BINDING SOUL AND SOURCE
Prayers for the Church Street Family
January 12, 2021
Rev. Dr. Jan Buxton Wade
O Lord, you have searched me and known me.
You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
you discern my thoughts from far away.
You search out my path and my lying down,
and are acquainted with all my ways.
Even before a word is on my tongue,
O Lord, you know it completely.
You hem me in, behind and before,
and lay your hand upon me.
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
it is so high that I cannot attain it.
Where can I go from your spirit?
Or where can I flee from your presence?
How softly the sun slips behind the tree line, signaling the close of another wintry day. As the darkness descends, we turn toward you, Holy One, bowing in thanksgiving for the gifts these hours have brought, particularly . . . . . . . . . . We remember, O God of Reawakening, that strength and courage are born in us when we face trials and tribulations that arrive unannounced. Through these struggles we presently bear, and there are many, thank you for fortifying us with resilience we did not know we possessed. Make us strong and sturdy, O Lord, that we might serve as your enduring ministers in this world as long as we are needed.
Our hearts are open books to you, Prescient God, and whatever corner we happen to turn, you are there already. What a glorious and humbling mystery it is that the One who created the universe is interested in our everyday lives! As the psalmist proclaimed: “Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; so high I cannot attain it.” Help us, we pray, to accept the timeless truth that your concern for us is both individual and unending.
Therefore, in this quiet hour, we name our mistakes and make our silent pleas . . . . . . . . . . Whatever we have done to injure another, show us how to make it right; and whatever burden we have, we know you will help us sort things out when the new day comes. And although you know them already, we pray you would receive also, Dear Lord, both these thanksgivings and these troubling situations that shadow the joy of your people at Church Street:
- Thankful niece has recovered from Covid
- Gratitude for a grandson’s scholarship offer
- Family thankful for their new home
- Thanksgiving: A husband and wife received vaccine
- Prayers for wife and medical team – possible surgery tomorrow; assurance for worried family members
- Peaceful resolution to our nation’s bitter divisions
- That holy wisdom may guide our country’s leaders
- Healing prayers for husband with Covid pneumonia
- Courage for one beginning chemo on Friday
- Healing for teenage granddaughter with Covid
- God’s presence with family, father (60) died suddenly last night
- Two who are healing from serious heart conditions
- For new meds to slow the growth of one’s cancer
- Courage and strength for one facing major surgery Friday
- Prayers for daughter, recurrence of cancer
- Dear friend hospitalized, diagnosis unknown
- Prayers that one’s side effects of chemo are minimal
- Couple seeking to retrieve funds lost in a scam
- For God’s guidance in finding employment
We lean upon your encompassing presence throughout this night, Silent One, realizing that you are always keeping watch over those who are closest to our hearts, and all who are lonely and hurting. And as we sleep, infuse our hearts with the joy of knowing your grace. Accept all our prayers offered in the name of the Trinity of Love: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit:
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen.
