God of our past and our present,
God of our future, yet to be and awaited,
God of our years, our days, and even of this moment:
Our lives are deeply rooted in miracles before us,
Our faith is richly set in courage running thick,
Our vocation is shaped by all those who have risked for your purposes.
And now, in our remembering, make us mindful of our own place of calling,
and our own time of obedience.

We pray for ourselves, our neighborhoods and our world,
courage beyond our easier timidity,
vision beyond our present tense,
restlessness beyond our ready settlements, and
yielding beyond our will to manage.

Give us appropriate yielding that we may be like our remembered ones
in freedom and in love for you.
We pray in the name of Jesus whom we remember until he comes again.

Amen.

Congregational Prayer

In prayer, let us confess to God as a community.

Lord God, Creator of all,
You have spoken to us but we have shut out your voice.
Your Spirit convicts us of our sin and our brokenness,
But we have tried to drown you out with the noise of this world.
We would rather hear our own named praised among men
rather than the name of Jesus.
We prefer telling people about our petty accomplishments
rather than speaking of your righteousness.

Lord, forgive us. Correct us.

Build in us a longing for your comforting voice.
Give us a thirst for your satisfying Word.
Give us joy in speaking your truth
into people’s lives.

May we be faithful stewards,
and humbly seek your guidance,
God in community, holy in One.

Amen.

Reflection

What does prayer look like for you?
How does it connect you with what God’s doing?
Are you focused more on the end result or the mysterious process of prayer?

Benediction

We go now, secure in the love of God from which nothing can separate us.
We delight in seeking the Lord looking always for the power and the presence of God,
letting love permeate all that we do.

May God work for good in all things through us;
May Christ Jesus conform us in the image of his sacrificial love;

And may the Holy Spirit help us in our weakness,
interceding for us, and in us, according to the will of God.

In peace, may we live to love and serve the Lord,
In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

Amen.

Go in peace and live the church.
See you throughout the week.

[Photo by smarsham @ Flickr]