Sunday, September 20, 2015
Offered by Victoria G. Curtiss, Associate Pastor

God of all wisdom, creator of all people, friend of all ages, we praise you for embracing all your creatures with an amazingly inclusive love. We thank you that no one is excluded from your grace, your forgiveness, and your hopes. We pray that as Pope Francis is in Cuba and the United States that many hearts will recognize that he is embodying your compassion, especially for those on the margins.

Forgive us—as individuals, as a church, and as a nation—wherever we put up barriers that keep others out for fear of how they may impact our neighborhood, our economy, or our sheltered prejudices. We pray for all the countries in Europe, and our own, that you would guide us all to welcome and provide resources for so many, many refugees who are seeking safety and a more hopeful future. Protect those fleeing violence as they seek refuge and as they wait for help. Stir compassion in our own hearts to find ways we, too, can help.

And we pray that you would bring an end to violence in Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq, and Sudan so that no one sees others as enemies anymore.

We thank you for Jesus Christ, who made known your wisdom and compassion once and for all. By his healing touch, he overcame the power of disease and injury. We give you thanks that disabilities and illness do not block your love for us. We lift up to you all who are challenged by illness or chronic conditions and pain, that you give them strength and bring healing. We pray you would comfort all who have experienced loss, whether of a job, a pet, a pastor, or through the decline or death of a loved one. Lift the spirits of those who are discouraged or diminished, that they may reclaim hope and be inspired to use their gifts for your service.

All this we pray in the name of Jesus Christ, who taught us to pray together, Our Father . . .

Prayer © Fourth Presbyterian Church