Good Evening Dear Family of Love!
Tonight we continue our prayer service with prayers you can do during the day when you need to take a time for prayer and recollection. Choose one or two lessons to meditate upon.
Let us begin.
O God, make speed to save us.
O Lord, make haste to help us.
Create in me a clean heart O God
Renew a right spirit within me.
Psalm 121 Levavi oculos
1 I lift up my eyes to the hills; *
from where is my help to come?
2 My help comes from the LORD, *
the maker of heaven and earth.
3 He will not let your foot be moved *
and he who watches over you will not fall asleep.
4 Behold, he who keeps watch over Israel *
shall neither slumber nor sleep;
5 The Lord himself watches over you; *
the Lord is your shade at your right hand,
6 So that the sun shall not strike you by day, *
nor the moon by night.
7 The Lord shall preserve you from all evil; *
it is he who shall keep you safe.
8 The Lord shall watch over your going out and
your coming in, *
from this time forth for evermore.
134 Ecce nunc
1 Behold now, bless the Lord, all you servants of the Lord, *
you that stand by night in the house of the Lord.
2 Lift up your hands in the holy place and bless the Lord; *
the Lord who made heaven and earth bless you out of Zion.
Ecclesiastes 3:1–11
3For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:
2 a time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;
3 a time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to break down, and a time to build up;
4 a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
5 a time to throw away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
6 a time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to throw away;
7 a time to tear, and a time to sew;
a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
8 a time to love, and a time to hate;
a time for war, and a time for peace.
2 a time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;
3 a time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to break down, and a time to build up;
4 a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
5 a time to throw away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
6 a time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to throw away;
7 a time to tear, and a time to sew;
a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
8 a time to love, and a time to hate;
a time for war, and a time for peace.
9 What gain have the workers from their toil? 10I have seen the business that God has given to everyone to be busy with. 11He has made everything suitable for its time; moreover, he has put a sense of past and future into their minds, yet they cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end.
Ephesians 4:1-6
4I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.4There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, 5one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all.
If anyone is in Christ he is a new creation; the old has passed
away, behold the new has come. All this is from God, who
through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry
of reconciliation. 2 Corinthians 5:17-18
The Beatitudes
5 And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. 2 Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying:
3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 Blessed are those who mourn,
For they shall be comforted.
5 Blessed are the meek,
For they shall inherit the earth.
6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
For they shall be filled.
7 Blessed are the merciful,
For they shall obtain mercy.
8 Blessed are the pure in heart,
For they shall see God.
9 Blessed are the peacemakers,
For they shall be called sons of God.
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. 12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
John 10:11-16
11 ‘I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12 The hired hand, who is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away—and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. 13 The hired hand runs away because a hired hand does not care for the sheep. 14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father. And I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.
John 15:12–17
12 ‘This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13 No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command you. 15I do not call you servants* any longer, because the servant* does not know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father. 16You did not choose me but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask him in my name. 17I am giving you these commands so that you may love one another.
John 21:15–17
15 When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?’ He said to him, ‘Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Feed my lambs.’ 16A second time he said to him, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’ He said to him, ‘Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Tend my sheep.’17He said to him the third time, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’ Peter felt hurt because he said to him the third time, ‘Do you love me?’ And he said to him, ‘Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Feed my sheep.
For whom and what shall we pray? Let us name our intentions before God. We pray for all those affected by Hurricane Harvey, the many nations of the world where terrible flooding has occurred remembering Bangladesh, Nepal, and India. We pray for peace and justice in this fragile and broken world.
A Prayer attributed to St. Francis
Lord, make us instruments of your peace. Where there is
hatred, let us sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where
there is discord, union; where there is doubt, faith; where
there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where
there is sadness, joy. Grant that we may not so much seek to
be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive; it is
in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we
are born to eternal life. Amen.
Lord Jesus Christ, you said to your apostles, “Peace I give to
you; my own peace I leave with you:” Regard not our sins,
but the faith of your Church, and give to us the peace and
unity of that heavenly City, where with the Father and the
Holy Spirit you live and reign, now and for ever. Amen.
Blessed are you, O Lord, the God of our fathers, creator
of the changes of day and night, giving rest to the weary,
renewing the strength of those who are spent, bestowing
upon us occasions of song in the evening. As you have
protected us in the day that is past, so be with us in the
coming night; keep us from every sin, every evil, and every
fear; for you are our light and salvation, and the strength of
our life. To you be glory for endless ages. Amen.
MOTHER TERESA'S ANYWAY POEM
People are often unreasonable, illogical and self centered;
Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives;
Be kind anyway.
If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies;
Succeed anyway.
If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you;
Be honest and frank anyway.
What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight;
Build anyway.
If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous;
Be happy anyway.
The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow;
Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough;
Give the world the best you've got anyway.
You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and your God;
It was never between you and them anyway.
I would like us to remember that our prayers tonight will be centered on a similar response as we light our candles, make vigil and form a prayer circle of love.
God we Light our candles virtually and form a circle of unity and light to form a family truly who are compassionate, accepting, loving, and merciful.
God we pray this night that we may seek to love you, our family members, enemies, neighbors, and ourselves anyway even when we do not feel like it.
God we pray that we may draw together in a circle of love even when we haven't had the energy to do so. Give us the courage to do it anyway.
God we pray that we may build bridges and tear down walls and meet each other half-way and walk together as a beginning. Let us seek to walk together wherever we are on the bridge and path as long as we do it together anyway.
God we pray that we may kind to one another regardless how we feel. Gently tap us on the shoulder to do it anyway.
God we pray that we may learn what it means to be truly family members and serve and care for the least of these and do it anyway.
God we pray this night that we may be encircled with a prayer quilt of love and that we may shine our lighted candles towards each other's faces and see your love in their eyes.
God let us pray for all of our family members through out the world and draw them into this holy circle where they will feel loved, accepted, have universal human rights, dignity and be freed from terror, bigotry, abuse, and hatred. May we help our family members who are afraid to join the circle of CALM by taking their hands gently and with a comforting embrace with encouragement be drawn in and not be made to feel invisible.
God encircle our hearts, hands, spirits, lives, and each other as we shine your light to all in this fragile and broken world. Amen.
++++
Now, dear ones,let us do the prayer quilt meditation and prayers to feel God's warmth and presence.
Let us start with our "Be Stills"
Be still and know that I am God
Be still and know
Be still
Be
Be still and know that I am God
Be still and know
Be still
Be
Be still and know that I am God
Be still and know
Be still
Be
Now imagine each of us placing a warm prayer quilt of love around each other. We pray this prayer:
God we pray and ask you to help us to envision a warm prayer quilt of love that will give us all loving comfort by imagining being wrapped tightly by each other in loving service to you and to each other.
We :
Imagine it enfolding us with love.
Imagine it making us feel safe from harm
Imagine it giving us strength when we feel weak.
Imagine it healing us through warm thoughts and loving prayers.
Imagine it feeling like home
Imagine it enfolding us when we feel, lost, lonely alone, and invisible.
Imagine it feeling like Gods arms enfolding us with love, light, and mercy.
Imagine it feeling like Jesus' redeeming and healing graces.
Imagine it feeling like the Holy Spirit being the Holy Comforter.
Imagine it feeling like it being encircled and wrapped around each other uniting us and not dividing us.
Imagine it wrapping our family members who are ill with the warmth and healing balm.
Imagine it wrapping the world in justice, mercy and with God guiding us in the pathways of peace.
Imagine it comforting all of us who are grieving.
Imagine it wrapping our dear departed loved ones for their journey home to the Thin Places.
Imagine it enfolding the least of these who are without food, clothing, and shelter.
We imagine it being made of stitched prayers of love, joy, hope, and peace.
We imagine the prayers that are being said as we wrap each other in the prayer quilt we choose for each other.
We imagine it enfolding our family members who long to feel accepted lovingly and authentically for who they and we are.
We pray that as we imagine we may feel the presence of God our Creator, Jesus our Redeemer, and the Holy Spirit Holy Comforter. We lift up these our prayers to you O God with warm, loving, and compassionate hearts and heart homes. Amen.
God we pray that we may draw together in a circle of love even when we haven't had the energy to do so. Give us the courage to do it anyway.
God we pray that we may build bridges and tear down walls and meet each other half-way and walk together as a beginning. Let us seek to walk together wherever we are on the bridge and path as long as we do it together anyway.
God we pray that we may kind to one another regardless how we feel. Gently tap us on the shoulder to do it anyway.
God we pray that we may learn what it means to be truly family members and serve and care for the least of these and do it anyway.
God we pray this night that we may be encircled with a prayer quilt of love and that we may shine our lighted candles towards each other's faces and see your love in their eyes.
God let us pray for all of our family members through out the world and draw them into this holy circle where they will feel loved, accepted, have universal human rights, dignity and be freed from terror, bigotry, abuse, and hatred. May we help our family members who are afraid to join the circle of CALM by taking their hands gently and with a comforting embrace with encouragement be drawn in and not be made to feel invisible.
God encircle our hearts, hands, spirits, lives, and each other as we shine your light to all in this fragile and broken world. Amen.
++++
Now, dear ones,let us do the prayer quilt meditation and prayers to feel God's warmth and presence.
Let us start with our "Be Stills"
Be still and know that I am God
Be still and know
Be still
Be
Be still and know that I am God
Be still and know
Be still
Be
Be still and know that I am God
Be still and know
Be still
Be
Now imagine each of us placing a warm prayer quilt of love around each other. We pray this prayer:
God we pray and ask you to help us to envision a warm prayer quilt of love that will give us all loving comfort by imagining being wrapped tightly by each other in loving service to you and to each other.
We :
Imagine it enfolding us with love.
Imagine it making us feel safe from harm
Imagine it giving us strength when we feel weak.
Imagine it healing us through warm thoughts and loving prayers.
Imagine it feeling like home
Imagine it enfolding us when we feel, lost, lonely alone, and invisible.
Imagine it feeling like Gods arms enfolding us with love, light, and mercy.
Imagine it feeling like Jesus' redeeming and healing graces.
Imagine it feeling like the Holy Spirit being the Holy Comforter.
Imagine it feeling like it being encircled and wrapped around each other uniting us and not dividing us.
Imagine it wrapping our family members who are ill with the warmth and healing balm.
Imagine it wrapping the world in justice, mercy and with God guiding us in the pathways of peace.
Imagine it comforting all of us who are grieving.
Imagine it wrapping our dear departed loved ones for their journey home to the Thin Places.
Imagine it enfolding the least of these who are without food, clothing, and shelter.
We imagine it being made of stitched prayers of love, joy, hope, and peace.
We imagine the prayers that are being said as we wrap each other in the prayer quilt we choose for each other.
We imagine it enfolding our family members who long to feel accepted lovingly and authentically for who they and we are.
We pray that as we imagine we may feel the presence of God our Creator, Jesus our Redeemer, and the Holy Spirit Holy Comforter. We lift up these our prayers to you O God with warm, loving, and compassionate hearts and heart homes. Amen.
God we come to you this day and into the night with our hearts and hands open as we light our candles and pray as we in the words of Psalm 141
"Let my prayer be counted as incense before you,
and the lifting up of my hands as an evening sacrifice.
God may we come to you with a vision clear that this isn't a time of gimme, gimme, gimme or instant expectations but, with hearts full of prayers and thanksgivings not just for ourselves but on behalf of others and this world where there is great need. We pray that with our hands ready to serve you and the least of these we may find this a time of bridge building and peacemaking We pray that with our open hands we may seek to use them as offerings of help, love, giving, and solace and our word for soothing of our souls, soulace. We come to you as we lift up our hands in grateful thanksgiving and praise and that they may rise to the heavens in holy and enthusiastic joy and hope. We pray that we may extend our hands in peace to our enemies and those who hate us and offer to them a sign that we are here to build and not destroy. We lift these our prayers and place them in your loving and healing hands O God. We also present the Light of Christ to each other remembering these words as we close our time of prayer "The Light of Christ in Me recognizes the Light of Christ in You!" We pray these prayers with hands and lights uplifted in Jesus most Holy Name. Amen.
Optional prayer sets.
Let us be at prayer.
Prayer set I
Hear, O Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is One.
Prayer set II
The blog the above came from is this : Let's get rid of labels, calling each other names, being fearful and live together with CALM (Compassion, Acceptance, Love, and Mercy).
Prayer set I
Hear, O Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is One.
God may we resist the need to put labels, letters, brands, and such on your children.
May we be one.
God may we resist using these labels, letters, brands to harm, hurt, discriminate and hate.
May we be loving and united.
God may we resist the need to use labels, letters, brands in describing our family members.
May we see each family member as you see us.
God may we seek to see you in each of our enemies faces and do good to them by remembering they are part of our family too. May we seek to follow the example Jesus set and look to Him as our role model in our family and in our faith.
God may we continue to widen the circle of our family by expanding and tenderizing our hearts and loving each other fully without fear and suspicion.
God we pray for all of our family members who are ill, need, danger, homeless, hungry, and especially these our family members we now name before you________________
God we pray for all our family members who are in nations where there is danger remembering South Sudan, Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, The Ukraine, and all other parts of the world where there is danger and especially those places that are on our hearts____________________
God we pray for rain and a gentle return to normal weather patterns throughout the world. and in our nation.
God we pray for those who have died today and this hour that they may feel your warm embrace as they begin a new chapter where they are truly one with you. We pray for all who continue to grieve losses of any kind regardless of time. We remember especially_____________________________
God we give you thanks for our family members and all our many blessings and especially all those many blessings _______________________
God we celebrate those special times , family members birthdays, and special saints and persons who are on our calendar and hearts today remembering especially_____________________________
God we wrap these our prayers into a Sabbath Box and know that you are already at work responding to these our prayers, receiving our thanksgivings, acknowledging those special celebrations and consoling us as we remember those who are near and dear to us who now reside with you. All this we ask in Jesus' name. Amen.
"Hear O, Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is One". May we all be one!
Prayer set II
Let us be at prayer!
God we thank you for making us.
Make us one
God we pray that we may learn to love more fully.
Make us more loving.
God we pray for those who haven't accepted all of our family members yet.
Open their eyes Lord so that they may see you in them.
God we pray for an end to bullying, abuse, and hate!
Make us kinder, loving, listening, and inclusive.
God we pray for peace among all peoples who haven't heard your message of love.
Give them open hearts and clear ears to hear.
God we pray for calm hearts, gentle spirits as we meet the days ahead in this new world you have given us.
Give us courage to live into new realities and paths with grace and kindness.
God help those who are transitioning into new lives, the Thin Places, and new life paths.
God may we love and comfort them during these times.
God give us each an expanding heart to love, a voice to speak kindly and gently, and broad shoulders that will make us all equal to the tasks to help the world to become equal and have universal human rights.
God Hear us as we pray!
God we pray for_________________
God we give thanks for__________________
Accept our prayers this night in the Name of Jesus who set our feet on the pathway of love, kindness, and acceptance. Amen.
From Blog: #LoveisLove #WeMustBeKind, #WeMustRespect, #WeAreOneInChrist, #WeAreOne, #WeAreAllGodsChildren
Prayer Set III
Let us be at prayer and pray to God to help us strengthen the holy connections God has given us.
God help us to strengthen the holy connections so that we may be united in the bonds of love and family-hood.
God help us to strengthen the holy connections that remind us that we are family to even the least of these and our enemies.
God help us to strengthen the holy connections that make us one with you so that we may serve you as in the paths you have set before us.
God help us to strengthen the holy connections that are needed at the time when our family members mourn losses of loved ones and friends.
God help us to strengthen the holy connections to reach out to all our family members who are ill and may we pray this night for all who are ill remembering especially_____________________________
God help us to strengthen the holy connections that unite us and not divide us.
God help us to strengthen the holy connections that call us to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with you so that we may become the voice of the voiceless. We pray for peace and an end to wars, violence, and terror. We pray for all refugees, captives,and victims of abuse and trafficking.
God help us to strengthen the holy connections to our loved ones who have died so that we may pray for those who are dying and transitioning into the Thin Places.
God help us to strengthen the holy connections that will help us to have a reverence for God's Cathedral of Life and all living things and beings.
God help us to strengthen the holy connections that we may bring ourselves and our gifts to the table daily and share them with all of our family members with love and for the common good.
God help us to strengthen the holy connections when we share our life's story with courage we may feel your loving arms around us as we speak our truth with love and mercy. May we not be afraid to come out of our closets what ever those closets may be and the secrets that need to be told. May with live our lives authentically with love, courage, and grace.
God help us to strengthen the holy connections as we pray for ourselves, on behalf of our family members, and those who have been afraid to come to us and ask us for prayer remembering_____________
God help us to strengthen the holy connections so that we may be united in the bonds of love and family-hood.
God help us to strengthen the holy connections that remind us that we are family to even the least of these and our enemies.
God help us to strengthen the holy connections that make us one with you so that we may serve you as in the paths you have set before us.
God help us to strengthen the holy connections that are needed at the time when our family members mourn losses of loved ones and friends.
God help us to strengthen the holy connections to reach out to all our family members who are ill and may we pray this night for all who are ill remembering especially_____________________________
God help us to strengthen the holy connections that unite us and not divide us.
God help us to strengthen the holy connections that call us to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with you so that we may become the voice of the voiceless. We pray for peace and an end to wars, violence, and terror. We pray for all refugees, captives,and victims of abuse and trafficking.
God help us to strengthen the holy connections to our loved ones who have died so that we may pray for those who are dying and transitioning into the Thin Places.
God help us to strengthen the holy connections that will help us to have a reverence for God's Cathedral of Life and all living things and beings.
God help us to strengthen the holy connections that we may bring ourselves and our gifts to the table daily and share them with all of our family members with love and for the common good.
God help us to strengthen the holy connections when we share our life's story with courage we may feel your loving arms around us as we speak our truth with love and mercy. May we not be afraid to come out of our closets what ever those closets may be and the secrets that need to be told. May with live our lives authentically with love, courage, and grace.
God help us to strengthen the holy connections as we pray for ourselves, on behalf of our family members, and those who have been afraid to come to us and ask us for prayer remembering_____________
God in the name of Jesus we lift up these our prayers who connects us to you and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
After Worship
Grant, we beseech thee, Almighty God, that the words which
we have heard this day with our outward ears, may, through
thy grace, be so grafted inwardly in our hearts, that they may
bring forth in us the fruit of good living, to the honor and
praise of thy Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
Good Night Dear Ones! I love you. Keep up the good prayer work. I love you and give thanks to God for you this night and always.
Peace, love, prayers, and God's blessings!
Sara
Resources:
Book of Common Prayer
Bible Gate Way
Satucket Lectionary.
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