Monday, September 3, 2018

Sunday Pastoral Prayer (September 2) Athens First UMC



[The photo above hangs in the library of New Lexington First UMC which is one of our churches in our Foothills District. It was taken back in the 1950s when the  congregation was leaving from a worship service. The picture was taken to remind us that at the end of every worship “service,” our true “service” begins. We showed this picture during Sunday’s benediction to reinforce what we heard from our summer Honduras Missions Team earlier in the service about the importance of serving others. Click here to view the Honduras Missions Team video.]

O God who calls us to serve you in our neighborhoods and to places far away like Central America, this is our song today, a song of peace for our world.

Thank you for our Honduras mission trip team who sacrificed their time this past July because they wanted to make a difference in our world. Thank you for the many blessings they experienced through their willingness to serve others. 

And thank you for all the people who served at our Athens First Saturday outreach yesterday, through litter pick-up, arranging and delivering flowers, making blankets, gratitude card making for school administrators, and leading an assisted living worship service. Thank you for the many blessings that were shared in all of these ways.

On this Labor Day weekend, we especially lift up to you those who are in need of work. We pray for those who are employed that they would use their skills and abilities to make a positive difference in our community and world.

We also lift up to you the many students here in our community who are preparing for future career paths. Bless the professors, instructors, counselors, and grad assistants in their working of preparing students for meaningful careers. 

And O God, remind us to always be employed for you; ready to love, ready to learn, and ready to live out our faith.

We pray this in the name of your Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ who taught us to pray together…

“Our Father, who art in heaven…”

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