leadinginworship

Repenting and Lamenting in Times LIke These

You are the God who hears:
hear our prayer today for all who lament or repent.
For those among us who face discrimination every day
because of their skin colour,
we lament.
For those among us with white skin who benefit
from racist systems sometimes even without realizing it,
we repent.
For those among us who have struggled and waited so long
for the Promised Land of freedom and equality,
we lament.
For those among us who have acted in racist ways
and have hurt people of colour, 
we repent.
For those protesting injustice who face police brutality
and a justice system rigged against them,
we lament.
For those who think racism is someone else’s problem,
and not a problem for humanity,
we repent.
God of hope, show us how to work for justice together,
standing up for what is right,
stepping in when something's wrong,
shouldering each other’s burdens,
holding each other accountable,
righting the wrongs we’ve done,
speaking truth to power.
We pray for change, lasting change,
for protection for protesters,
for a de-escalation of violence
and for government leaders who listen.
Deliver us from evil, within and without,
in Jesus' name we pray, Amen

A Psalm for George Floyd

God the Almighty longs for justice
and confronts the sin of white supremacy.
God gathers the souls of the murdered,
their blood cries out from the ground.
God hears the cries of the oppressed,
and comes to their aid.
Jesus kneels with the protestors,
he stands in solidarity with the downtrodden,
he cradles the broken bodies of the persecuted.
The Holy Spirit broods over the bent world,
blowing the winds of change,
propelling the rushing winds of hope.

The Lord of hosts is with the abused,
the God of angel armies is their refuge and strength,
a very present help in times of trouble.
Come behold the works of the Lord:
God makes racism cease to the ends of the earth.
Those held back by discrimination,
those held down by racial profiling,
those held in jail by systemic forces,
those held in poverty by economic inequity,
they are freed from the chains that bind them.
God removes the knee from the throat
of those who cannot breathe.
The voice of the Lord cries out,
“Let my people go.”

Living with a Pandemic Congregational Prayer

Gracious God:
We are the church united as we pray from different locations,
connected through something more marvellous than technology--
your Spirit filling us with hope and vision.
We come first of all with thanksgiving.
Thank you for the many kindnesses we have experienced
in this time of social distancing: old friends reconnecting,
some households learning about togetherness,
others learning new quieter rhythms.
Thank you for the joy of food and the beauty of music.
Thank you for this spring-time season
which is lifting us with its promise of new life.
Even as there is much to be thankful for,
we come together with lament;
this virus has caused so much loss of life around the world.
So many suffer, so many families grieve,
and we don’t know when it will end.
We lament the financial burdens of this pandemic,
and that it has fallen heavily on the poorest,
with inequalities standing out more sharply than usual.
We know that racism is one of the roots of injustice,
and that the death of George Floyd is just an example
of the everyday violence people of colour face.
There are those among us who suffer because of racism,
and there are those among us who haven't thought about racism
because it is the privileged air we breathe.
As we work on solving health problems,
help us build a society that addresses injustice.
We continue to pray for a vaccine for this virus.
Give insight to researchers, and co-operation among nations,
so that all can benefit from scientific breakthroughs.
Give wisdom to our politicians making difficult decisions
about how and when to modify social distancing.
Help them find that fine balance between opening our economy
and safeguarding public health.
Keep us healthy and help us care for each other.
As we all make choices about who to see,
and how many we should see at a time,
help us refrain from judging each other,
just as we do not want to be judged by others.
Jesus, walk with us this week.
We trust in you, because you have been with us,
showing us the faithful path in good times and bad,
and you will be with us, come what may. Amen.

Windy Day Congregational Prayer

Thank you for the wind!
Thank you for the way it sweeps across our great country,
over the Pacific ocean, up the mountains,
flying across the plains and the great lakes
till it arrives in Ontario in great gusts, [adjust to fit your geography]
making everything alive and lively,
blowing our hair and clothes into tangles,
filling our lungs and then blowing away
all the way to the Atlantic Ocean.
Fill us with your Spirit this morning like this wind,
blow across our country and into our congregation,
enlivening us, moving us, stirring us.

Thank you for our congregation, for every person;
thank you for the differences of age and varieties of experience,
thank you even that we don’t always get along.
Thank you for the challenges you give us to live as your church,
giving us exercise in breaking down dividing walls
exercises in forgiveness and tolerance,
learning to love each other truly.
Your spirit blowing us in loving directions!
Today we pray for those we know who feel storm-tossed,
who feel they have lost a solid foundation.
Unsettled because of family arguments,
shaky because of financial insecurity,
rattled because of depression,  or a crisis of faith or meaning;
help us to be people who can reach out a hand of solidarity,
a steadying hand that points to you.

There is a wind blowing today in our country
and people are discontent with many things;
we pray for Canada,  and for our government leaders.
Help us to be a country that cares for all its citizens,
a country that listens to the people on the edge,
a country that is fair and just.
We especially pray that racist thoughts,
even our own, would be exposed and challenged.
Give us courage to speak loving words to each other,
to both live and give the love you've shown us 
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Blow into our lives with your freshening spirit,
the Breath of Life for all the world.
Amen