Sunday (August 30) Pastoral Prayer

 August 30, 2026

Beulah UMC

Thank you for this sweet hour of prayer, O God. Thank you for this sweet “hymn sing Sunday.” Thank you for this sweet congregation who have been such a blessing to Penny and me over these past three years. Thank you for how they have accepted us Yankees from the north and welcomed us with open arms.

 

Thank you for our Sunday mornings together, our bible studies, our Big Grab events, incredible potluck meals, fun hot dog meals which I’ve always relished, our Holy Week services, learning my new favorite hymn, “Beulah Land,” decorating the church for Christmas, getting to know the nursing homes and hospitals in Columbia, comforting one another at funerals, having the church pray for our dog, Blu when she had her leg surgery, and being able to drive on our awesome new church parking lot. For all of this and many, many other blessings, I can only say with today’s psalmist, “Such knowledge is too wonderful for me to express” and “surely, the presence of the Lord is in this place.”

 

And thank you for this sweet hour of prayer in which we have the privilege of lifting up to you our prayer needs including the people on our church’s prayer list as well as the many other joys and concerns that have been spoken and unspoken. We pray that your healing, comforting, guiding, and empowering presence would surround each of these persons and needs.

 

During this sweet hour of prayer and this time of pastoral transition, we pray for the new pastor who will begin serving here. Thank you for being a God of new beginnings and new opportunities for ministries and service in your name. May this church continue to bear fruit as new seeds will be planted for the sake of your kingdom.

 

Just as we have been singing hymns this morning as if we have one voice, we now join in one voice in praying the prayer that Jesus taught us to pray together…

 

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.

Sunday (August 23) Pastoral Prayer

August 23, 2026

Beulah UMC

Fairest Lord Jesus, thank you for today’s Gospel reading that invites us to reflect on who you are. In these next moments of silence, we pause to silently express to you who we believe you to be. [MOMENTS OF SILENCE]

Even as we express to you our thoughts of who you are, remind us to reflect on this ultimate question again and again and again. Help us to grow in our understanding of who you are especially as we face times of transition, challenges, and new experiences in our lives. And thank you that we can learn from each other and grow in our faith together.

 

Whenever we pray for others who are in need of healing, comfort, and guidance, this must mean that we believe you to be loving, compassionate, and gracious. And so, we lift up to you the people on our church’s prayer list as well as others who are on our hearts and minds today. We lift all of these persons and needs to you because you are the Messiah, the Son of the Living God.

 

We also pray that you would help to become more aware of opportunities where you may be calling us to share with others what you mean to us like how in how you guided us through a difficult decision, felt your comfort during a time of grief, experienced your peace when facing a time of uncertainty, and received your mercy and grace after feeling paralyzed by guilt and fear.

 

Thank you for giving each of us a story to share with others of what you mean to us. And now, with confidence as your children, as your followers, and as your disciples, we join together in praying the words that you taught us to say together…

 

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.

Sunday (August 16) Pastoral Prayer

August 16, 2026

Beulah UMC

Lord, even just the title of our prayer hymn is a great prayer for us to pray each day. “Savior, like a shepherd lead us.”

 

Savior, like a shepherd lead us to green pastures and still waters, those peaceful places like a favorite church pew, a boat ride on the lake, a walk in the park, or even simply sitting on our back porch listening to the birds sing early in the morning.

 

Savior, like a shepherd lead us through the dark valleys that we face in life due to health issues, worries, sorrow, pain, and grief.

 

Savior, like a shepherd lead us to those green pastures and still waters, and through life’s dark valleys.

 

Savior, like a shepherd, be with those on our church’s prayer list as well as other persons and situations that we lift up to you during this time of worship. We pray for your healing, guiding, comforting, protecting, and loving presence to surround each of these joys and concerns.

 

Savior, like a shepherd, bless our children, youth, college students, and teachers in the beginning of a new school year. Guide and protect them so that they might be able to explore and discover the future that you have in mind for them.

 

Savior, like a shepherd, be with our church in this approaching time of pastoral transition. Thank you for pastoral shepherds who you have called to serve in your name.

 

Savior, like a shepherd lead us as we join now in praying the words that Jesus taught us to say together…

 

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.

Sunday (August 9) Pastoral Prayer

August 9, 2026

Beulah UMC

O Lord, when the storms of life are raging, stand by us. Stand by us when we are in a hospital hallway worried about a surgery of a dear loved one. Stand by us when we are faced with a difficult decision and there doesn’t seem to be a whole lot of options. Stand by us when all hope seems to be lost.

 

Stand by us through all of these challenges and adversities in our lives and remind us that thou who rulest wind and water, thou who never lost a battle, thou who who knowest all about me, thou who saved Paul and Silas, will stand by us.

 

Stand by us, O Lord as we come to you in prayer to lift up to you the joys and concerns on our hearts this day. Stand by those who are in need of healing, those who are in need of comfort, those who are in need of wisdom, those who are in need of strength, and those who are in need of your peace.

 

Stand by us, O Lord, just as you stood by your people when they were enslaved in Egypt and were in need of someone to deliver them into freedom. Stand by us, O Lord, just as you protected Peter and the disciples in the boat.

 

Thank you, Lord for today’s Psalm in which we are invited to join the Psalmist in praying, “If it was not the Lord who was on our side…” In these next few moments of silence, hear us as we complete this sentence to you.

 

[MOMENTS OF SILENCE]

 

As we offer these individual prayers of thanksgiving to you, we are also reminded by our Psalmist that our help is in the name of the Lord who made heaven and earth.

 

Stand by us, even now O Lord as we now offer this prayer that Jesus taught us to pray together…

 

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.

Sunday (August 2) Pastoral Prayer

August 2, 2026

Beulah UMC

Lord, I’m so tired of things that divide us. I’m exhausted by all the time we spend on attaching labels on each other. Democrats, Republicans, Liberals, Conservatives, Pro-This, Anti-That.

 

Lord, send the dew of Hermon all the way down to our arid and bitter hearts. Pour upon all of us your holy oil that unites us and makes us one! As that little refrain that is used for today’s psalm says, “Unite us, Lord, unite us by your everlasting love.”

 

Unite us along our journey to Jerusalem, the beautiful city of God. Unite us even though we may have so many different opinions, ways of life, ways of thinking, ways of understanding. Unite us and make us one.

 

Thank you for the uniting power of hymns that when sung together turn us into a beautiful blending of voices. And thank you for the uniting power of prayers that when prayed together remind us that we are all making this journey called life together. And we need each other to do this walk together.

 

In one unified voice we offer our prayers for the people on our church’s prayer list as well as many others who are on our hearts and minds this day. Even in this moment, we pray in one accord on behalf of those who are in need of healing, comfort, guidance, and peace.

 

And Lord, the next time we are feeling exhausted from all of the things that would divide us, unite us like never before by simply inviting us to pray this prayer that Jesus taught us to say together…

 

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.

Sunday (July 26) Pastoral Prayer

Beulah UMC

July 26, 2026

Lord, thank you for psalms like Psalm 105 that remind us of your many wonderful works from the past, like how you formed your people Israel, led Joseph to save your people from a famine, and raised up Moses to lead your people from slavery in Egypt and into the Promised Land.

 

Your wonderful works are many, so many that we often forget these stories of faith from the Old Testament and that would eventually lead to stories of you sending us Jesus to be our Savior and Lord. And your wonderful works continue to this day through the presence of your Holy Spirit at work in our lives. Help us to become even more aware of your many wonderful works that are happening all around us. May these holy moments that we experience lead us to say with today’s Psalmist, “praise the Lord!”

 

And since you are a God of wonderful works, we ask that you would offer your healing, guiding, comforting, and loving presence to the people on our prayer list as well as others who are on our hearts and minds this day. And may your wonderful works that are at work in each of these lives lead them to also say, “praise the Lord.”

 

For our health, our homes, and our loved ones, we say, “praise the Lord.” For answers to prayers and guiding us through difficult decisions, we say, “praise the Lord.” For those unexpected holy moments when you are made present to us at just the right time and when we need it the most, we say, “praise the Lord!” For your gift of salvation and your many blessings in our lives, we say, “praise the Lord!”

 

This is our story, this is our song, praising our Savior who taught us to pray together…

 

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.

Sunday (July 19) Pastoral Prayer

July 19, 2026

Beulah UMC

O God, we long for our soul to be still especially during those times when we are experiencing the raw emotions of frustration, disappointment, anger, and grief. Remind us as our prayer hymn so beautifully says to “bear patiently the cross of grief or pain, and to leave to you to order and provide, in every change you faithful will remain.”

 

Thank you for these psalms of lament that invite us to be ourselves with you because we know that you love us unconditionally. And like today’s psalmist who offered his lament to you, grant us a spirit of humility that would lead us to see if our hearts are in alignment with who you are calling us to be.

 

During these next few moments of silence, O God, quiet our souls as we humble our hearts and listen for your voice.

 

[MOMENTS OF SILENCE]

 

We also pray for those who are on our hearts and minds this day, those on our church’s prayer list, as well as family and friends who are in need of healing, comfort, guidance, and a sense of your peace. We lift all of these needs up to you this day.

 

Thank you for hearing our prayers of thanksgivings, blessings, joys, and gratitude, but also thank you for hearing our prayers of lament, heartache, and pain. And thank you that you hear our prayers during the day as well as in the middle of the night when we just can’t get to sleep.

 

Still our souls, O God. Be still our souls, even now as we join together in praying this prayer that Jesus taught us to say together…

 

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.

Sunday (July 12) Pastoral Prayer

July 12, 20266

Beulah UMC

O Lord, we join today’s psalmist in having a singing faith, a faith that praises you and gives you thanks for our many blessings, a singing faith that reminds us that we are on a journey to Zion, the beautiful city of God. To you be all praise and glory!

Thank you for giving us a song to sing especially when we are feeling discouraged. Thank you for giving us a song to sing when our own prayers seem so inadequate to express what is deepest in our hearts and minds. Thank you for giving us a song to sing when the journey feels like there is no end in sight. Thank you for giving us a song to sing.

 

And remind us that as we sing our songs of faith that we remember there are others along the journey with us, those here in church today, those who are on our church’s prayer list and in need of healing and comfort, and those who are in need of your guidance and strength. Thank you for giving each of these persons a song to sing as we all journey together.

 

Today, we are especially thankful for hymn writers like Charles Wesley, Fanny Crosby, Isaac Watts, John Newton, and William Cowper and so many more who offered us the lyrics and the poetry to beautifully express what might otherwise remain unspoken. Thank you for always giving us a song to sing.

 

And as John Wesley reminds us, grant us a renewed appreciation to not allow even a slight degree of weakness or weariness to hinder us and to always have an eye to you whenever we sing.

 

As our prayer hymn will soon remind us, “let all who name Christ’s holy name give God all praise and glory.”

 

And now lead us in praying these words that Jesus taught us to pray together…

 

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.

Sunday (July 5) Pastoral Prayer

July 5, 2026

Beulah UMC

This is our song, O God of all the nations, a song of peace for lands afar and ours. What a beautiful prayer to sing as we continue to celebrate our nation’s 250th anniversary. May freedom ring in this land and may we always strive to be a nation of liberty and justice for all. This is our song, O God of all the nations.

 

Thank you for today’s psalmist who reminds us to remember our faith history, to rejoice that you are the King of kings and Lord of lords, and to revere you as the One who sent us Jesus, the long-awaited Messiah who lived, who died, and who rose again. To you alone be all glory, power, and honor, and in the words of our psalmist, “may the peoples praise you forever and ever.”

 

Thank you for being a King who has given us an example in what it means to be citizens of your heavenly kingdom, a kingdom of sacrificial love and humble service. And thank you for being a King who hears our prayers, especially for those who are in need of healing, comfort, guidance, and peace. We lift all of our prayers concerns to you.

 

On this Independence Day Weekend, we especially pray for our country, its leaders, and its peoples that we would not take our freedoms and the high ideals of this great nation for granted, but to always strive to be a shining light of hope and peace for those near and far.

 

This is our song. This is our prayer, O God of all the nations, even as we offer this prayer that always reminds us that we are first and foremost citizens of your kingdom that has no end. Let us pray together…

 

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.