Prayers of Adoration & Confession

Watch or go to 9:40

Including Song:  TIS185, Alleluia, alleluia

Alleluia, alleluia.
We praise you God, Creator Lord.
For the glory of your whole creation.

God Creator.
You have placed our tiny blue ball in the infinity of stars and space,
and we are overwhelmed by the wonderful uniqueness of creation.
The beauty of our earth, the myriad shades of green in plants,
dusty orange of deserts, frozen white of the ice fields,
the liquid blue of oceans and rivers, gold of the sun and dark velvet of night.
Yet you are mindful of our small and insignificant lives and you sent us your Son.

You are the God of the Cosmos, and our Story.

Alleluia, alleluia.    
We praise you, God, Incarnate Lord,
For the mystery of your word made flesh.

We praise you Incarnate Lord.
You lived, breathed, and loved as we do, and with arms open wide on the cross,
you have created a place for us, a new covenant with us, in bread and wine.
You are the embodiment of God’s Grace and love for the world.

Alleluia, alleluia.    
We praise you God Comforter, Lord,
For the presence of your Holy Spirit.

Holy Spirit, Comforter
Since the Ascension we have been living with this new Covenant.
Encouraged in our faith through your faithfulness.
We thank you that although we no longer see Jesus face to face,
his Spirit moves, breathes and walks with us.
God with us.

Alleluia, alleluia
We praise you God, The Three – in – One,
For the promise of your coming Kingdom

Holy Three in One.
We know how undeserving we are of your new Covenant,
yet you created a place for us in your heart.
Forgive us when we wander away from you and ignore the suffering we see in the world.
Forgive us when we are complacent and close our minds
to those who are different, in race, colour, gender or religion.
When we don’t care for our earth as we should,
and ignore the warnings our climate is giving us.
Forgive us for our lack of faith for following our own way, not yours,
and open us to this new relationship with you.

Open our eyes and hearts to love as you love.
Amen

Creator God, Jesus Saviour, Spirit Comforter.
With arms open wide You welcome us, we just have to reach out to you.
You have created a new Covenant for us through the love of our Saviour Jesus Christ,
and we know that our sin is forgiven.
Thanks be to God

Alleluia, alleluia.

Helen Burnham, offered for worship 16/05/2021, Easter 7B

Prayers of the people

Watch or go to 58:09

Loving God, we remind ourselves of why we are here, as your people gathered today. We are here because we believe that your love is in the DNA of the universe and that from the largest galaxies to the smallest sub-atomic particles we see the wonder and the gifting of yourself in creation. We are here because we are called to be your people, to be your hands, feet, heart and body, to live out grace, forgiveness, hope, justice and peace. We are here because we are called by love and want to live out that love. We are here because we need to be refreshed and renewed.
So we thank you for the signs of your love and of your kingdom, the breaking in of grace and hope. We thank you for new life, for old friends, for fresh beginnings, for welcome surprises, for the sound of laughter and for friendly smiles. We thank you for those who remind us of when we need to let go and find new perspectives and approaches. We thank you for opportunities to be mindful, to stop and breathe, to look again at beauty around us, to listen to sounds of the rhythm of creation.
Help us to value these things, to protect them, nurture them and give out as we take in. Help us to practise a sense of presence in creation and in community.

We pray for those places and for people we know, where life is hard. Dear God, sometimes signs of your kingdom are missing or difficult to find and hope seems destroyed. We pray for people facing oppression, dispossession, discrimination or warfare. We pray especially for Palestine, Myanmar, Afghanistan, for Uighurs and others groups persecuted in China. We pray for countries struggling with inadequate and under-resourced health systems, facing the unequal burden of responding to Covid-19 and other diseases. May world leaders seek justice, equality and peace and move past self-interest and maintenance of privilege. May they have the courage and conviction to do what is right, beyond party politics and the status-quo. We bring to you places and people who are on our heart and we ask that your kingdom come and that justice might roll on like a river.

We think of those among us who are struggling with grief, loss, heartbreak, or just a burden of sorrow. May your presence be real to them. Help us to be aware and to share their pain, be open to suffering around us and to know how to respond. Somehow, may your love and peace be in our words and actions. May we know when to speak and when to be silent. Help us to weep with those who weep. And we think of those we know who need a special sense of God’s presence.

Sometimes God, our calling to be your people, to follow you in the way of the cross is beyond us. However, we are here again, seeking your strength, your compassion and love. Renew in us, as individuals and as a church, a deeper sense of justice and a new commitment to peace and freedom. Help us to listen again to your call on our lives, to be reminded, as Frederick Buechner said, that “The place God calls us to is the place where our deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.” Help us again to look for that place, to sense both our gladness and the world’s hunger. May we see you and join you there. Where is that place?

Loving God, we bring all of these prayers to you today, asking in your name, AMEN.

Tim Budge, offered for worship 16/05/2021, Easter 7B