In worship we see the glory and majesty of God --- in music, in scripture, and in spoken words. But we also perceive the power of God in a distinctly minor key: in brief silence, in minuscule snatches of fleeting words, in a still small voice which we recognize, often only in retrospect, as the voice of God Himself. God comes to us both in power and in weakness, and only the eyes of faith can recognize Him in both guises. Therefore let us, with all the faith and confidence we can muster, worship God!
Pastoral Prayer
Who is like Thee, O God? Who in heaven or on earth is like Thee? From nothing Thou hast created the ever-expanding universe, and we can scarcely imagine how many stars there are with how many planets similar to ours where others such as ourselves may live and may, at this moment, also be worshipping their Creator. We marvel at the incredible intricacy of the earthly order, and how nature reflects Thy purposes and intentions in wonderfully complex patterns and organisms.
But as we praise Thee for the majesty of Thy creation, we also implore Thine assistance to help us be worthy stewards of the world and all its bounties. Individually we may attempt to do our best, but collectively we have no choice but to admit that we are bringing ecological disaster upon this fragile planet. Because it is primarily through national and international actions and through corporations admitting the damage we are creating, we pray Thee to move among governments and parliaments, through major organizations and in corporate boardrooms, that people of power may use their power for the good of all succeeding generations, and not just for the narrow bottom-line self-interest which so often characterizes humanity’s political and economic decisions. Above all, help all of us to feel a sense of responsibility to help prepare the best future possible for the most possible people.
We pray for people who are dying: old people who know their lives are rapidly slipping away and who either do or do not accept and affirm that reality; middle-aged people who long have fought illness or who rather suddenly are faced with health crises which shall spirit them away from this earth; young adults or youth or children who are gripped by diseases which are robbing them of life and who wonder how that can possibly be happening to them. Lord God, we do not understand how or why many things occur in the lives of each of us and all of us. In the midst of our perplexity, we ask for faith to accept that which we cannot comprehend, trust to suppose that even in adversity and sorrow Thou art there, and affirmation to believe that Thy grace is sufficient for all things. We offer these prayers in the name of him who has drawn us into Thy presence, Jesus Christ, whom we also recognize as Lord. Now we pray together as he taught his disciples, saying, Our Father….