Every moment of every day, we live solely by the grace and mercy of Almighty God. It is He who gives us life, sustains life, and gives life its meaning. In gratitude to God for His endless blessings, we gather to sing His praise, ask for His forgiveness, and pray for His assistance for people in need all around us and all over the world. It is right and proper for us to worship and bless the God who made and protects us. Therefore let us, with confidence, worship God.
Pastoral Prayer
O Thou who art the only truly self-contained being in the universe, we who are clearly not self-contained bow before Thee to praise Thee for creating everything that exists, all of which comes solely from Thee and Thy creative purposes. When we consider that Thou hast never been under any compunction to create anything, we stand before Thee in awe, realizing that we exist because of Thine inexpressible existence. Grant to us a proper sense of awe for each of our many days, all of which are gifts from Thee. Help us also to use whatever time we have to the greatest benefit of the universe and this world which are illustrations of Thy handiwork.
We thank Thee for one another, and for all the people who have ever lived on this planet. They all are Thy children, and we are related to them all. Be with us in the divisions which come so readily and naturally to us, and help us to resolve our differences. We pray for government leaders of all nations who seek to give direction and guidance to their people, and who struggle with hard choices in the process. We particularly pray for our own elected officials, who continue to allow opposing philosophies to stymie their efforts to move us forward as a nation. Crush the pride of those who refuse to talk to their political opponents, and grant wisdom to those for whom wisdom is currently in very short supply. Give to us political peace in our time, O Lord.
Hearing about yet another person who was mentally ill who died because of the inner forces who led her into very erratic behavior, we pray for the millions of others like her who also suffer from mental imbalances of varying sorts. Bless those who seek to assist such people in their afflictions: psychiatrists, psychologists, counselors, and pharmacologists who do research for new medications to aid those who suffer from mental illnesses. Lord God, the life of many of us is very hard, but Thou canst ease it by Thy healing grace. Grant to all of us the trust that Thy will for us is solely for our health, and teach us how better to avail ourselves of healers and medical advances. These things we pray in the name of the one we call the Great Physician, Jesus Christ, Thy Son. Now we pray as he taught us, saying, our Father….