Category: Prayer items

Call to worship

God of creation, You brought life to all that we see.
You set the boundaries of the universe and placed us within its care.
Creator God, breathe life into Your creation

Holy Spirit, You bind Your children together in community.
Your bonds transcend borders created by humankind.
You kindle the fire within us that stirs our passion for faith, justice, and reconciliation.
Spirit God, inspire us to reconcile

Jesus the Christ, You came to teach and to lead. You showed us the cost of discipleship when You stood up against the powers of the world, and they tried to suppress Your truth by sentencing You to death. Your life was more powerful than death and Your truth lives on in us.
Jesus the Christ, help us reflect Your light of truth and peace

People of God,
We are called to know our place in the great cloud of witnesses.
We are called to run with perseverance the race that is set before us.
We are called to worship as those who put their trust in Jesus,
the pioneer and perfecter of faith.

Let us pray

Gracious God,
We know You to be generous and full of compassion
but in our anxiety we have stumbled and lost our way.
Called to be a voice for the voiceless we have been silent.
Challenged to fight for justice we have turned away.
Co-opted to the work of breaking down barriers
we have been quick to judge and slow to welcome.

Forgive all the moments when we have neglected
to seek out Your will and to follow it.

Silence

Grant us the courage to be Your faithful people
that Your compassion may flow through us to heal a broken world.
Amen

Psalm 80

¹ Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel,
   you who lead Joseph like a flock!
You who are enthroned upon the cherubim, shine forth
²   before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh.
Stir up your might,
   and come to save us!

⁸ You brought a vine out of Egypt;
   you drove out the nations and planted it.
⁹ You cleared the ground for it;
   it took deep root and filled the land.
¹⁰ The mountains were covered with its shade,
   the mighty cedars with its branches;
¹¹ it sent out its branches to the sea,
   and its shoots to the River.
¹² Why then have you broken down its walls,
   so that all who pass along the way pluck its fruit?
¹³ The boar from the forest ravages it,
   and all that move in the field feed on it.

¹⁴ Turn again, O God of hosts;
   look down from heaven, and see;
have regard for this vine,
¹⁵   the stock that your right hand planted.
¹⁶ They have burned it with fire, they have cut it down;
   may they perish at the rebuke of your countenance.
¹⁷ But let your hand be upon the one at your right hand,
   the one whom you made strong for yourself.
¹⁸ Then we will never turn back from you;
   give us life, and we will call on your name.

¹⁹ Restore us, O Lord God of hosts;
   let your face shine, that we may be saved.

Assurance of forgiveness

God would have us be honest in all things.
To cry out when we are in pain
to seek guidance when we are lost
and to trust in God’s strength when we are afraid.

Give thanks that we are reconciled to God
and free to be the people that God would have us be.
Amen

Prayers of intercession

God of the ages,
You have walked with Your people
from the moment that first we walked on the earth.
You heard our cry when we were oppressed,
gave us strength and courage when doubt and despair threatened.

The earth has been divided and brought to destruction
by human fear, greed and the lust for power.
We, Your people, turn to You,
knowing that only in You can we flourish and grow.

Where division has given rise to distrust,
build bridges of understanding.
Where greed pollutes and threatens life,
open hearts to share and build in partnership.

God of the present moment,
Your love does not stop at borders.
Your grace is given freely to those who
are willing to hear and to trust.

The people of Korea have lived too long
divided and fearful for the future.
Grant them the courage to believe
that their cry has been heard.
Where nuclear weapons have been used
to threaten and keep apart,
turn swords into ploughshares
that people North and South may be fed and prosper.

God of all that is to be,
with people across the world
we pray for the end of war
and the dawn of a new age.

Let all that threatens the earth with destruction
be banished for ever.
Let the voice of those opposed to nuclear threat
grow in confidence and strength.

We will work together with partners across the world
until division is overcome and hostility ended.
We will walk together with You, our God,
into a future where the whole created order lives in harmony.

God of the ages, God of the present, God of all that is to be,
alone we may stumble but together we pray Your kingdom come.
Amen

closing prayer

Lord God,
Fill our minds with Your wisdom
Fill our hearts with Your love
And guide our words and actions
that we might become the living presence of Your peace.
Bless our homeland
That we might witness to Your transforming universal call to justice,
And inspire all that we do in and with Your whole human family
to protect and nurture all of Your creation.

Place within us the mind of servants,
that we might build and nurture a world without violence
in the building of your kingdom of love, justice and peace.
Amen

Opening sentences
My soul waits for the Lord
more than those
who watch for the morning,
more than those
who watch for the morning.

Call: Out of the depths I have cried to You.
Response: O Lord, hear my voice.
Call: With my whole heart I want to praise You.
Response: O Lord, hear my voice.
Call: If you, Lord, should mark iniquities:
Response: Who could stand? who could stand?

I will wait for the Lord, my soul waits,
and in His word do I hope.

Expressions of faith
Lord, You have always given
bread for the coming day;
and though I am poor,
today I believe.

Lord, You have always given
strength for the coming day;
and though I am weak,
today I believe.

Lord, You have always given
peace for the coming day;
and though of anxious heart,
today I believe.

Lord, You have always kept
me safe in trials;
and now, tried as I am,
today I believe.

Lord, You have always marked
the road for the coming day;
and though it may be hidden,
today I believe.

Lord, You have always lightened
this darkness of mine;
and though the night is here,
today I believe.

Lord, You have always spoken
when time was ripe;
and though you be silent now,
today I believe.

Today’s Scripture Reading

Psalm 8:2-6  Out of the mouths of babes and infants you have founded a bulwark because of your foes, to silence the enemy and the avenger. When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars that you have established; what are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them? Yet you have made them a little lower than God, and crowned them with glory and honour. You have given them dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under their feet,

Genesis 3:21-24 And the Lord God made garments of skins for the man and for his wife, and clothed them. Then the Lord God said, ‘See, the man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil; and now, he might reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever’— therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from which he was taken. He drove out the man; and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim, and a sword flaming and turning to guard the way to the tree of life.

Revelation 21:22-22:3a I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God is its light, and its lamp is the Lamb. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it. Its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. People will bring into it the glory and the honour of the nations. But nothing unclean will enter it, nor anyone who practises abomination or falsehood, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life. Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street

of the city. On either side of the river is the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, producing its fruit each month; and the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. Nothing accursed will be found there any more.

Today’s Meditation

Be open to the night…

Pray with open hand, not with clenched fist…

Shapes loom out of the darkness, uncertain and unclear: but the hooded stranger on horseback emerging from the mist need not be assumed to be the bearer of ill…

The night is large and full of wonders…

Lord Dunsany

Prayers for others

Canticle
In the shadow of Your wings
I will sing Your praises, O Lord.

The Lord is my light, my salvation;
whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the refuge of my life;
of whom shall I be afraid?

In the shadow of Your wings
I will sing Your praises, O Lord.

One thing I ask of the Lord,
one thing I seek;
to dwell in the presence of my God,
to gaze on Your holy place.

In the shadow of Your wings
I will sing Your praises, O Lord.

I believe I shall see the goodness
of the Lord in the land of the living.
O wait for the Lord!
Have courage and wait,
wait for the Lord.

In the shadow of Your wings
I will sing Your praises, O Lord.

Blessing
See that ye be at peace among yourselves, my children,
and love one another.
Follow the example of the wise and good
and God will comfort you and help you,
both in this world
and in the world which is to come.

Gathering Prayer

Father God
open our eyes
open our ears
and open our mouths
that we might worship You honestly.
Lift our thoughts above
the pressures of our everyday lives,
that we might
confess our hidden sorrows
and our stolen joys,
our hidden sins
and our stolen intentions of grace.

We come before You with
the sincere intent of seeking
to worship You in spirit and in truth.
Take from our hearts
the stresses and strains
that have shaped our attitudes and actions.

Help us see You in all Your glory
and in doing so
see the true image of who we are meant to be.
Open the windows of our hearts
to let the light of Your glory
transform our vision of service in
even the smallest of actions that will make life better for another.
Teach us how to love You
and in doing so discover we are loving our neighbour. Amen.

Prayer of gratitude

Our Gracious Heavenly Father
in rare moments of insight
we try to grasp the beauty and the expansive nature of Your love.
No words can describe it
no melody contain it
no human being can explain it.

Yet we are surrounded by the emblems of Your love and grace –
In the colours of the sky
in the chaos of the storm
in the song of the birds
in the company of the animals
You tell us all will be well.

In our moments of great fear
when alone and anxious,
You promise to shelter and protect us.
Through days of struggle and heartache, joy and achievement,
surrounded by the companionship of family and friends,
You cover us with a blanket of compassion and kindness.
The constancy of Your grace overwhelms us,
the depth of Your love leaves us breathless.
Standing at the cross
we are transfixed –
gazing, we are
troubled
torn
and broken.

Here You don’t just try to fix us –
You mend us.
Your outstretched arms
have enfolded us in a love we’ve never known.
Your gaze
has healed our troubled souls.
Your love –
the most incredible of all.
Let Your love
now live through us
as we pray

Our Father … Amen

Psalm 82

God has taken his place in the divine council;
   in the midst of the gods he holds judgement:
‘How long will you judge unjustly
   and show partiality to the wicked?
          Selah
Give justice to the weak and the orphan;
   maintain the right of the lowly and the destitute.
Rescue the weak and the needy;
   deliver them from the hand of the wicked.’

They have neither knowledge nor understanding,
   they walk around in darkness;
   all the foundations of the earth are shaken.

I say, ‘You are gods,
   children of the Most High, all of you;
nevertheless, you shall die like mortals,
   and fall like any prince.’

Rise up, O God, judge the earth;
   for all the nations belong to you!

Prayers for others

Let us pray for world peace –
as we remember countries throughout the world
where there is tension and unrest.
Grant to our leaders the wisdom to make right decisions
and to confront evil with good and in doing so
may love cover a multitude of sins and allow justice and peace to blossom.

Hear our prayers today as we name those communities on our hearts today.

(silence)

Lord hear our prayers
We give thanks to You, O God, for Your unfailing goodness.

Let us pray for members of the community
who work and serve the common good.
Sustain and strengthen all those who work tirelessly for the good of others.
We pray especially with those who are part of the emergency services;
doctors and nurses and all the support staff who work in the NHS;
those in the Armed Forces;
for police and those involved in the security of the realm.
Give understanding and wisdom
To teachers and administrators and all who work in our education system;
all politicians and individuals who seek to serve.

Raise up in our land, O Lord,
leaders and others who are willing to serve
not for their own benefit but for the good of our communities
and all those who are oppressed and forgotten.

Lord hear our prayers
We give thanks to You, O God, for Your unfailing goodness.

We pray for family and friends.
Lord bless and prosper our friends and families.
Give to each of us the insight to know when to speak and when to be silent.
To know when to offer help and when help is required without someone asking.
Be close to those we know who are struggling with ill health and facing an uncertain future. Grant us the wisdom to know what to say and how to respond to their needs.
Give perseverance to all those who are enduring difficult times,
in frustrating relationships and challenging work places.
Give strength to those who feel they are running out of options
and feel unable to carry on.
Inspire us with opportunities to carry out deeds of kindness,
without us ever being rewarded,
save knowing that what we do is to bring glory to Your name.

Lord hear our prayers
We give thanks to You, O God, for Your unfailing goodness.

We pray for Your church.
That she would be a place of true worship
A shelter and refuge for all in need of Your grace.
As we seek to reform and reshape,
we pray for Your Spirit to guide and inspire
the Church of Scotland at every level.

And we pray for Your Church here in Bellshill,
for all those meeting in person
and for communities that have formed online.

Lord hear our prayers
We pray that all may know Your presence and guidance.

We pray for our personal needs.
We take a moment in silence to bring before You that which we are personally thankful for and that which is troubling us.

(silence)

Lord hear our prayers
We give thanks to You, O God, for Your unfailing goodness. AMEN

Blessing

We remember before You all who have joined in worship throughout the world today.
Those in cathedrals and places of great historical heritage
and those who have gathered around a kitchen table.

We pray that unity among Your people might be the common calling of Your church.
We pray that in unity we might go out into the world to make disciples,
declaring Your love for all creation.

May the power of the Father of Lights illuminate our minds,
the presence of the Eternal Son embolden our voices,
and gifts of the Spirit of Grace shape our action.
And the blessing of Father, Son and Holy Spirit journey with us evermore.