Prayer for December 26, 2021-January 1, 2022
Sermon Text: Luke 2:41-52

That our identity may always be in You

Living God, we worship You! We rejoice in your ability to act among us in surprising ways. We rejoice that You have come near in the life of Jesus Christ. We praise You for the hope that You instill in us through the story of Jesus and by the work of your Spirit in our lives.

Loving God, we identify ourselves in so many ways. Enable us to identify ourselves primarily in terms of our relationship to You. Help us to think first, “I am God’s child. I am valued and loved. I am dedicated to God’s word. I will be obedient to God’s instruction. I must be about God’s work by continuing the ministry that Jesus passed on to his disciples.”

Let our identity always be in You, through Jesus Christ. Help us not to forget that You have created and redeemed us for yourself.

Let this day, and every day, be a day of rejoicing in all that You have done for us. May that move us to lives of abundant generosity. Amen.

Prayer for December 19-25, 2021
Sermon Text: Luke 1:39-55

That we may say "Yes" to You and glorify You in gratitude

God, our Creator and Redeemer, we rejoice in You. We rejoice because You fill our lives with your presence. You invite and enable us to participate in meaningful ways in the work that You are doing to restore all of creation through Christ Jesus.

God, we rejoice because You remember your covenant with Abraham to bless all nations through him. You keep the humble in mind and make a way for them amid the loud, competitive, and even abusive claims and actions of the proud.

God, we rejoice because You act in both subtle and dramatic ways that alter human history and individual fortunes. You act mercifully and bless widely and in unexpected ways.

Wondrous One, enable us to say “Yes” to your call upon our lives. May we glorify You in gratitude, discern your intention for our lives and for all of creation, and speak and live in prophetic ways that witness both to our neighbors and to powers that resist your life-giving ways. Amen. 

Prayer for December 12-18, 2021
Sermon Text: Luke 3:7-18 

That we may truly repent of the ways we dishonor You and devalue our neighbors

God of wonders, we worship You with hope and joy! But we also worship You with a measure of trepidation. We hear your prophet calling those who are or would be baptized with words of promise and words of warning.

We hear, specifically, a call to no easy spirituality, but to lives in which we do the work of repentance: changing acts of selfishness, injustice, and deceit into generosity, justice, and truthfulness. We hear that call as one that engages every dimension of our lives, including our work, which we so commonly treat as beyond the scope of your concern.

We hear, as well, the promise of a baptism that immerses our lives in your Spirit and in the purifying passion of your love and holiness. And we know that our repentance is barely begun unless your Spirit works in and among us. We cannot transform ourselves, but You can.

God, sometimes the “good news” sounds more like threat. But we thank You that your prophets, including Jesus, your Chosen One, pointed to the dangers of sustained action or movement in the direction of personal and communal destruction.

May we truly repent of the many ways we dishonor You and devalue our neighbors. Amen.

Prayer for December 5-11, 2021
Sermon Text: Luke 3:1-6

That we may answer the call to rearrange our lives and our world for your coming

God of all, the Voice crying in the wilderness still cries out in our day. We still hear the urgent exhortation to level mountains, fill in valleys, and straighten out crooked places. We still hear the promise that “all people” will see your salvation.

We know, God, that the exhortation of your prophet was not just about landscaping and roadbuilding, but that his words echoed those of other prophets who called out to your people, in other eras. They called your people to practice justice instead of injustice, to eliminate the vast inequality of resources that makes life excessively full for some and unbearably empty for others. We know that your prophet was calling us to lives rearranged and transformed by your forgiving, compassionate, generous, just, and peaceful reign among us. And we know that the salvation the Voice announced was preparation for and pointer to Jesus, the Christ, in whom we have witnessed the drama and glory of your salvation, and have seen the full embodiment of your love.

We rejoice in You! We rejoice that You have not abandoned us to our failed efforts to create the good life on our own and in competition with one another, but have shaped us anew for shared life in Jesus. Amen.

Prayer for November 28-December 4, 2021
Sermon Text: Luke 21:25-36

That we may stand on the day when Christ comes with "power and great glory"

God, we hope in You! We await the return of your Anointed One. And like many generations of Christians before us, we are inclined to see signs of fulfillment in the anguish-causing chaos around us. In our anxiety, we often contribute to the chaos by rash choices that we believe will protect us and conserve the well-being of our individual lives and our communities. Or we turn to the calculating efforts of those who read the Bible’s mysterious language of the end of things as though it had a one-to-one correspondence with events or trends that we observe.

Jesus, we see many signs, but perhaps we don’t see the right signs, or see them in the right light. Perhaps we fail to see as Jesus saw and as Jesus attempted to train his disciples.

Forgive us for allowing anxiety to weigh us down and control us. Forgive us for failing to observe and address life with sobriety. Forgive us for expecting salvation only for us or those whom we perceive to be most like us. Transform us into disciples who follow Jesus with courage and hope. Enable us to stand on the day of his return, when he comes with “power and great glory.” Amen.

Prayer for November 21-27, 2021
Sermon Text: John 18:28-37

That we may follow your example of compassionate and courageous service

Jesus, many of us claim to want justice, but we have little taste for the difficult truths that we must hear to open a space for justice in our own hearts. We have little desire to change our minds, or to repent in brokenness and sorrow. We have little desire to make reparations to those whom we have defrauded and dehumanized by our acts of greed.

Like Pilate, we deny the availability of truth and its claim upon our lives. But we know that your instruction is wise and true. We know that your Spirit frees us by convincing and convicting us of the truth that You embodied among us.

Enable us to see that You, as Sovereign among us, have called and commanded us to practice neighbor love, not just for our brothers, sisters, and neighbors, but for those whom we define as enemies. Enable us to recognize your wise instruction and leadership, and follow your example of compassionate and courageous service, in order to fulfill the purpose of our creation and redemption. Amen.

Prayer for November 14-20, 2021
Sermon Text: 1 Samuel 1:3-20, 2:1-10

That we may trust fully in You as we act with compassion and generosity toward our neighbors

God of creation, we rejoice in You! We rejoice that You are alert to the cries of your people. You hear the anguished voices of those who are worn down, distraught, defeated, and shamed by their circumstances. You see the needs of the oppressed and the arrogance of their oppressors.

We rejoice that You have the ability to alter our lives. You are able to lift the oppressed to places of unexpected joy. You raise from death to new life. You nourish and give strength. You remove shame and give honor.

God of creation, we rejoice that You are also God of justice. We find both hope and warning in that. Do not let us oppress our neighbor in arrogance. Do not let us take refuge in wealth and assume that it will protect us from all threats. Enable us to trust fully in You and act with compassion and generosity toward our neighbors, so that we may all, together, celebrate your generous presence among us. Amen.