Week of May 13, 2026

A Prayer from Zimbabwe – By Pastor Sam

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Gracious and ever-present God,
We come before you from many places today.
Some of us are in Knoxville, or away from Knoxville, and I am in Zimbabwe,
and yet by the mystery of your Spirit, we are one.
One church. One body. One hope.
Thank you for the gift of the United Methodist connection.
Thank you that a hymn rising from a rural sanctuary
in Dzobo Village, and the prayer lifted
in the Nave at Church Street reach the same listening ear, yours.

Lord, we pray today for the people of Zimbabwe.
The drought that I have seen is real. The hunger is real.
The cost of bread, of fuel, of school fees, these are not abstractions.
They are the weight carried each morning by mothers and fathers
and children who deserve better.
We pray for clean water.
We pray for rain.
We pray for work and dignity and the closing of the vast and unjust distance
between those who have much and those who have so little.

And yet, Lord, we confess, I have witnessed something in your church here
that humbles us and holds us.
I have seen and experienced your joy.
Not the brittle joy of those who do not suffer,
but the deep, defiant, resurrection joy
of those who suffer and still sing.

Lord, in the village church, they sang.
in the city church, they sang.

And in their singing, they remind us
what we, in our comfort, sometimes forget.
That joy is not the absence of pain.
Joy is your presence in the midst of it.

Forgive us, God, for the times we have mistaken comfort for faithfulness.
Forgive us when anger has become our posture and despair our dwelling place.
Teach us the harder discipline: to grieve without losing hope,
to speak truth without losing love,
to see the brokenness of our nation and our world
and still show up to serve.

We pray for the Miracle Offering 2026
for the Theological Endowment Fund
of the Central Conferences.
May what is given in faith
from small offerings in rural Zimbabwe
and from gatherings at Lake Junaluska
pour into the formation of pastors and leaders
who will carry your Word into places we cannot yet imagine.
We are, all of us, recipients of someone’s generosity.
Make us generous in turn.
Make us humble enough to receive and bold enough to give.

God, as Church Street gathers this week in meetings and ministries,
in quiet moments and in worship,
let the joy I have witnessed half a world away find root in us.
Let us serve, not from obligation, but from gladness.
Let us love, not from duty, but from abundance.
Let us be a people marked not by what troubles us, but by what sustains us.
You sustain us, Lord.
You have always sustained us.
And for that, we are grateful.

In the name of Jesus Christ, who is the same in every language,

Amen.

We pray for ….

  • A member in the hospital preparing to go to rehab; prayers for strength and healing.
  • Those who are grieving … may they feel the peace of God and the promise of Eternal Life.
  • Those who are undergoing treatments for cancer
  • Friends and family who are going through struggles.
  • The loss of a beloved pet.
  • A best friend who was just diagnosed with cancer.
  • A colleague who is traveling back from Zimbabwe.
  • A family preparing to move out of the country; may all go smoothly and may they feel welcomed in their new community.

We continue to pray for …

  • A member who is in transition after a job loss; may he find direction for next steps and resolution for past circumstances.
  • A young man struggling with addiction issues; he is desperately wanting to stay clean but difficult when one is homeless.
  • Our military and their families.
  • All high school and college seniors who are preparing for graduation.

We give thanks for ….

  • A wonderful Senior Sunday.
  • The joy of Youth and Adult choirs singing together in worship this past Sunday.
  • The healthy birth of twins.
  • A member being strong enough to have chemo treatments.
  • The blessing of a family selected for adoption.
  • Volunteers who give so much of themselves and their time

Now, let us pray together the prayer 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 evil.
For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever.
Amen.