Sometimes it feels to us as though the earth has swallowed us up, or that we have sunk to the bottom of the sea. In times such as that we cry out to God, hoping that He will hear us and respond to us. When we worship, we are reminded once again that the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting, and that in adversity God never forgets any of us. Therefore, with joyful hearts and in recognition of the wondrous love of God, let us worship Him with gratitude and confidence.
Pastoral Prayer
Loving God, we come to Thee in prayer, not because we are worthy, but because we are unworthy. When we seriously consider our lives, and ponder the things we should have done and didn’t do, and the things we should not have done and did do, we realize how far short of the mark we fall. Forgive us for our sins of both commission and omission, and inspire us to seek to do better and to be stronger and to love longer. We thank Thee for the assurance we have of Thy forgiveness through the one Thou hast sent into the world on our behalf, Jesus, Thy Son, and our Elder Brother. Draw us ever closer to Him, and thus also ever closer to Thee.
We pray once again for the people of Gaza, especially civilians who cannot manage to get away from the violence, and who fear that no help shall ever come to them in time. We pray for those who feel compelled to make decisions regarding this war-torn land, but who are very uncertain what to do, if anything. We pray also for people in other areas of the world where political or military violence are commonplace, yet who fail to make it into our headlines or onto our television screens. Lord God, so many people have so many continuous traumas, and we do not know what to do to assist them. Be Thou the strength and hope of everyone in dire need, even if they do not turn to Thee, or ask for Thy grace. Become God to those who recognize no God, and thus may their lives be transformed as well as the lives of those whom they influence.
We pray for those who recently have lost someone much loved, and who played a vital role in their lives. Grant the assurance of life eternal to those whose primary current awareness is only of death, both cruel and final. Uphold the sick, the dispirited, the ostracized, the imprisoned, and the forgotten. O Thou who never forgets any of Thy children, pour out Thy power on all of us, but especially on the most needy of us. These things we ask in the name of Jesus Christ, our earthly Lord. Now we pray together as he taught his followers, saying, Our Father….