Weekly Prayer – July 6, 2022

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Weekly Prayers for the Church Street Family

Week of July 6, 2022

Rev. Jan Buxton Wade*

This is my song, oh God of all the nations, 

a song of peace for lands afar and mine. 

This is my home, the country where my heart is; 

here are my hopes, my dreams, my sacred shrine. 

But other hearts and other lands are beating 

with hopes and dreams as true and pure mine. 

 O God of All Nations, the poet speaks truth as we acknowledge our land comes to us as a gift of grace, entrusted to our care.  Indeed, as we celebrate our independence this week, we lift our hands and hearts in thanksgiving to you, for our country and for its people, for its vastness, its rich diversity and resources to nourish and sustain.  May we join in this song of homage, knowing that our freedoms were forged by others willing to lay both livelihoods and lives on the line for liberty’s sake.  Yes, we cherish our nation, but we remember that other hearts burn just as deeply with love of their homelands. Your dream is for all peoples to know the freedoms we have inherited. So guard us, we pray, lest we cross the threshold to worship of America.  May we heed the words of the prophet: O God, others have ruled over us, but we worship you alone! (Is. 26:13).   

My country’s skies are bluer than the ocean, 

and sunlight beams on cloverleaf and pine, 

but other lands have sunlight too and clover, 

and skies are everywhere as blue as mine. 

Oh, hear my song, oh God of all the nations, 

a song of peace for their land and for mine.  

O God of All Nations, we confess that despite all you have done for our states united, our history haunts us, for it brims with the sordid parts of our past.  No longer dare we brush aside our longtime exploitation of persons of color, our indifference to the plight of the weak and poor, our love affair with money, our apathy in correcting inequalities, our tolerance for violence, and our hunger for world supremacy at all costs. Our Savior spoke of humility, kindness, and love for the stranger. His was a peaceful walk, but we have soiled Jesus’ path with our own selfishness. Lord have mercy upon us once again. Point us toward that new, untainted thoroughfare, and we will move forward with you as our resilient guide.  

O God of All Nations, as we depend upon you as our ultimate sustenance, may our very breaths this day become prayers of healing and peace for those across the globe who are hungry or thirsting, threatened, nearing death, and in need of your holy counsel. We place our own prayers beside our brothers and sisters in every land who lift their private yearnings toward the gates of heaven: 

  • Thankful for prayers: Niece’s July 1 cancer surgery went well 
  • Gratitude: Family arrived safely home from Europe on Monday 
  • Mother with ovarian cancer feels our prayer support 
  • Thankful a Thursday surgery was successful 
  • Member grateful for church support in dealing w a family death 
  • Family gives thanks for a daughter’s engagement 
  • Five families celebrate safe July 4 celebrations with family 
  • Mother in heart failure now improved, prayers appreciated  
  • Gratitude for Stephen Ministers supporting those who struggle 
  • Resilience for a son searching for a healthy work environment   
  • Healing of a young mother suffering with shingles 
  • Prayers for unborn nephew, that he may receive the best of care 
  • Prayers for two adult sons grieving death of fathers 
  • Member in deep depression, for healing and reassurance 
  • Safety & success: Medical team helping women & children in Namibia 
  • Safe delivery of baby boy, mother with complications 
  • Safety & resilience for friend boldly speaking out for children’s safety in classrooms & for protection of voter rights  
  • Strength, faith, & hope for aunt entering new phase of cancer treatment 
  • God’s presence with Highland Park shooting victims & their families  
  • All working to bring about the end of the Ukrainian crisis  
  • Patience, continued humor, healing for an uncle recovering from a stroke 
  • Hope & healing for a mother with advanced eye disease 
  • Solace for daughter grieving the recent death of her mother   
  • Continued courage for mother entering chemotherapy 

As those who follow the Risen Christ, we believe your loving hand will ever be upon us.  And we shall not forget that our true citizenship is in the kingdom of heaven, our eternal home. 

This is my prayer, O Lord of all earth’s kingdoms:  

Thy kingdom come; on earth thy will be done.  

Let Christ be lifted up till all shall serve him,  

and hearts united learn to live as one. 

 O hear my prayer, thou God of all the nations;  

Myself I give thee, let thy will be done. 

Amen. 

*Verses excerpted from hymn, O God of Every Nation, authored by William W. Reid, Jr. and Georgia Harkness, UMC Hymnal, Hope Publishing, 1958, 1989. 

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Weekly Prayer – June 29, 2022

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Weekly Prayers for the Church Street Family

Week of June 29, 2022

Rev. Palmer Cantler

Holy One of Israel, covenant-keeper, you restore what is lost, heal what is wounded, and gather in those who have been rejected. Give us the faith to see you at work in all aspects of our lives. We know that you desire relationships to be restored, the hungry to be fed, for outcasts to be welcomed and all people blessed.

As we listen to the Old Testament story of Joseph, we know that you do not cause the unpleasantness and the hurt in our lives; you do not make it happen for a reason. But we have seen evidence in scripture and in our own lives that you can take what we make a mess of, you can take the results of our sin, our greed, our fear, and breathe your spirit to open new ways and possibilities. You are always leading us through and leading us to renewal.

When we find ourselves asking “why, Lord?” may we sense your spirit asking other questions, such as: Who can we help? What can we do differently? How can I point others to your steadfast presence?

We are thankful for a wonderful Vacation Bible School at our church this past week. We know that children all over our community attend their own church, friends’ churches, and granny’s church for VBS. Thank you for these experiences of snack and songs, of caring adults, for crafts and games, but more importantly the opportunity children have to feel safe, to feel like they belong, and to hear that God loves them.

In a world of complex emotions and issues, we pray that our church might continue to be a place of safety and support, especially for families facing crisis. Guide us through the Holy Spirit to remain faithful to our call to care for our neighbors with respect, dignity, grace, and love. Hold us accountable for showing compassion to one another and seeking understanding rooted in relationship.

Because of your generous outpouring of grace, we share these personal prayers on behalf of your people and Church Street, believing that your great love can penetrate each circumstance, bringing hope and renewal:

  • Gratitude: Visit from a grandson living on the West Coast
  • Thankful for prayers: Brother with kidney disease stable
  • Thanksgiving for our nation as we celebrate Independence Day
  • Member grateful for safe travel home from Europe last week
  • Family grateful for a wonderful wedding celebration
  • Member appreciates prayers as she continues role of caregiver
  • Dear friends adjusting to assisted living facility
  • Prayers for adult son and family grieving recent death of his father
  • Wisdom, safety for members suffering from Parkinson’s
  • Member in deep depression, for healing and reassurance
  • Brother and family mourning the death of his sister
  • Safety and success: Medical team helping women & children in Namibia
  • Safe delivery of baby boy, mother with worrisome complications
  • Safety and resilience for friend boldly speaking out for children’s safety in classrooms & for protection of voter rights
  • Safe travel for family of 3 traveling from Europe July 4
  • Strength, faith, and hope for aunt entering a new phase of cancer treatment
  • God’s presence with all who are in mourning
  • All working to bring about the end of the Ukrainian crisis, for healing, help, and hope for these suffering people
  • Healing of mother in heart failure, for her caring family and physicians
  • Guidance for the leaders and people of our nation, that we might find the right road once again, as we address the fissures within our society
  • Patience, continued humor, healing for an uncle recovering from a stroke
  • Healing for a brother in severe kidney crisis
  • A same home environment for an at-risk 5-year-old
  • A strong bonding of all races within our community
  • Guidance, courage for mother with ovarian cancer
  • Prayers for niece’s cancer surgery July 1
  • Prayers for couples longing to have children
  • Member recovering from hip surgery and colon perforations
  • A new position needed: Adult son in unhealthy work situation
  • For reliable caregivers to be found to help an infirm husband

Open our eyes and hearts O God that these words would be our guiding principle: Always looking to see what you are desiring for us and for your world. Refocus and clear our vision that we do see your miracles: the beauty of your earth; the power of cool water to quench our bodies on these hot and humid days, news of babies being born and stories of families coming through difficult times. Teach us to look around us for how you are at work and then say to others: “Come and see what God has done!”

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.

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Weekly Prayer – June 22, 2022

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Weekly Prayers for the Church Street Family

Week of June 22, 2022

Rev. Tim Best

Gracious God, as we reflect upon Father’s Day, we are grateful for all men who have nurtured us and helped us learn more about your love: fathers, grandfathers, uncles, teachers, brothers. Thank you for special relationships and bonds that reflect your image of grace, acceptance, wisdom, and growth.

We pray for children everywhere – may each child know that they are loved by you. Open our eyes that we may know how to care for children – not just our own – but those in our community, in the schools around us, in our neighborhood. May our decisions and our actions all be done in an effort to guard, guide, and defend them. Give us the strength to protect them from dangers seen and unseen; give us the faithfulness to live holy lives in front of them; to never stop trying to be spiritually alive members of the church and ambassadors for Christ everywhere we go. 

Loving God, bless us that we may be a blessing to our children. Help us remember who we are and from where we have come. Help us remember the things you have done for us in the past so we can teach them to our children. May we give them hope and enthusiasm for the future. May we give them openness to your holy message of forgiveness, grace, and love. May they too want to walk in the paths of righteousness. May your word live in them and for generations to come. Hear this prayer we offer today. We give thanks that Covid vaccines are now available for our youngest children.

Our Juneteenth observance just past reminded us of our shortcomings as a nation, and how we exploited the vulnerable, and have not traversed the road to equality as we have promised.  Therefore, we pray for all who are still in bondage … may they hear good news that there is freedom in Christ – whatever their bondage. Forgive us when our own prejudices and fears have kept people labeled as other or “less than.” Overwhelm us with your grace that we might embrace all others as fully blessed, beloved, and created. Reveal to us the ways in which we benefit from the oppression of others and transform our thinking and our living. Embolden us to declare with our words and our works that through Christ all are made free. 

And may that same overwhelming grace spill over into all the lives of these friends who call upon your name, both in thanksgiving and in need this week.  In whatever way you will, surround them with the peace and confidence for which they long:

  • Gratitude for safe passage home for Master Arts European travelers
  • Family elated: Youngster with head trauma is now home, much improved since his accident, ask for prayers for complete healing
  • Wife, caregiver, appreciates prayers & offers of assistance from friends
  • Nephew thankful for prayers, his uncle died peacefully
  • Thanksgiving for a festive church wedding on Saturday
  • Happy couple celebrate their second wedding anniversary
  • Couple thankful for their 53rd wedding anniversary on Thursday 
  • Family deeply appreciates prayers during a bereavement
  • One grateful for all remembering him throughout his hospital stay
  • Thankful for eager & energetic children attending VBS  
  • Church & family celebrate the baptism of 2 young daughters Sunday
  • Thanksgiving for the life and witness of a remarkable Christian woman who succumbed to cancer on Sunday
  • Prayers for adult son & family grieving recent death of his father
  • Wisdom, safety for members suffering from Parkinson’s
  • Safe delivery of baby boy, mother with worrisome complications
  • Safety & resilience for friend boldly speaking out for children’s safety in classrooms & for protection of voter rights 
  • Prayers for member grieving death of wife, safe travel for a daughter & family traveling to area to offer support
  • Continued prayers for all pastors in transition this week & for the congregations they will serve
  • Strength, faith, & hope for an aunt entering a new phase of cancer treatment
  • All working to bring about the end of the Ukrainian crisis, for healing, help, and hope for these suffering people
  • Patience, continued humor, & healing for an uncle recovering from a stroke
  • Healing for a brother in severe kidney crisis & for his family
  • A strong bonding of all races within our community
  • A fractured family relationship
  • Wisdom and insight for leaders at every level to end gun violence 
  • Easing of pain & infirmity – member recovering from knee surgery
  • Prayers for couples who long to have children  
  • Member recovering from hip surgery & colon perforations 
  • A new position needed: Adult son in unhealthy work situation  
  • For reliable caregivers to be found to help an infirm husband
  • All working to end violence, hunger, and poverty in our community

We thank you for accepting these prayers offered in sincerity, and, as those made one in Christ, we offer that prayer he taught us, saying:

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.

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Weekly Prayer – June 15, 2022

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Weekly Prayers for the Church Street Family

Week of June 15, 2022

Rev. Catherine Nance*

Holy, holy, holy, Lord God almighty, 

Early in the morning our song shall rise to thee.

As we observed this past Trinity Sunday, we became more keenly aware that there is really no adequate way to explain how you are Three in One; One in Three. And so, we do not attempt it, but simply marvel at the mystery of Blessed Trinity. We see in you, O God, in your very expression, the desire for community. Because we are created in your image, we need community and thrive in community. Forgive us, when we have said that we need no one or that we can go it alone or, “I am responsible only for me and mine!” We are a people who seem to care about only ourselves. Open our hearts and minds and eyes and ears to your desire for us to live peacefully with one another. We cannot be who you created us to be until we see your image in others.

Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Holy, holy, holy God, in calling forth creation from the void, revealing yourself in human flesh, and pouring forth your wisdom to guide us, you manifest your concern for your whole universe. You invite us, as your people, to gather the world’s needs into our hearts and bring them before you.

We skim headlines and scroll past images from the news, but the images remain in our hearts and minds. Instead of ignoring or wanting to forget, we pause this day to focus and to pray – for Ukraine, for Russia, and for all who are still hurting from the effects of wars that we have forgotten about. We pray for veterans who are still struggling from past wars. We pray for families in communities who have been devastated by gun violence. Forgive us, O Lord, for placing our trust in platitudes about rights and ignoring your demand to care for one another. We pray that those who are in power and who have power to make changes would lead with reason and not fear. 

Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.

We remember Nehemiah who held leaders to accountability, O God. Too often, we blame our leaders for everything, forgetting that we are citizens. We live in community; may our concerns not be only for those who have the same home-owners association as we do; may we not care only for the students who in our children’s classes. O God, may we truly care for all people.  Regardless of whether we voted for our current leaders or not, we know we have a responsibility to be aware of the challenges they face, to know about decisions they must make. We wait until a crisis and then proclaim – “Look what they have done!” So, we pause in these moments to pray for our leaders. It is our duty as part of community to offer our leaders to you in prayer: 

We pray for our President, Joe Biden; we pray for Vice-President Kamala Harris. We pray for their families. We pray for Senators Blackburn and Hagerty; and for Representative Burchett. We pray for their good health and pray that you would give them wisdom in leading. Place on their hearts the desire for all people to live healthy and meaningful lives free from fear and want. We pray for Governor Lee and for State Senator Briggs and other legislators. Give them a strong sense of your purpose for the community we call Tennessee. We offer prayers for Mayors Kincannon and Jacobs as they face decisions, conversations, and problems that we know nothing about. As we call for leaders to be accountable to us, may we be accountable to you, O God. May we be the kinds of citizens that model your kingdom values. 

Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.

And to all these petitions, Holy Lord, we lay before you the thanksgivings and the concerns that are on the hearts of your people of Church Street: 

  • Family appreciates prayers: Mother completed testing at Mayo with no incidents
  • Gratitude: 10-year-old grandniece completed delicate spinal cord surgery
  • Family offers thanks for prayers: A healthy baby born on Friday 
  • One expresses gratitude for a coveted summer internship
  • Young husband has accepted a new position and is thankful for all prayers
  • Gratitude that national leaders are nearing an agreement to limit the sale and distribution of firearms
  • Young couple celebrate their engagement
  • Celebrating our youth who helped with home repairs for the indigent through Operation Back Yard
  • Thanksgiving that a dear friend, longtime cancer sufferer, was able to die at home surrounded by all family members
  • Prayers for member whose wife died on the weekend; comfort for him and his family as they make plans to gather in remembrance
  • Prayers for all pastors in transition this week & for the congregations they will serve
  • Comfort for member & all family burying cherished mother this weekend 
  • Healing for a brother in severe kidney crisis & for his family
  • For an end to the destruction of Ukraine & the terror thrust upon its people
  • Complete healing for youngster recovering from head trauma
  • Member recovering from hip surgery & colon perforations
  • Member mourning death of favored aunt & the family pet 
  • Dear friend with cancer; husband with bouts of depression
  • A new position needed: Adult son in unhealthy work situation 
  • Safety & good health for CS Master Arts European travelers 
  • For reliable caregivers to be found to help an infirm husband
  • Continued prayers for youngster recovering from side effects of spinal surgery
  • All working to end violence and poverty in our community
  • Member in pain, recovering from knee surgery 
  • Pray for all young people making transitions this season & their families 
  • Young couple very much desiring children

Holy, holy, holy God,
fill us with strength and courage, with discernment and compassion, that we may be your instruments of justice and love in this world, that it may be on earth as it is in heaven. 

We gather our hearts and voices as one, joining with Christians around the world as we offer the prayer our Lord Jesus 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.

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*Prayer adapted: Vanderbilt Divinity School Lectionary Website

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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.

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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.

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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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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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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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Weekly Prayer – May 4, 2022

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Weekly Prayers for the Church Street Family

Week of May 4, 2022

Rev. Jan Buxton Wade

From the grain of the field and from the fruit of the vine you continue to feed us, O Sustainer.  Having received the bread of life and the cup of grace in our community this past Sunday, you addressed our brokenness and have given us strength to go out in your world and feed others who do not know of your mercy.  Without your divine energy regularly implanted within us, we could not venture to reach out to those who are difficult to love, to speak a word of kindness to those who question our motives and may even hold us in contempt.  And though we often fumble, we believe you know of our deep desire to do for others what you have done for us.  Continue to feed us your mysteries, we pray, that the outpouring of your love through Christ will be made manifest in our lives.

Enduring One, hear our prayer.

As each day of this week unfolds, we ask that your mercy would accompany us, for you know how swiftly we can make that wrong turn called discouragement. There are those detours that haunt us daily: our worries about family members and friends, the news of bloodshed and atrocities across the world, reports of famine and needless deaths of the innocents, the deep divide within our nation’s leadership, the growing number of drug addictions, and the multitudes suffering natural disasters.  We often feel our efforts are so paltry in the face of these complex situations; but save us from despair, we pray, for your love can permeate every circumstance and every heart.  Place your hands upon our hearts as we move through each tomorrow we are given, that we will always trust in your promise to watch over our going out and our coming in from this time forth and forevermore.

Enduring One, hear our prayer.

And we confess that most tenacious temptation – our desire to please ourselves.   Still that voice within us — that voice that mimics the noise of the marketplace, whispering that we need more and more of the world’s goods. You have filled us to overflowing and have blessed us in ways we do not merit. So let us be content with what we have and give praise to the Giver of all good gifts!

Enduring One, hear our prayer.

And because you are the Author of our Faith, whose only Son endured all things for our sake, we are bold to turn to you with our joys and with our burdens.  

  • Thankful an ill brother-in-law is home from rehab
  • Member is grateful for her new solid employment position
  • Family celebrates the baptism of their young daughter
  • Gratitude for good report following evaluation at Vanderbilt
  • A brother’s surgery went well on Monday at Vanderbilt
  • Thanksgiving for presentation by our Youth & Children’s Choirs
  • Member thankful for recent eye treatment
  • Family celebrates the birth of healthy baby boy
  • Family grateful for an opportunity to live abroad next year
  • Family grateful for prayers: home purchase is final
  • Thanksgiving for the Christian witness of two members who will be buried this week
  • Couple celebrating their wedding anniversary this week
  • Thanksgiving an arm infection has almost completely healed
  • Prayers for an end to the horror & violence in Ukraine
  • Three member families who are grieving deaths this week
  • Courage for 4 church members with Parkinson’s 
  • Lift up our high school seniors & their families this season
  • Prayers that a pathology report is clear
  • Prayers for couple seeking financial security
  • Please pray for 5 persons on the heart of a member
  • Singer with a voice malady, healing of illness & depression 
  • Prayers for a young son whose father died of an overdose  
  • Continued prayers: friend injured in accident, remains in ICU
  • Healing for two women with untreatable eye disease 
  • Correct diagnosis for mother with heart condition
  • Cancer patient exposed to Covid, pray that she is not infected
  • Young man seeking work in college athletics
  • Ease of pain for son awaiting shoulder surgery 
  • An uncle & grandmother in hospice care & their families
  • An ill mother-in-law & concerned family, for recovery 
  • A grandson with a difficult home life
  • Prayers for all taking part in a wedding on Saturday 

We thank you, Enduring One, for knitting us together as the body of Christ and for accepting our prayers that are offered in the name of your Son. May your Spirit continue its sustaining flow within us and through us until we reach those gates above, where we shall joyfully serve together with Jesus himself.

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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