PRAYERS FOR WORSHIP January 1, 2015
Greeting
In Psalm 31, the Holy Troubadour sings,
“You are my God,
my time is secure in Your hands.”
We have come to acknowledge, in one voice:
“You are the God of us all. Our time is secure in Your hands.”
Our time belongs to God.
Our New Year 2015, belongs to God.
Penitential Prayer
Heavenly Father, we confess
that we have usurped Your time;
that we have used Your time for our own selfish purposes;
that we have wasted Your time in idle
pursuits.
Therefore, Heavenly Father, in asking Your forgiveness we hasten to reaffirm
that our time belongs to You;
that our time is insecure in our weak hands;
that we come and go in time according to Your Divine Plan;
that our time is secure only in Your hands;
that because Your gift of time is lovingly tendered to us, we must give lovingly of our time to You Father, and to all our brothers and sisters in Christ.
Blessing
As the tree trunk supports its branches,
your faith supports you.
As the rain sustains the rivers,
your hope sustains you.
As the Lord God lovingly fulfills His creation,
your love for one another fulfills you.
Happy New Year!
PRAYERS FOR WORSHIP January 4, 2015 Greeting
On the first Epiphany
the three kings found Jesus in the manger
and paid Him homage with gifts of
frankincense
gold
and myrrh.
On this Epiphany Sunday,
let us find Jesus in this House
and give Him praise with gifts of
reverence
music
and prayer.
Penitential Prayer
Father, forgive us for traveling on life’s road
heading in the wrong direction.
We make our way towards
status
wealth
pride
narrow-mindedness
and self-centeredness;
and move away from Your Kingdom of
service
truth
peace
love
and brotherhood.
Forgive us, Lord, for our misguided journey.
Forgive us for being a wrong way people.
Blessing
Kneeling on crumpled straw
on a dirt floor
in a humble stable
three great kings became greater still — for they
had served the Lord.
Go now, wherever Christ’s ministry takes you
and you shall become great — in your service
to the Lord.
PRAYERS FOR WORSHIP January 11, 2015
Greeting
Dear baptized Christians,
women and men,
parents and children,
sons and daughters,
brothers and sisters,
sinners and potential saints,
Christ calls you to serve others. Can Christ count on you to be of service? Come, and give your answer!
Penitential Prayer
Lord, we who are Your baptized people,
have acted like turncoats;
have acted as though we knew all the answers;
have lost our taste for the Holy Spirit;
have lost our zeal for Christian mission;
have lost our spirit of loving service.
Nevertheless, Lord, we want to make a new effort.
We want You to know that You can count on us.
We want to accept Your forgiveness, because we want to keep on trying!
Blessing
We came to hear the Lord’s Word
and reaffirm our baptismal vows in His Name.
We go now with His Word on our lips,
and His Name in our hearts.
PRAYERS FOR WORSHIP January 18, 2015
Greeting
In Jesus, our Messiah,
God is present among us.
Through Jesus, our Messiah,
God assures us that we are never abandoned;
From Jesus, our Messiah,
we will learn where we are going.
But, in the Name of Jesus, let us all admit
that we need direction.
Speak Lord, Your servants are listening!
Penitential Prayer
Father,
We have listened only after deciding in advance what You had to tell us;
We have been guilty of selective tuning,
letting in Your message of comfort and security, but shutting out Your message of responsibility and commitment;
We have refused to recognize Your voice in the cries for help transmitted through throbbing, suffering, living humanity.
We have paid little attention to Your solemn declaration that, “Whatever You do to My brothers, you do to Me.”
Father, for these sins of pride and disbelief, we beg Your mercy.
Blessing
Go forth now …
Full of joy and the Holy Spirit,
boldly proclaiming the Good News:
Look! There is the Lamb of God
who takes away the sins of the world!
PRAYERS FOR WORSHIP January 25, 2015
Greeting
This is the time of fulfillment!
The reign of God is at hand!
Reform your lives!
Believe in the Gospel!
Follow Jesus!
Penitential Prayer
God, our Father, we admit that we have failed to be the followers of Christ You want us to be.
We regret our failure to recognize the presence of Jesus Christ in one another.
Liberate us from being further tortured by our failures. Release us from their yoke, so that we can move forward into the future unafraid, knowing that even if we fail, Your help which comes to us through Jesus Christ, is never out of reach.
Blessing
Each of us is called to follow Jesus in his or her own unique, individual way. Jesus knows our limitations and our capabilities and guides us accordingly. Jesus knows where He is leading us, but we must follow.
Take up His Cross
and follow Him!