they manage staff, finances, procurement and the oversight of programs,

that you will encourage and protect the many volunteers who give of their time and energy to the provision of care and support to those using Blue Care programs and facilities,

that you will encourage and support staff of Blue Care as they provide compassion and care to those in need,

that you will guide those who train and support the staff and volunteers so as to meet their individual context and circumstances,

that you will support Blue Care chaplains as they seek to guide and care for residents of facilities and program users,

that you will guide and bless the work of the Grief and Loss Programs in the various centres and facilities,

that you will guide and bless the work of the Dementia Programs in the various centres and facilities,

that you will guide and bless the Respite Programs in the various centres and facilities,

that you will oversee the commencement of the provision of the Home Care Package Program, that it will meet the care needs and support the wellbeing of people in their homes.

We thank you for the dedication and enthusiasm of the staff, volunteers, and supports of Blue Care and their family members.  Protect and bless them in their involvement in the programs and services of Blue Care.  Direct the delivery of these services so that they provide the very best of care and support for those in need.  Please encourage the Church to do all that is required to continue the work of Blue Care in our communities.

God of all healing, who called the light to shine in the darkness at Creation, and in whose eternal light there is no darkness at all, be a light of hope to those who live in darkness.  Be a support to the fearful, a listener to the lonely, a purpose to those in despair, that amongst the struggles and confusions of the World, they will find the path that leads to the fulness of life, and joy and peace in Jesus Christ our Lord.

(https://www.ncca.org.au/ncca-newsletter/august-2021-1/item/2535-president-s-reflection-2021081)

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.