Senior Spotlight – Ann Clark Bellamy

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One of our favorite things about the spring semester each year is celebrating our graduating seniors.  And this year, we have a special Senior Spotlight series on our blog.  Our seniors answered interview questions earlier this spring and it has been so much fun learning their answers! Check back in each week to get to know our seniors better and help to cheer them on as they wrap up high school and prepare for their next steps!

Meet Ann Clark Bellamy!

What high school are you graduating from?
Webb School of Knoxville
What are your plans for next year?
I plan to attend the University of Tennessee and I am currently enrolled in the Haslam College of Business.
What is your favorite bible verse?
“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” Jeremiah 28:11
If you could choose one meal to eat for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Waffles
If you could give some advice to your younger self, what would it be?
Ask smart questions and know how to ask for help!!! The world is waiting to help you!
What are your top 3 favorite movies?
1.) Secretariat
2.) Talladega Nights
3.) The Blind Side
What is your favorite Church Street memory?
Children’s Worship with Mrs. Sue will always be special to me! The mentors that I have grown to know and love in the youth program are some of my favorite parts of Church Street!
What are you most excited about going into the next season of your life?
I can’t wait to make new friends and join new organizations in my community! I am excited to see what opportunities there are for me to explore my faith with on-campus Christian groups!
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Weekly Prayer – June 8, 2022

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Weekly Prayers for the Church Street Family

Week of June 8, 2022

Rev. Jan Buxton Wade

O Loving and Creating Spirit, we gaze at your enchanting world, observing your mysterious Vine of Newness working its way through every living thing.  What a testament to Who you are! Christ’s announcement, “Behold, I make all things new!” reverberates within our very beings as we drink in the explosive beauty you display so liberally. Enshroud us with those green tendrils of grace this day, we pray, that we might nourish that fresh growth until its fruit ripens deep within us. Then, someday we might also stand as resilient witnesses who know they have no life in themselves apart from that rich and verdant Vine. 

Lord of Life, hear our prayer.

We do confess and lament, Holy Life-Giver, that we are part of that which continues to desecrate the peaceable kingdom you created.  We cherish what we have, yet we do not want to share. We prefer the convenience of living in a throw-away culture, neglecting our responsibility to refrain from polluting and wastefulness. We pray for peace, but harbor personal grudges and do not work for concord within our own families and communities; nor do we risk lifting our voices on behalf of the voiceless. Spur us on to become the living ambassadors of the resurrection we claim to be.

Lord of Life, hear our prayer.

We long for your healing and holy comfort for friends, family, and neighbors in need this day. Sustain all caregivers, we pray, for they are your very own anointed. May those who are hurting somehow feel your presence and companionship through your servants who offer tender support. May all who are grieving and isolated find rest in your very own corner of comfort. And knowing that all life begins and ends in you, we turn to you with these prayers on behalf of our church community:

  • Gratitude: Holy Land leaders now home safe, free of Covid
  • One grateful for Vanderbilt eye exam & news that vision impairment may be arrested
  • Celebration of the work & witness of our Youth Choir & their leaders
  • One offers thanks for prayer support during her 8 months of chemo
  • Prayers appreciated: June 3rd surgery was successful 
  • Family grateful for safe extended vacation to visit family
  • Thanksgiving for successful & renewing Annual Conference
  • Gratitude for the extensive ministries & missions of the UMC
  • Member grateful for prayers: A job with benefits has been obtained
  • Thanksgiving: Cancer meds are still being tolerated by member
  • Please pray for cherished wife in heart failure
  • Prayers for all pastors in transition this season
  • Safe delivery for mother & newborn to be delivered this weekend
  • For an end to the destruction of Ukraine & the terror thrust upon its people
  • Complete healing for youngster who suffered a head injury
  • Dear friend with cancer; husband with bouts of depression
  • Young friend who mourns the loss of her unborn child
  • A new position needed: Adult son in unhealthy work situation 
  • Safety & good health for CS Master Arts travelers in Europe 
  • For reliable caregivers to be found to help an infirm husband
  • Prayers for cherished mother at Mayo for heart exam
  • 10-yr-old niece undergoing very serious spinal cord procedure on Friday
  • Increased funding at all levels for treatment of mental illness 
  • Guidance for a young husband seeking new employment
  • Pray for all young people making transitions this season & their families 
  • Young couple very much desiring children
  • Comfort for a good friend in final stages of cancer 
  • Elderly husband who is ill at home, wife who offers care
  • Healing of broken relationships within two families 

Lord of Life, to all these prayers, we add the truth of ourselves. Keep us aware of the tangible signs your newness all around us. And give us the courage to live as Easter people, called to live into the fresh forms of ministry you are creating. Open our eyes, ears, hearts, and hands to joyfully serve our Risen Christ, who taught all disciples to pray:

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.

Have a Prayer Request?

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Weekly Prayer – June 1, 2022

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Weekly Prayers for the Church Street Family

Week of June 1, 2022

Rev. Tim Best

Gracious God, we give you thanks and praise for the beauty of creation in this season of the year. We marvel at flowers that show your beautiful creativity; we find comfort in watching vegetables grow that can nourish and satisfy. Our mornings are greeted by the sounds of birds and other creatures that you fashioned; our evenings are illuminated by the beauty of the stars. We are filled with awe at your handiwork. 

Even as we recognize the beauty of all that you have made, we recognize the ways that it is twisted by sin and wickedness. We hoard and destroy; we dominate the things you made for us to delight in; where you offer beauty, we seek power. Even as we hear the songs of birds and see the beauty of flowers our hearts are troubled and heavy. 

We pray for a swift and just end to the war in Ukraine. We pray for those families; Ukrainian and Russian, that have lost loved ones. We pray for all of those who live with war in other regions and places. Transform our hearts to be dedicated to the work of peace; in our communities and around the world. May we speak and act out the peace of Christ in all that we do and say. 

We pray for the victims of violence within our own nation and community. Help us and our leaders to move beyond talking points and to work toward solutions that prevent violence, protect the vulnerable, and build trust within communities. We pray especially for Buffalo, New York and Uvalde, Texas. When we run out of words for this violence let our voiceless cries be heard by you. 

We pray for those who suffer, are lonely, or are in any kind of trouble. Grant your peace and strength to those who are overwhelmed by the challenges of life. 

And lift up, we pray each of these, who have brought their private prayers to your throne of grace in recent days:

  • Thanksgiving for the remarkable ways in which our Youth Choir is representing our congregation during their tour in Chicago
  • Family offers thanks for a safe vacation in Italy
  • Unceasing gratitude for all who sacrificed their lives on behalf of our nation
  • Young person expresses thanks for his scholarship
  • Church family offers gratitude for support during a bereavement
  • A relative celebrates her final chemo treatment on June 6
  • Gratitude: New medicines and PT are helping a Parkinson’s sufferer  
  • Brother offers thanks that his sister is released from jail
  • Safe travels home for leaders of Holy Land Pilgrimage
  • Prayers for family funeral June 2 in our church
  • Decreased pain and continued healing as member recovers from surgery
  • A dear friend with cancer; husband with bouts of depression
  • Guidance for suffering Ukrainians displaced by the war
  • Open doors for a new position: Adult son in unhealthy work situation 
  • Prayers for a grandmother’s peaceful passing and her daughter
  • Complete healing following a friend’s heart procedure June 1
  • For reliable caregivers to be found to help an infirm husband
  • Pray for all wounded by sexual misconduct within the Southern Baptist 

Pour out your Spirit upon your church that we would be united in your mission to redeem and reconcile all creation to your very self. We ask all these things as we offer the prayer your son, our Lord, Jesus Christ has taught us…. 

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.

Have a Prayer Request?

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Weekly Prayer – May 25, 2022

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Weekly Prayers for the Church Street Family

Week of May 25, 2022

Rev. Jan Buxton Wade

O Radiant One, the prophets of old spoke of you as the God of Light; and Jesus taught that your shining essence is embedded within each of us. And yet it seems that we have grown comfortable living within the hungry darkness. Will we wait until that somber bear of evil swallows us up before we make changes in our nation? Have we grown so accustomed to violence that we take it in stride, sighing in relief when tragedy strikes outside our personal domain? If this is so, forgive us, Good Lord. As witnesses to such unthinkable suffering, we must not remain silent. Rekindle that beam of the kingdom you planted within us, we pray, that we might dispel all apathy by lifting high your bright banner of healing, wholeness, and peace.   

Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

O Lord, we carry with us those many lives torn apart by calamity, those many faces contorted by grief. Touch each being visited by tragedy in recent weeks, particularly the anguished ones in Uvalde, Texas; the deaths of children rips apart our sense of rightness. We mourn, as well, the innocent victims in Buffalo, NY and their families who have had to release their own loved ones back to your care.  We watch as havoc and murder play on, destroying the lives of the Ukrainian people. Such losses defy logic, and there are no words when loss numbs the soul; still, we believe you hear even the silent laments that scar the hearts of your people. Stay close, we pray, for the tears of your people are flowing.

Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

We turn to you, O Burning Lamp of Hope, knowing that your love is the answer to the pain and sorrow that thrive throughout our world.  We long to be part of your answer, trusting you will give us a portion of your courage, wisdom, and presence to meet that end.  And even as we tremble, enfold us in your strong arms, along with our brothers and sisters in every region who are discounted, oppressed, misunderstood, lonely, hungry, and forgotten.  

Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

And as each soul is dear to you, also receive these particular thanksgivings and petitions offered by your followers at Church Street:  

  • Mother much improved after severe traffic accident
  • Family grateful for daughter’s recent celebration of life 
  • Grateful for prayers: Brother’s cancer surgery at Vanderbilt was successful and full recovery is expected
  • Two families express gratitude for safe and restful vacations
  • Praises for our high school graduates
  • Undergraduate grateful for courage to complete his first year of study in another state
  • Wife thankful for husband’s peaceful death and support of church family
  • Thanksgiving: Brother safely moved to rehab center
  • Wife continues to improve following an accident at home
  • Family offers thanks for prayers and concern during a bereavement
  • Decreased pain and continued healing as member recovers from surgery
  • A dear friend with cancer; husband with bouts of depression
  • Guidance for suffering Ukrainians displaced by the war
  • Wisdom for leaders of the free world to help end the war in Ukraine 
  • Grace and guidance for adult son in a toxic work environment
  • Pray for all wounded by sexual misconduct within the Southern Baptist Convention and growing courage for SBC leaders working for justice
  • Prayers for safety for our Youth Choir & their leaders – on tour in Chicago area May 27-June 3
  • For safe delivery of a grandchild
  • Increased funding at all levels for treatment of mental illness 
  • Courage and healing for a mother with advanced cancer & her family
  • Prayers for open doors for one seeking a new job
  • Pray for all young people making transitions this season and their families 
  • Prayers for member needing work with insurance benefits
  • Son-in-law in depression – for physical and emotional healing
  • For our community leaders to address poverty & racial inequities  
  • All teens adjusting to community life after Covid  

We harbor no illusions, Lord, that we can make it on our own, for you are the Luminous Center which brought us into being; and around you we have framed our faith. Shore up our faith day by day as we come to you in all humility, offering all our spoken and silent prayers in the name of Jesus, the One who suffered for our sakes, and who taught us to pray:

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.

Have a Prayer Request?

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Senior Spotlight – Sam Kelso

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One of our favorite things about the spring semester each year is celebrating our graduating seniors.  And this year, we have a special Senior Spotlight series on our blog.  Our seniors answered interview questions earlier this spring and it has been so much fun learning their answers! Check back in each week to get to know our seniors better and help to cheer them on as they wrap up high school and prepare for their next steps!

Meet Sam Kelso!

What high school are you graduating from?
West High
What are your plans for next year?
Attending FSU
What is your favorite bible verse?
1 Corinthians 13:4-6
If you could choose one meal to eat for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Steak and Potatoes
If you could give some advice to your younger self, what would it be?
Be confident; walk around with your head up
What are your top 3 favorite movies?
It’s Such a Beautiful Day (2012) Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) Eraserhead (1977)
What is your favorite Church Street memory?
One time Davis threw a gummy bear from one end of the gym hallway to the other and I caught it in my mouth
What are you most excited about going into the next season of your life?
Having the freedom to make my own path
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Senior Spotlight – Caitlin Carroll

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One of our favorite things about the spring semester each year is celebrating our graduating seniors.  And this year, we have a special Senior Spotlight series on our blog.  Our seniors answered interview questions earlier this spring and it has been so much fun learning their answers! Check back in each week to get to know our seniors better and help to cheer them on as they wrap up high school and prepare for their next steps!

Meet Caitlin Carroll!

What high school are you graduating from?
Webb
What are your plans for next year?
UT
What is your favorite bible verse?
1 John 4:8
If you could choose one meal to eat for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Pasta/Mac & Cheese
If you could give some advice to your younger self, what would it be?
Just do what makes you happy!
What are your top 3 favorite movies?
The Proposal, The Other Woman & Soul Surfer
What are you most excited about going into the next season of your life?
Starting my own path and getting my first real job
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Weekly Prayer – May 18, 2022

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Weekly Prayers for the Church Street Family

Week of May 18, 2022

Rev. Pat Clendenen*

I will come to you in the silence; I will lift you from all your fear.

You will hear my voice; I claim you as my choice.

Be still and know I am here.

Gracious and Merciful God, we come seeking your presence in the midst of our busy and often fractured lives, only to discover that you have been here all along, waiting and ready. You created us for relationship with you and with one another. Each of our names is written on your hand, for we are your children, created in your image. In this time, create a holy space for us where we may find peace in your presence, enabling us to hear your still, small voice. 

I am hope for all who are hopeless; I am eyes for all who long to see.

In the shadows of the night, I will be your light.

Come and rest in me.

There are so many in our nation and in our world who teeter on the brink of hopelessness, yet clinging to the assurance that you are at work in the world to bring peace with justice for all your children. Still, in our own land, our Black brothers and sisters continue to die, struck by bullets born of a hatred beyond our comprehension, and their cries continue across the centuries, “How long, O Lord? How long?” Forgive us when we become numb to their pain and suffering, tired of talking about it, even convincing ourselves that there’s not really a problem, that these are isolated incidents. Change our hearts, O God, that we may see with your eyes and hear with your ears. Emblazon upon our hearts the understanding that we will not be truly free until all your children are free; neither will we live in unity until we eat from the same bread, drink from the same cup, and equally sit together at the same table.

I am strength for all the despairing; comfort for those who grieve.

I bring healing for those who are broken.

Do not be afraid; I have called you each by name.

I love you, and you are mine.

Loving God, you call us to be your hands and feet in a broken and hurting world, to offer care in the name of Christ. Empowered by your Spirit and awakened by your holy nudges, free us to offer that cup of cold water in whatever form it may be needed and, in so doing, offer glimpses of Resurrection living.

As praying people, we lift the prayers that have come from across our community of faith, trusting that you hear both the gratitude and the deep cries of your people, and that we silently wait for your still, small voice gently prodding us into action.

  • Prayers appreciated: Member is receiving assistance in caregiving
  • One expresses thanks for her Stephen Minister
  • Family celebrates son-in-law’s achievement and recognition
  • A friend in ICU is improving
  • Family grateful for all help received following a family death
  • Member thankful for an unexpected gift
  • One grateful to be released from hospital
  • Please pray for brother having cancer surgery May 23
  • Wisdom for surgeon and positive outcome for member having surgery May 19
  • A dear friend with cancer; husband with bouts of depression
  • Blessings upon all attending a benefit luncheon on May 19
  • Prayers that innocents in Ukraine might be protected
  • Wisdom for leaders of the free world to help end the war in Ukraine 
  • God’s grace to surround all who are grieving 
  • Presence of the Spirit with family during memorial service May 22
  • Courage and healing for member with advanced cancer & her family
  • Prayers for open doors for one seeking a new job
  • For our bishop, cabinet, and all clergy facing transitions
  • Grace to surround a faithful member nearing death
  • Wisdom for daughter facing a bitter divorce and her children
  • Pray for all young people making transitions this season & their families 
  • New employment for couple experiencing downturn in income
  • Healing of an extreme voice ailment and depression   
  • Continued prayers: Friend injured in accident, remains in ICU
  • For community leaders to address poverty and other inequities  
  • Mother with heart condition 
  • An uncle and grandmother in hospice care & their families
  • Easing of tensions within family grieving deaths of two members
  • Lift up all teens amid the mental health crisis & all teens adjusting to life in community after Covid

I am the Word that leads all to freedom.

 I am the peace that the world cannot give.

I will call your name, embracing all your pain.

Stand up, now walk, and live!

We have found peace in your presence, rest in your loving arms.  Renew in us your vision for your world – SHALOM – peace with justice for ALL your children – on earth as it is in heaven. Through the waters of our baptism, we have become new creations, empowered by the Holy Spirit to be faithful disciples of Jesus Christ. Give us the courage and the strength to fully claim our identity so that the vows we made – to resist evil, injustice, and oppression in whatever forms they find themselves – may, with God’s help, be the foundation on which we live out our lives.  In that spirit, we confidently and with boldness pray the prayer Christ taught us.

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.

Have a Prayer Request?

*Words in bold and italics taken from the hymn, “You Are Mine” by David Haas.
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Senior Spotlight – Sara Katherine Bailey

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One of our favorite things about the spring semester each year is celebrating our graduating seniors.  And this year, we have a special Senior Spotlight series on our blog.  Our seniors answered interview questions earlier this spring and it has been so much fun learning their answers! Check back in each week to get to know our seniors better and help to cheer them on as they wrap up high school and prepare for their next steps!

Meet Sara Katherine Bailey!

What high school are you graduating from?
Bearden High School
What are your plans for next year?
Tennessee Tech and major in nursing
What is your favorite bible verse?
“For we walk by faith, not by sight.” – 2 Corinthians 5:7
If you could choose one meal to eat for the rest of your life, what would it be?
burger and fries
If you could give some advice to your younger self, what would it be?
don’t worry so much
What are your top 3 favorite movies?
1. Pride and Prejudice
2. 10 Things I hate about you
3. Mamma Mia
What is your favorite Church Street memory?
Working with the kids at Wesley House during MAD
What are you most excited about going into the next season of your life?
making new friends
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Senior Spotlight – Preston Rotton

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One of our favorite things about the spring semester each year is celebrating our graduating seniors.  And this year, we have a special Senior Spotlight series on our blog.  Our seniors answered interview questions earlier this spring and it has been so much fun learning their answers! Check back in each week to get to know our seniors better and help to cheer them on as they wrap up high school and prepare for their next steps!

Meet Preston Rotton!

What high school are you graduating from?
Bearden High School
What are your plans for next year?

Go to UTK.

What is your favorite bible verse?
“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13
If you could choose one meal to eat for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Steak
If you could give some advice to your younger self, what would it be?
What happens in Vegas doesn’t always stay in Vegas.
What are your top 3 favorite movies?
Step-Brothers, The Dark Knight Rises, and John Wick.
What is your favorite Church Street memory?
All the choir tours.
What are you most excited about going into the next season of your life?
Going to sporting events and being a part of the student section.
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Weekly Prayer – May 11, 2022

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Weekly Prayers for the Church Street Family

Week of May 11, 2022

Rev. Jan Buxton Wade

O Light of Each New Day and Luster of Evening Star, we tremble when we consider how your goodness permeates every hour of every day!  You have brought us safely to this point, as the curtain of dusk falls softly all around. And here in the shadows we ponder how your holiness has touched our encounters in this week just passed: the stranger that offered a helping hand, the promising report from a physician, the cheery note that arrived when most needed, the safe arrival at a destination, worship moments that filled our hearts to the brim, friends who demonstrated their concern, and also . . . . . . . . . . We thank you, Lord, for coming to us in such quiet graciousness; you slip in unheralded, so softly that we often overlook your presence.  Ah, but here in these moments, we recall how your providence ever flows through circumstances, creating blessings where none are expected or deserved. 

Faithful Spirit, receive our prayer.

Keeper of All Our Stories, you know the stories of our lives – of the times we failed miserably, when we chose the wrong roads, when we were betrayed, when we placed our trust in the wrong places and persons, when our dreams collapsed, the times when grief overtook us, when bitter tears were our food day and night.  Even in these times, remembering your own story of suffering, you colored our hurts with your love, cradled us in your arms, told us that there is always a new beginning, and that your mercy would help us find it.  As you gather us under your wings, remind us that all our stories begin and end in you, for you are also the Keeper of our Souls.

Faithful Spirit, receive our prayer.

You know us through and through, Lord, and we pray we might come to know ourselves in entirety as well.  Surprise us with insights into our own assumptions and motives; give us wisdom to ask the most difficult questions of ourselves. Move us out of our complacency into a life of fullness.  

Faithful Spirit, receive our prayer.

Accept, O Lord, these private prayers we carry in our hearts . . . . . . . . . . and also these praises and concerns offered by your people at Church Street:

  • Gratitude: our gifted high school seniors who led Sunday worship 
  • Thankful that a husband with Parkinson’s is regaining strength
  • Family celebrate a successful pacemaker procedure this week
  • Blessed news of a daughter’s pregnancy
  • One appreciates successful surgery & all who prayed
  • Member gives thanks for a wonderful vacation
  • Grateful for the Spirit’s presence in a mother’s peaceful death
  • Thanksgiving for a son’s happy wedding last weekend
  • One offers thanks for friends who offered help & wisdom in regard to an important decision
  • Family thankful for daughter’s beautiful beach wedding on Saturday
  • Gratitude: a member has overcome a second bout of Covid
  • Grateful for prayers – cancer patient has not contracted Covid after exposure
  • Two grateful for having overcome recent illnesses
  • Prayers that innocents in Ukraine might be protected
  • Wisdom for leaders of the free world to help end the war in Ukraine 
  • All who are grieving the deaths of loved ones
  • Guidance for family making decisions following bereavement
  • Courage & healing for member with advanced cancer & her family
  • Wisdom & guidance for daughter facing a bitter divorce
  • Husband with Parkinson’s, easing of depression & help with his caregiving
  • Prayers for all young people making transitions this season & their families 
  • Prayers that a pathology report is clear
  • Infirm member anxious about an upcoming physical evaluation
  • Couple experiencing downturn in income, seek financial security 
  • Healing of an extreme voice ailment & the sufferer’s depression   
  • Continued prayers: friend injured in accident, remains in ICU
  • Healing for two women with untreatable eye disease 
  • Addressing of poverty in our community 
  • Correct diagnosis for mother with heart condition
  • Young man seeking work in college athletics
  • For the Spirit to abide with family during memorial service on Saturday 
  • An uncle & grandmother in hospice care & their families
  • An ill mother-in-law & concerned family, for recovery

Faithful Spirit, we would be channels of your light, mercy, and peace as we live out our days; so fill us with grace that we may open ourselves to be used in whatever ways you desire. And, as always, we offer all these things in the name of the Risen Christ, who taught us to pray: 

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.

Have a Prayer Request?

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