Weekly Prayers for the Church Street Family
Week of June 5, 2024
Written by Rev. Catherine Nance
Gracious God, we thank you for this gift of prayer, and for this technology. “Email” can sound so impersonal, yet, here we are, so many of us reading these words and praying the same words together. We thank you for the way we can be connected – yes, through the power of the Holy Spirit – but also through a weekly email that acknowledges we are part of a larger group.
We may not know everyone’s name, but there is a comfort in knowing that we gather to pray on Wednesday night or perhaps it is Thursday morning when these words are opened. Thank you for the opportunity to pray for one another. We do experience peacefulness when we pray for others.
We have marveled yesterday and today at the sudden downpour of rain and then what seems to be just as sudden clearing of clouds and shining sun. Then the rain and then sunshine, again. Our bodies and spirits are tuned to your creation, O God. The sun on our face feels so nourishing and we pray for ‘no rain.’ Then it comes, and we find joy in watching cardinals splash in puddles in our yard. We know the earth needs sun and rain. Our bodies need light and refreshment as well. Help us make good decisions about the care of our bodies and our minds.
At the start of ‘vacation season’ we pray for good and safe times:
- Safety for families, friends, and individuals who are traveling.
- Happy reunions
- Time to relax and refresh
- Opportunities to learn something new or try something never experienced before
- Good judgment in spending and buying
- Thankfulness for routine to help steady us for what’s next
May our summer travels make us even more thankful for home. We give you thanks for family and friends and for our church family. We give you thanks for the beauty of East Tennessee and the opportunities we have here to bask in the glory of your creation.
May we not take for granted things like windshield wipers, sunscreen, farmers’ markets, cobbler, and the warmth of a hug or handshake. May we not take for granted how much it means to pat someone on the back or send a ‘thinking of you.’
Thank you, God, for the variety of rhythms your changing seasons give to us. Thank you for Wednesdays and the time to pray.
We pray together for the concerns and joys shared by our church family and also offer the prayer your son taught us …
We pray for ….
- Our Parish Youth Choir and their leaders who are in Boston this week
- One who will be having surgery soon to remove tumor in soft palate
- One who is looking for housing
- A young woman dealing with mental health issues
- Individuals and family members navigating the dementia diagnosis
- A husband dealing with cancer and side effects from chemo
- Staff and families at Cornerstone of Recovery and other addiction treatment centers
- A couple whose dog had to be put to sleep; thankful for the love your creatures bring
- One who seeks God’s protection from those who are harming her
- A mother-in-law who just entered hospice care at home
- Friends and family who are having struggles
- A forty-one year old friend who has cancer
- Increased wisdom in all circumstances
We continue to pray for ….
- Families who are celebrating graduations and other milestones; also prayers for whom this is a difficult season.
- One who is learning a new day-to-day after the death of her mother
- A couple who is waiting to hear about IVF procedures and results.
- Family members who continue to deal with cancer … all the tests and new treatments and waiting and follow up appointments. May they feel God’s healing presence in the midst of it!
- Friends and family members who are going through a troubling time.
- Adult children trying to make good decisions about next steps in work and school and life!
We offer prayers of thanksgiving for ….
- A granddaughter who arrived early! We continue to pray for strength and weight gain.
- For our staff who work hard all summer!
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.
