Sunday, December 15, 2013
Offered by Victoria G. Curtiss, Associate Pastor

O God, you are the creator and sustainer of all life, giver of all good gifts, great and small, the very source of our being. So we draw near to you, hoping to have our lives renewed, our spirits sustained, our hearts warmed. Make us especially sensitive, aware people during this season when signs of your coming are everywhere. The pristine purity of bright sunlight and the full moon that shines like a beacon remind us that new light is coming into the world to enlighten and enliven us and to make known the love of God. So help us, loving God, to be ready and not to miss it.

We lift up to you those in positions of authority in governments around the world, those who have power to bring about peace in this world. We thank you for the life of Nelson Mandela, a powerful model and instrument of reconciliation across divided peoples. We pray for those less fortunate than ourselves during this festive season, those who are ill or hungry or homeless. May our lives, and the way we structure our society, shape a world that is good news to the poor.

We pray for our church, for how much more we might be and do if we would all allow God’s power to flow through us and to the world. Guide us to live our lives for what is true. We pray for our loved ones who will travel to be with us or we to be with them. Where those relationships have been allowed to drift and the time for reconciliation is due, we ask for the strength of your love to renew our bonds.

Knowing that we are called to be your instruments in this world and that discipleship carries with it a significant responsibility, we pray for ourselves. May we be strengthened in our decision to follow Christ and in our efforts to work for justice and peace.

And so come, Lord Jesus, into our world, our church, our families, ourselves. Come as we pray once again the prayer that you taught your first disciples:
Our Father . . .

(Adapted from a prayer written by Robert Morley)

Prayer © Fourth Presbyterian Church