MArch 24, 2019 -- Lent 3 -- MArriage/Relationships

Opening PRAYER

Companion God, made known in relationship,

we come here to build our relationship with the family of faith.

God made known in Jesus, who calls us to friendship,

in this time together deepen our love for God and neighbour.

Spirit God, always present in our lives,

move in and around us, renewing our hearts and souls.

As friends and followers of Jesus we pray in his name, sharing the words he taught his closest friends...

PRAYER FOR AND ASSURANCE OF GRACE

God of relationship, you challenge us to live in relationship with you and each other.

And we know that we grow from our relationships but sometimes it is just too hard.

God of relationship, you challenge us to be vulnerable with you and each other.

And we will, to a limit, because sometimes vulnerability terrifies us.

God of relationship, help us to be people in relationships

Give us the courage to be open and vulnerable, to forgive and be forgiven, to risk and to protect together.

God of Grace, god of love, God of relationship, through your grace help us grow together in love and in hope. Help us enter into all our relationships, with you and each other, as fully as you enter into relatioship with us.

Amen.

March 17, 2019 -- Lent 2 -- Prayer

Opening PRAYER

Source of life and love, Creator God;

we open our hearts and minds and lives to your presence.

Teacher and Guide, God in human form, known in Christ;

we come as those who try to follow the path you set for us.

Always present with us, giving hope, Spirit God;

we come to be filled with You, refreshed to live out our faith every day.

As those who bear Christ’s name we pray together the words he taught his friends...

PRAYER FOR AND ASSURANCE OF GRACE

God of relationship, you call us to share our lives with you.

And we do. Or we want to, when we aren’t too busy to pray.

God of relationship, you ask us to listen for your voice.

Which sounds great, but we like to talk.

God of relationship, you encourage us to trust that you answer.

And we often wonder what our prayers accomplish, or we don’t like the answer, or we want to stay in control,

God of Grace, help us know that you are there, give us the confidence to trust in you, hear our prayers when they are wordy and when they are silent.

...time of silence...

We offer up our prayers.. When they are selfless and when they are selfish, when we listen and when we only talk, when we see results and when we wonder if it was all worth it we offer up our prayers.. And always God is there, hearing, loving, responding.

Thanks be to God. Amen.

Call to Worship & Commissioning for Lent 2019 (Practices of the Church)

CALL TO WORSHIP

In this season of Lent, of preparation for Easter

we gather to reflect on our faith story and our faith practices.

God has invited us to this place

where we open ourselves to God’s presence

As people of faith, we are people of relationship

sharing our hopes and joys, triumphs and struggles with each other and with God.

Gathered as a community, we open our worship by greeting each other with signs and words of Christ’s peace...

COMMISSIONING:

The God who has called us together,

now sends us out to put our faith in action.

The God who asks us to follow the path of Jesus.

challenges us to share God’s word of hope and love with all we meet

The God who lives with us in relationship,

is with us now and always as we live and serve.

Go with God: Parent, Child, and Spirit; Three-in-One and One-in-Three

Prayers for Annual Meeting 2019

Opening

God who calls us to be the church, we have made one more circle around the sun.
Another year has been and gone and today we gather to reflect on the year that was,
to listen for your voice speaking in our midst,
and to look ahead to the year that is just beginning.

As we gather this morning we give thanks for all the many ways people in this faith community have lived out their commitment to the community:
-those who have led and planned activities,
-those who have volunteered to help at one of those activities,
-those who have served on Council, or on one of the Ministry teams,
-those who have served communion, or greeted, or read scripture, or made coffee for our Sunday mornings,
-those who have prayed for their neighbours in the congregation and in the wider world.
AS we gather this morning we remember the neighbours who come to this place
-for comfort:
-for a food voucher,
-to attend support meetings in this building,
and we are thankful for the opportunity to serve our community in this way.
God of life, as a community of faith we mark the changes of life.
We mark life’s beginning with Baptism, remembering [insert names].
We mark the maturing of our youth with Confirmation, remembering [insert names].
We join together to celebrate Relationship, remembering [insert names].
We join our hearts to celebrate life and to mourn at the time of death, remembering [insert names]
In all the changes of life we recognize that we are not alone, and we give thanks.
God of our past, our present, and our future,
move among us, we pray, as we meet here this afternoon.
Open our ears and hearts to hear and know where you are leading us.
As we talk about a vision for this faith community, help it be not just our vision but yours that pulls us forward.
We pray in the name of Jesus, our teacher and guide, our rock and redeemer, our source of hope.
AMEN 

Closing 

God, you have called us together, and we have responded.

Here today we have sung, and prayed and listened.
Here today we have broken bread together at the table of faith and at the table of community.
Here today we have given thanks for the year that was and talked about how we will be a faith community in the years to come.
And you have been a part of all of that.
Thank you.
Now we move out of this building and into the world where we do the most of our living and serving.
As we leave this building today may we be assured that you go with us.
As we live and serve in the wider world may we see Christ in the neighbours we meet, and may they see Christ in us.
As we move into the future as a community of faith, may we always be aware of and strive to live out the vision you have for us as individuals and as a congregation.
And may we always remember that we are not alone.
In Jesus’ name we pray.
AMEN