O God, you have blessed us with so many wonderful spiritual
gifts in this church. We have teachers, ushers, hospitality coordinators,
musicians, artists, leaders, visionaries, craftsmen, generous givers, and the
list goes on and on.
Thank you for giving us everything we need in our church to help
us live out our mission of making disciples of Jesus Christ for the
transformation of the world. Empower each one of us to use our unique gifts to
be a blessing for others and to build up your church.
As we begin to think about the beginning of a new school
year and the return of students to our community, we want our church to be a
place where everyone feels welcomed here.
What a beautiful thing to know that in the coming weeks, a
university freshman from the Cleveland area might be seated in the pew behind
us during Sunday worship or a new family searching for a church home is
deciding to enroll their child in our Growing Tree Pre-School program. O God,
help each one of us to offer our gifts to that all may be welcomed in this
place.
Hear our prayers this morning for loved ones who are in particular
need of you this day; for members of our church family who are unable to attend
church this morning, for those who are traveling, for people who are facing
difficult decisions, for those who are facing medical challenges, and for those
who feel disconnected from you and the church. We lift up all of these concerns
to you.
But we are also mindful of so many blessings and joys like
sunshine, Holy Communion, friendships, Wonderful Wednesdays, answered prayers,
and new opportunities to respond to your calling in our lives. Thank you for
all of these blessings.
We want to have a varsity faith where we are growing
stronger in our faith everyday by focusing on worship, unity, growth and
spiritual gifts. Teach us what it means to grow in these vital areas of our
faith even as we pray together, the Lord’s Prayer; “Our Father who art in
heaven…”
No comments:
Post a Comment