Worship

Cling to Jesus ~ A Prayer

/ The Pastor

Holy God,
Lover of my soul,

the depths of my betrayal is unsearchable
and there is no limit to my sinfulness.
I can not claim innocence
or even begin to mitigate the charges levied against me.
When all is said and done,
and I stand in Your holy court,
I have no defense of my own that will hold water;
for anything that I could say I’ve done
is filled with deadly holes.

On my own I am sunk.

But Jesus is my hope,
for he does not forsake me
and therefore I cling to his righteousness.

May Your Holy Spirit be sent to me
that I may always cling to Jesus
and thus be acquitted of all charges;
for Jesus has already be charged, tried convicted, sentenced and punished,

FOR ME.

Jesus bore it all that I would not have to.

Oh God, You are an awesome God
and I’m unworthy, therefore
all praise and glory be unto You, holy God, through Christ Jesus my Lord.

Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Jesus’ Body and Blood ~ A Prayer

/ The Pastor

Holy God,
it’s a humbling and awesome thing
to reflect on the cross of Jesus.
To think that Jesus obediently and willingly
had his body broken
and blood spilled,
for me,
is something that sends me to my knees in thankfulness and worship.
But what is even more profound and awesome
is to think that, through faith in Jesus,
I will be drinking of the fruit of the vine with him
in Your glorious kingdom someday.

Oh God,
You are holy and great and merciful.
You are compassionate and forgiving and loving.
We are unworthy but yet redeemed through the blood of the lamb.
May we cling to this New Covenant;
never taking it for granted.
And may we long to proclaim this Good News through word and deed.

All glory be to you, holy Father, through Christ Jesus our Lord.
Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Immanuel, God with Us ~ A Prayer

/ The Pastor

I am back after a Sunday off; celebrating Christmas with my family. I hope and pray the joy of Christmas continues to reside in you; drawing you closer to God through Jesus Christ. Let us pray…

Loving Father, Holy God,

You came to us at Christmas time
as Jesus;
Immanuel, God with us.
You came to us in love to give us hope.
You came to us as light to scatter the darkness.
You came to us as our Champion; defeating death.

Oh God,
words escape us
as we ponder the implications of this holy birth
as too often we take Christmas for granted.
Too often we get caught up in the
lights
and sounds
and smells
and tastes of the season.
Too often our gaze is diverted from the manger
to imaginary creations of the season.

Holy God,
send now Your Holy Spirit
to tune our ears to Your words
so that we may fix our eyes on Jesus.
May our hearts swell with joy
and pulsate with a desire to proclaim this Good News;
Jesus Christ,
Immanuel,
God with us.

May all glory be to You through Christ Jesus our Lord.
Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Holy Trust ~ A Morning Prayer

/ The Pastor

Good morning all. I was out of town last week but I am now back; preparing to lead worship and preach God’s holy Word. May God be praised as we worship. Let’s pray…

Holy God,
You make the impossible possible.
You forgive sins.
You raise the dead.
You defeat Satan and death.
You give eternal life.

But yet,
when presented with this news,
too often we follow after Zechariah more than we do Mary.
Too often we want proof rather than to worship.
We want sensory satisfaction rather than rely on holy trust.

We see the impossible and blow it off.

But as Your children;
as Your servants,
may Your Word be to us as You have decreed.
May we not doubt but rather receive this life-changing Word.
May Jesus be our proof and life.

Send now You Holy Spirit,
oh God,
that this word here spoken may build and lift us up onto Your glory.
May we not seek to see with our eyes.
May we not seek to hear with our ears.
May we seek to believe in our hearts.
May we seek You.

All praise and worship be unto You,
oh God,
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Bursting Forth ~ A Morning Prayer

/ The Pastor

Holy Father, awesome God,

Your Word is life.
Your Word is our hope.
Your Word is our very breath.
You created with a word.
The serpent deceived with a false word.
Adam and Eve were expelled with a word of curse, warning and finally hope.
You created a people and nation with a word of promise.
You gave new life with a Word
and that Word is embodied in our Lord and Savior,
Jesus Christ.

And so we come to this Advent season with anxious anticipation of this Word. May we not doubt.
May we not impose self-inflicted mutism when is comes to the Gospel,
but rather,
may we burst forth in praise
with what the birth of Jesus means for a dark and lost world.
May we sing the glories of your name
to a wearied people.
May we announce hope
to a hopeless word.

Send now Your Spirit, oh God,
that we may hear this Word
and be filled with awe,
so much so,
that we can’t wait to burst through these doors
and fill this world with the hope of the resurrection.
It’s through Jesus Christ our Lord, I pray,

Amen.

God bless you as you begin this Advent season. May the light of Christ shine brightly in and through your life to the glory of God.

The Pastor -|—

Thanksgiving Prayer

/ The Pastor / 1 Comment

Holy God, loving Father,
we have much for which to be thankful;
for You are a giving God.

You have created all that we see and do not see.
You have breathed breath into our feeble lungs.
You sustain the very life we live.
You give out of your bounty and grace;
giving to a sinful people.
We are unworthy of such giving,
especially when we think about You giving us…

JESUS!

And so we praise and thank You,
holy God,
that through faith in Jesus Christ You have destined us
for holiness and intimacy
with You.

And so in all your giving, please give also to us Your Holy Spirit
that we may hear and receive the words spoken here tonight.
May they penetrate our hardened hearts
and turn them into life giving vessels
that proclaim the glories of Your most awesome name.
May we continue to be drawn closer to You
that our lives may be lives of thanksgiving
each and everyday.

It’s in the name of Jesus Christ that I pray,

Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Help ~ A Morning Prayer

/ The Pastor

Holy God,

we are unclean,
unholy,
unfaithful.

We are betrayers,
deserters
and fleers of Your Son, Jesus.

We are lost,
hopeless
and dead without Your Son, Jesus.

We need help.

Holy God, loving Father,

we are sinners;
sinners in need of help;
sinners in need of mercy.
And so we appeal to Your holy and amazing grace,
not just now, but each and every day.

Hear our prayers.
Hear our confessions.
And send Your Holy Spirit,
that the words of my mouth
and the meditations of our hearts
may be pleasing to You,
oh God.

May we not be found lost
but praising Your holy name
as we wait longingly for Your Son’s return.

In Jesus name I pray,

Amen.

May your worship this morning be pleasing to the ears of our most holy and awesome God.

The Pastor -|—

Devoted ~ A Prayer

/ The Pastor / 1 Comment

Holy God,
as we gather, this morning, to worship You,
I feel that we are still coming up short.
Nothing that we do or offer seems sufficient
given Your holiness and amazing love.
Nothing seems enough
given Your grace and faithfulness.
We may have the intention to show You great devotion
but way too often You get our leftovers.
Way too often we examine our needs now
so we may determine what we can afford to give You later.

Oh God, holy Father,

may our devotion be wholly on You;
giving You the first fruits of all we have,
because really,
those first fruits came from You.

May our sacrifices be worthy of You.
May our devotion be wholly true.

All praise, worship, honor
and devotion
be given to You,
awesome God,
through Christ Jesus our Lord,

Amen.

God bless you as you praise and worship our awesome God!

The Pastor  -|—

Waiting ~ A Prayer

/ The Pastor / 1 Comment

The sermon text for today is Mark 13:32-37. May God be praised as you worship.

“But concerning that day or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Be on guard, keep awake. For you do not know when the time will come.
[Mark 13:32-33]

Creator and Redeeming God,
from the beginning of time;
when sin entered this world,
You have been guiding us to redemption.
You sent Your Son, Jesus,
to live and die and rise
that we may be forgiven and thus brought back to You.

And now,in the interim, we wait.

We wait for the glorious coming of our Lord.
We wait with longing expectation.
We wait with eagerness.
We wait with hope.

And when Jesus does return,
may we not be found lacking.
May we not be found sleeping.
May we not be found distracted.

When Jesus returns,
may we be found doing the very things that we should be doing;
glorifying your most holy name.

So tune our hearts to You as we hear Your Word.
May we always live with joy in our hearts at the coming of our Lord
as we live each day as THE day of Jesus’ return.

All glory,
honor,
praise
and worship
be to You now and always,

Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Soon and Very Soon ~ A Prayer

/ The Pastor / 3 Comments

A prayer before preaching on Mark 13:14-31…

Heavenly Father,
Holy God,
Mighty Lord,

we praise you, this morning,
that through faith in Jesus Christ
we can sing with all confidence:
Soon and very soon,
we are going to see the King.
A place where there is no more dying or crying.

What great joy it is to sing this hymn;
hearing You speak words of reassurance through our song.

May we cling to this hope
and may we look
and wait
with longing expectation
the arrival of our King,
Jesus Christ.

May we not grow complacent
and may we not lose hope through tribulation.

And so speak to us.
May Your Spirit move through Your holy Word,
bringing faith to to those who do not believe
and increased hope and confidence
to those who call upon Your holy name.

And so may the words of my mouth
and the meditations of our hearts
be acceptable to You,
oh God,
through Christ Jesus our Lord
and coming King,

Amen.

The Pastor -|—