|
Submit Your Own! Day of Pentecost, May 11, 2008 By David von Schlichten Prayers for Worship – May 11, 2008 Day of Pentecost – Year A Call to Worship Leader: Joy to the world! The Spirit's come. Let all their tongues employ for proclaiming the Good News. People: No Holy Spirit means no Church, so thanks be to God for the Spirit's arrival! Leader: The Paraclete has moved in, has filled us with power. People: The Spirit has ignited a fire in our bones for spreading the Good News through actions and words. Leader: Like an attentive mother, She “[ . . . ] over the bent / world broods with warm breast and with ah! bright wings.” (From “God's Grandeur” by Gerard Manley Hopkins.) People: Thanks be to the Trinity. Alleluia! Prayer of Invocation “Come, Holy Ghost, our souls inspire, / And lighten with celestial fire” ( from Hymn 473 in the Lutheran Book of Worship), in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Prayer of Confession We praise you, Paraclete, for driving us to repentance. By your inspiration, we acknowledge that we have sinned against God the Trinity. We have excluded people whom we should have included. We have had the arrogance to declare whom you have come to and whom you have neglected, thinking that you are stingy like us. We have competed against each other and divided ourselves, instead of living according to you, the one, uniting Spirit. We also have taken for granted our mother-figures, instead of thanking them for the ways they have cared for and inspired us. For the sake of Christ our brother, forgive us, Mother Lord. Be our Advocate once again, and continue to teach us the wisdom of God. Amen. Words of Assurance Leader: Alleluia! The Holy Spirit has enabled us to believe that, because of Christ's death and resurrection, we have forgiveness, peace with God. People: Thanks be to the Comforter, who has given us the faith to repent and believe. Leader: By our sibling's blood, God has forgiveness us all our sins. People: By the Spirit's might, we are able to rejoice and share the Good News. Alleluia! Prayer of Inspiration Leader: Veni Sancte Spiritus. (Latin) People: Veni Sancte Spiritus. Leader: Holy Spirit, come to us. People: Holy Spirit, come to us. Leader: Veni Sancte Spiritus. People: Veni Sancte Spiritus. Amen. (From “Veni Sancte Spiritus,” hymn 406 in Evangelical Lutheran Worship, reprinted from a Pentecost sequence of the Taize Community.) Prayers of the People Holy Ghost, thank you for breathing life into the lungs of the Church. We give special gratitude for St. Matthias. We also thank you for Pentecostals, who have helped the whole Church to bestow on you more attention and glory. Lead us all to respond to your power by sharing the Good News. Parakletos (Koine Greek), (congregational response: ten piedad de nosotros (Spanish; have mercy on us)). Adonai-Advocate, we thank you for those great human advocates, mothers and other mother-figures. Teach us to honor our mothers and mother-figures according to your agape. Parakletos, . . . Winged Paraclete, you teach us how to speak. Bless the United States and every land, including our President, the candidates, and all leaders, that we may speak meaningful words and acts of compassion. Grant us the wise courage to be a blessing to the cyclone victims in Myanmar. Parakletos, . . . Fiery, Windy, Mysterious God, you brooded over the waters at creation, and you continue to nurture and direct us, your children. We offer gratitude for the Armed Forces and ask you to train them to work first for peace always. Parakletos, . . . You may add other praises or petitions here. Leader: “Njo-o kwetu, Roho mwema[.]” (Swahili) People: “Gracious Spirit, heed our pleading[.]” Leader: “Njo-o, [ . . . ] Roho mwema.” People: “Come, [ . . . ] Holy Spirit.” (From “Gracious Spirit, Heed Our Pleading/Njoo kwetu, Roho mwema,” hymn 401 in Evangelical Lutheran Worship). Offertory Prayer By your compelling we offer these gifts to you, Friend, thanking you in advance for directing them toward the glory of God and the service of people in need. In the name of Christ we pray. Amen. Benediction Leader: Dank sei Gott! (German) People: Thanks be to God! Leader: The Holy Spirit has led us here and leads us out in accord with the Father and Son, People: more loving than even the greatest of mothers, Leader: endowing us with the courage to go, tell it on the mountain, People: that the Father has made us, the Son has saved us, and the Spirit has made us holy to be a blessing to all people of every variety. Leader: Soli Deo Gloria! (Latin) People: Soli Deo Gloria! David von Schlichten, poedifier Seventh Sunday of Easter/ Ascension May 4, 2008 By David von Schlichten Prayers for Worship – May 4, 2008 Seventh Sunday of Easter – Year A/ Ascension Call to Worship Leader: Alleluia! Sing praises to the Lord. The crucified Christ is risen and has ascended to the right hand of God, the seat of power. People: Christ has prayed to the Father on our behalf, Leader: asking God to protect us so that we may be one, just as the Son and the Father are one. People: As one, rejoicing, we worship in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, Leader: glorifying the Savior to whom be the power forever and ever. Amen. People: Alleluia! Prayer of Invocation Spirit of Glory, Christ has sent you upon us to grant us strength. Humble us, discipline us, and give us patience in suffering, that we may be steadfast in faith and fight off that lion the devil with the might of the one who reigns in heaven, crucified, resurrected and ascended, Jesus Christ. Amen. Prayer of Confession God, you are awesome in your sanctuary. You have given us the humility to acknowledge our sins before you now. We are guilty. We fixate heavenward and so miss the opportunities around us to which you summon us. We shrink away from suffering for your sake. We think the roaring lion is a kitten and then are shocked when the beast attacks us. Our faith is often brittle or floppy instead of diamond-tough. We put ourselves asunder from each other instead of striving to imitate the Trinity's dynamic oneness. By Christ's blood, forgive us. Reunite us to you and each other. Amen. Words of Assurance Leader: Christ is risen. Alleluia! Through his glorification on the cross, he has snatched us from sin. People: God has forgiven us. Blessed be God. Leader: As smoke is driven away, so has God driven away our sins. Our iniquities melt like wax. People: Therefore we are joyful, exulting before God, jubilant with joy. Alleluia! Prayer of Inspiration Holy Spirit, humble us, that we may learn from the Word and so grow in unity. Amen. Prayers of the People Right-Hand Son of Man, you have saved us and you rule over us with merciful grace. We praise you for these fifty days of Easter. We exalt you for your astonishing ascension. Guide the entire Church, all the baptized, that we may live according to the unity you have established in us. Easter Messiah, (congregational response: touch us with your power). We offer special gratitude for the great servants of the Church, including Monica, the mother of Augustine; the mystic Julian of Norwich; and the church leader and hymnist Nicolaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf. We thank you for the Moravian Church and the whole conservatory of denominations. Help us Christians to live harmoniously despite our differences, trusting that, “All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well” (quote from the writings of Julian of Norwich). Easter Messiah, . . . Right-Hand Ruler, we are grateful for the United States, and we ask you to bless it and every land, including President Bush, the candidates, and all leaders. Teach us to end war, injustice and poverty, that we may achieve the fullest peace both here at home as well as in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Sudan. Easter Messiah, . . . You may add other praises or petitions here. With humble, enduring faith we send these prayers up to you, the great High Priest, by the power of the Spirit, to the glory of the Father. Amen. Offertory Prayer May this offering be a blessing to God and all the world's widows and orphans. Amen. Benediction Leader: The power of the resurrected Christ endures forever. No one can pounce upon us and tear it from us. People: Alleluia! Leader: We leave here in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, trusting that Christ restores, supports, strengthens, and establishes us. People: To God be the power forever and ever. Amen. Alleluia! David von Schlichten, poedifier April 27, Sixth Sunday of Easter/Ascension By David von Schlichten Prayers for Worship – April 27, 2008 Sixth Sunday of Easter – Year A Call to Worship Leader: Alleluia. Christ has died, is risen, and has ascended to resume his place of power at the Father's right hand. People: Christ is our living ruler. Not even hell could stop him. Leader: We worship in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, continuing our fifty-day jubilation, People: blessing our God, letting the world hear the sound of our praise. Alleluia! Prayer of Invocation Spirit of truth, because of you, God is not unknown to us. As we glorify the ascended Christ, lead us to increase our love for him, ever thankful for the love that emanates from the Father. Amen. Prayer of Confession LORD, in you we live and move and have our being, but still we insist on rejecting you. We live as if Christ is not crucified, raised, and reigning from on high. We worship that which human hands have made. We fail to show our love by keeping your commandments. We have cherished iniquity in our hearts. We let evil intimidate us. We are not gentle and reverent, and our consciences are cloudy. For the sake of the One at your Right Hand, forgive us. Breathe new life into us. Lift us from the world of the dead. Amen. Words of Assurance Alleluia! Truly God has listened and has given heed to the words of our prayer. The LORD has placed among us his steadfast love. Through the descended and ascended Savior, God has made himself known to us and has washed us new. By Christ, the Trinity has eliminated all our sins. Alleluia! Prayer of Inspiration Advocate, you are with us forever. Inspire us with the Word, that we may proclaim the Good News to all the spirits in prison. In the name of our Resurrection Savior we pray. Amen. Prayers of the People Jesus Christ, you have died and risen so we could have life forever, free from hell. We are in jubilant awe of your ascension. We exalt you for the Church, especially your servants Philip and James, as well as Athanasius and Catherine of Siena. Help us to live as the people of baptism, ever abiding in you, loving you, and keeping your commandments. Lord who is above us and with us, (rule us with mercy.). Prince of Peace, you have blessed us with a nation overflowing with goodness. Guide the United States and every nation, including President Bush and each leader, that we all may take better care of the planet, end war, and heal sickness, poverty, and prejudice. Lord who is above us and with us, . . . Master, we thank you for your magnificent creation. We give special gratitude for trees. Help us to honor them and care for them. Lord who is above us and with us, . . . We praise you, Christ, for the gift of prayer. It is miraculous that we can communicate at any time with the Greatest Being. Sanctify the National Day of Prayer, that it may glorify you and benefit the world. Lord who is above us and with us, . . . Messiah, we are grateful for volunteers. The abundance of volunteers reminds us of humanity's goodness, which exists because the Holy Spirit has sown it in us. Lord who is above us and with us, . . . You may add other praises or petitions here. We let our prayers ascend to you, confident that, by your mercy, blessings will descend upon us. Amen. Offertory Prayer We have come into your house with offerings, full of thanksgiving for the many ways you have saved us through Jesus Christ. Amen. Benediction Leader: God, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, has made the killed, resurrected, and ascended Christ known to us and has sent us the Advocate. Not even hell can prevail against God's abiding love. People: We leave the LORD's house, knowing that we are not orphaned. Leader: The Trinity abides in us and we in the Trinity, People: and we love God by keeping his commandments. Yes. David von Schlichten, poedifier April 20, 2008; Fifth Sunday of Easter By David von Schlichten Prayers for Worship – April 20, 2008 Fifth Sunday of Easter – Year A Call to Worship Leader: Creator of the Earth, you have made us stewards of your extraordinary planet, People: and you have prepared a place for us in heaven. Leader: Alleluia, for Christ is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. People: We worship in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, caring for the planet and rejoicing over our Easter salvation. Alleluia. Prayer of Invocation Holy Spirit, just as you filled Stephen with courageous, immortal commitment to Christ, likewise fill us, that we may be rock-solid witnesses who lay, not condemnation, but mercy at one another's feet. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Prayer of Confession Father, although, through Christ, you have ordained and nursed us, we have sinned against you. We are like rocks in the desert's ruthless sun. We stone people who try to lead us to a truth we fear or dislike. We are profane and mundane, forgetting that we are priests. We wander from the way, full of lies, embracing death. We ask for things according to our name, not yours. For the sake of the Easter and Good Friday Christ, incline your ear to us. Do not hold our sins against us. Amen. Words of Assurance Alleluia! The crucified Son of God is risen. He is our rock and fortress. Because of Christ, God has forgiven us all our sins. We are living stones, a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation. We have received mercy. Do not let your hearts be troubled, for Christ, the Way, Truth, and Life, has saved us. Alleluia! Prayer of Inspiration Brooding, Maternal Spirit, feed us the pure, spiritual milk so that we may grow into salvation. Amen. Prayers of the People You have baptized us into a holy vocation of ministering to one another and the wide world for your glory. We praise you for the entire Church, especially the martyr Stephen. We also thank you for Mark the evangelist and Anselm, Bishop of Canterbury. Feed and nurture us that we may live like the priests you have consecrated us to be. We ask you (congregational response: in the name of Jesus.). Monarch of the nations, we thank you for all lands, including the United States. Bless every nation. Bless President Bush, the candidates, and all leaders. Make us more conscientious and creative in our conservation of the resources you have entrusted to us. We ask you . . . Great I AM, we praise you for delivering from slavery the people of Israel long ago in Egypt. Pour grace upon our Jewish siblings, that they may have a spiritually nourishing Passover. We ask you . . . Lord of order, you have given us administrative professional to do work both humble and priceless. Teach us always to treat our administrative professionals with gratitude and respect. We ask you . . . Lord of Life, we recall with renewed grief the killings at Virginia Tech of a year ago. Teach us to eliminate the underlying self-hatred, injustices, scapegoating and other delusions that spawn such violence. Just as you reformed Saul from violence, reform us, too, and grant us wise compassion with which to comfort the bereaved. We ask you . . . God who keeps our planet spinning, we find amazing your supernal genius evident in your glorious creation. Endow us with the humility and wisdom we need to put aside partisan childishness and take better care of the planet, ever mindful of the truth that this world belongs not to us but to you alone. We ask you . . . You may add other praises or petitions here. We trust you have inclined your ear to us and will always be our refuge. Amen. Offertory Prayer Leader: As living stones, we lay these gifts at your feet, recalling that they originated with you. Encourage us to use them, not for knocking people down, but for building people up People: as we share the Good News with a stoning world. Amen. Benediction Leader: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, we exalt you for feeding and sanctifying us. People: We follow the Risen, Crucified Christ, the Way. Leader: You have filled us so we can be brave witnesses. People: We learn Christ, the Truth, Leader: Into your hands we commit our spirits, People: confident that the Crucified and Risen Christ gives us life. Alleluia! David von Schlichten, poedifier April 13, 2008 By David von Schlichten Prayers for Worship – April 13, 2008 Fourth Sunday of Easter – Year A Call to Worship Leader: Alleluia! The risen Christ leads us through the dark valley to still waters and the prepared table. People: We celebrate Easter these fifty days in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, Leader: following the voice that leads us to the eternal home People: and to life in abundance. Alleluia! Prayer of Invocation God of flock and gate, you lead us with rod and staff to guide and protect us. Teach us to respond to the call of the Shepherd who is the Lamb, so that we may live like the one flock you have baptized us to be. In the Risen Savior's name we pray. Amen. Prayer of Confession King of Love, repeatedly we go astray, bleating at wolves and thieves as if they will rescue us. We tramp mud in the water so others have nothing to drink. We gobble the grass, leaving nothing behind for the starving. We are stingy with sharing our wealth, worshiping the self. We run from doing what is right because we do not want to risk suffering. We hide in death instead of following your voice toward life in abundance. By the blood you sacrificed, forgive us, and lead us back to you. Amen. Words of Assurance Alleluia. By Christ's wounds we are healed. We were going astray, but Christ has forgiven us and called us back. We have returned to the pen, ready to share with one another and endure suffering for the sake of what is right. Because of Christ, we shall dwell with the LORD forevermore. Alleluia! Prayer of Inspiration Spirit of Pentecost, you have called us to worship and eat together and to share with one another for the sake of the needy. Lead us with the voice of the Word toward life in abundance. Amen. Prayers of the People Lord of the Way, we praise you for the entire fold that is the Church. We give special gratitude for Olvanus Petri, Laurentius Petri, and other renewers of the Church. Help us to follow the call that leads us to live according to the empty tomb and the cross. God who removes want, (congregational response: send us goodness and mercy). King, we exalt you for the United States and every nation. We give special thanks for Thomas Jefferson. Lead all of us, including President Bush, the candidates, and every leader, that we may have peace in Iraq, Afghanistan, the Darfur, and here at home. Bless us as we deal with income tax, that the money we give to the government goes to help those who need it most. Help us to use our refunds for your glory and for the advancement of overflowing life for all. God who removes want, . . . God of communion, you have blessed us with many riches and call us to share them. Lead us away from selfishness and toward selflessness. Show us over and over that we together are the ovine following the divine. God who removes want, . . . You guide us through the valley to life. As we remember the assassination of Lincoln and the sinking of Titanic, help us to comfort all who grieve, trusting that your leadership begets life. God who removes want, . . . You may add other praises or petitions here. These prayers we send up to you, trusting that you will hear us, care for us as we suffer, and restore our souls. In the name of the wounded, Davidic king we pray. Amen. Offertory Prayer We present at the altar these gifts, which first came from you, trusting that you will transform them into even greater gifts to us and to those in need. Amen. Benediction Leader: The Shepherd-King has led us with his voice, has watered and fed us, and now leads us out to distribute the proceeds to all, as any has need. People: We follow the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, Leader: knowing the Lord will add to our number those who are being saved. Alleluia. People: It will happen. Alleluia! David von Schlichten, poedifier [First Page] [Prev] 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 [Next] [Last Page] Return |
