Week of December 17, 2025
Rev. Amber Lloyd
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O God of Grace and Mercy,
You sit enthroned on the praises of your people. All glory and honor is yours, Almighty God, and your people at Church Street join with the saints and the angels singing songs of adoration and joy today. All the earth is your footstool, but as those who seek to serve you in this world, we work to create a house built on the love of Christ, strengthened by the bonds of the Holy Spirit, distinguished by justice and mercy and love.
God, we give thanks for our church building this week, which has certainly been a house of justice, mercy, and love. We thank you for each guest who found shelter and warmth at Church Street and for the volunteers who acted as your very hands and feet in service to their neighbors. Each week, your children find solace within the walls of our beautiful church through prayer and praise in worship, through shared experiences and reading scripture, and, this week, through the provision of a safe place to sleep. We serve as Christ taught us, with gratitude and humility, for the love of you and our neighbors. May Church Street always be a sanctuary for every soul who seeks refuge and comfort there.
Today, we remember our Sunday night guests and all the persons in our city who need shelter and a warm meal. Holy Spirit, as we continue to seek justice for them and so many others, go before them when we cannot. Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayers for these people in our community. Give us courage as we strive to obey your call to serve those in need.
Lord, you love us so much that you know the number of hairs on our heads. In Jesus, you are present in our suffering. You collect our tears in a bottle and make note of each one. Be present with us now, O God, and in the lives of the persons and circumstances listed here:
We pray for ….
All those for whom the holidays are difficult because of grief, loss, or heartache ….
A colleague was recently diagnosed with lung cancer; she was pregnant and had to deliver early. Prayers for her and baby boy
A soup kitchen guest who had a job interview last week
Friends and family who are going through a hard time.
We continue to pray for …
All of our homeless neighbors
A couple hoping for pregnancy
A member and her sister as they continue to make decisions for their mother
A sister recovering from open heart surgery
We give thanks for ….
The birth of a healthy granddaughter
A nephew who has been serving out of the country for five months is now stateside.
All of the wonderful volunteers and donations for the Warming Center; thankful for the way government and churches are working together!
Wonderful music last Sunday! Thankful for our choir!
Angel tree helpers
This Advent season, as we look again at that familiar scene in Bethlehem, may we be filled with wonder by how you continue to work through even the most ordinary people, in the simplest of circumstances. Increase our awareness for the ways you are at work in our lives and in the people around us.
Together, we pray these words which Christ 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 evi
For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever.
Amen.
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