PRAYERS FOR WORSHIP January 1, 2011
Greeting
This is the first day of the week,
the first day of the new year,
the first day of the rest of your life.
It is fitting, then, that we begin it
in the Lord’s Presence,
For He is the First Cause of all things
and the first fruits of the resurrection.
Penitential Prayer
Hear our prayer for the new year as we confess our weaknesses
and seek Your strength
Instead of feeling unwanted,
may we know that You love us unconditionally.
Instead of being weak,
may we feel the throb of Divine power within us.
Instead of being ineffective,
may we know we can participate in Your victories.
Instead of feeling worthless,
may we realize that You have a purpose for us.
Instead of feeling fearful,
may we experience Your powerful Divine presence.
Instead of being undirected,
may we accept the guidance of Your Spirit.
Instead of being undisciplined,
May we follow Your prescriptions for a well-ordered life.
Blessing
Look not backward, lest you become fearful.
Look not sideways, lest you be tempted.
Look not downward, lest you become discouraged.
Look only upward, from which comes Your help,
and forward, to the road which leads both to duty and to glory.
PRAYERS FOR WORSHIP January 2, 2011
Greeting
As we worship at the threshold of eternal things,
the very doorway of heaven,
let us leave behind everything that would make us stumble, and enter with expectant joy.
Penitential Prayer
Forgive us, Lord, for doing the right things at the wrong time.
When we should have listened, we talked; and when we should have talked, we were silent.
When we should have helped, we just said words of encouragement; and when we should have just encouraged, we stepped in and did it ourselves.
When we should have been strict, we were lenient; and when we should have been lenient, we were strict.
When we should have been firm, we vacillated; and when we should have been gentle, we were harsh.
When we should have been patient, we hurried; and when we should have been prompt, we were slow.
Forgive us, Lord, for doing the right things at the wrong time.
Blessing
May the providence of the Father who hovers over you,
the presence of the Son who stands beside you,
and the power of the Spirit who lives within you,
be the strength of your life.
PRAYERS FOR WORSHIP January 9, 2011
Greeting
We have come to praise the Lord to the fullest
We have come to thank the Lord to the fullest
We have come to pay attention to the Lord to the fullest
We have come to listen to the Word of the Lord
Penitential Prayer
Jesus came to tell us about the unique value of God’s Grace, Presence, Love, and Power.
Forgive us Lord for not listening.
Jesus came to tell us that this Presence of God is that unique something we should seek first in our lives.
Forgive us Lord for not listening.
Jesus came to tell us that this Loving Presence of God is the one thing needful in our ongoing, day-to-day efforts to experience wholeness of life.
Forgive us Lord for not listening.
Jesus came to tell us that, the experience of God’s Loving Presence in our lives becomes most real to us when we reflect it, in and through our acts of loving service to other persons.
Forgive us Lord for not listening.
Blessing
Go forth now with open minds and hearts.
Go forth now listening to the Word of Lord as it resonates in our souls.
PRAYERS FOR WORSHIP January 16, 2011
Greeting
Welcome to this circle of love,
this community of acceptance,
this fellowship of concern,
this Church of Jesus Christ.
Penitential Prayer
We acknowledge Jesus as the Lamb of God, and in so doing we confess that we are among those who have made necessary the sacrifices of that Lamb.
We acknowledge that Jesus takes away the sins of the world, and in so doing we confess that those sins of the world include our own.
We acknowledge Jesus as the Messiah, the promised and anointed delivered; and in so doing we confess that we are among those who need to be delivered.
Blessing
Be imitators of Christ:
serving,
saving,
sacrificing,
until His Kingdom has fully come.
PRAYERS FOR WORSHIP January 23, 2011
Greeting
We gather here this morning,
to set higher goals,
to seek new challenges,
to choose better priorities,
to envision loftier ideals.
Let us accomplish this by looking to Christ,
who calls us to follow Him.
Penitential Prayer
O God, forgive us for being less than we could be;
for being satisfied with low goals,
for being afraid of new challenges,
for choosing the path of least resistance,
for accepting our sins as natural,
our problems as insurmountable,
our failures as inevitable.
Too quickly we have been willing to declare defeat.
Too often we have believed it couldn’t be done.
Too easily we have said, “It’s no use trying.”
We have counted our resources without including those You make available to us.
We have concentrated on our debts while ignoring our assets.
Enable us, Lord, to catch a vision of Your great plan for our lives. Then may we march forward saying with Paul, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
Blessing
Go out, now, to change your world,
upbuilding your homes with love,
your business with integrity,
your communities with concern,
your society with justice.
PRAYERS FOR WORSHIP January 30, 2011
Greeting
Only those who have open hands can receive.
Only those who have open minds can learn.
Only those who have open souls can be filled.
Penitential Prayer
We admit this morning to the sin of pride
We have difficulty in admitting we are wrong.
We find it so hard to say, “I’m sorry.”
We are eager to think of excuses for our mistakes.
We tend to criticize others in order to make ourselves look better.
We often close our minds to the opinions of others.
We pretend to know, when we really don’t.
Forgive us, Lord, and remove our conceit.
Humble us, and give us a healthy sense of awe before You.
Blessing
Speak the truth,
but do so in love.
Proclaim the faith,
but do so in humility.
Contend for the right,
but do so in gentleness.
