Today, as on all Sundays, we gather in praise of a God we believe to be omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent He is always aware of all of us, all of the time. He never slumbers nor sleeps. We cannot adequately imagine such a being, and yet we are moved to bow before Him in awe and reverence. Worship is a gift, a privilege, and also the ingestion of spiritual vitamins. Therefore let us, with deep gratitude to Him who watches over Israel, worship God.
Pastoral Prayer
All praise and thanks be to Thee, Lord God of creation. For reasons known only to Thee, Thou hast brought the universe into being, and Thou dost oversee it with an astonishing permanent and perpetual concern. Help us to avail ourselves of Thy care of us, a care which never pauses or rests. Continually convince us that Thou art with us and around us and in us at all times, and that therefore we need fear nothing.
Even as we offer such a prayer for ourselves, we pray also for others who are ensnared in a web of fear from which they cannot extricate themselves. We pray for people who live in nations or cultures where violence and warfare are commonplace, and who cannot know from one day to the next whether they shall continue living. We pray for people who fear starvation, whose lives are so fragile that they might die at any time - alone, overlooked, and afraid. We pray for people who are painfully or terminally ill, who know that death is coming, but they do not know when. In the extreme situations which so many people face, Lord God, we ask Thee to infuse their spirits with the hope that alone can emanate from Thy loving grace. Be Thou our strength when we have no strength in ourselves.
We thank Thee for the faith Thou hast given us, and for the hope represented by that faith. We do not know why we should be so fortunate as to be the recipients of faith, for we did nothing to deserve it. Nevertheless we have it, and we recognize it as a gift from Thee. Help us to make the best use possible of this gift, not only for ourselves, but also for those around us. Make this particular congregation a more committed community of faith, as we share with one another our convictions and longings and concerns. These and all our prayers we make in the name of Jesus, the great head of the Church, who has drawn all of us into Thy presence. Now we pray together as he taught us, saying, Our Father….