O Star-Flinging God: An Epiphany Prayer

O Star-flinging God,

whose light dances across eternity,

     dazzle us into your presence

     this new year.

Open our hearts to the mystery of your love.

Awaken us to your presence,

     knit to the ordinary.

Reveal to us what is possible, but not yet present.

Heal us, that we might be healers.

Reconcile us to you and to ourselves,

     that our living might be reconciling.

Stop us often, we pray

     with news that is good

     with hope that holds

     with truth that transforms with a Word

          tailored to this trail we're on.

May the word of your grace guide our steps

     like the sun by day

     and the north star by night,

     as we travel into the gift of a new year. Amen.

                                                     

— written by Glenn Mitchell, and posted on MINemergent’s Daily Communique. 

Call to Worship: Baptism of Christ

Here’s a call to worship for the first Sunday after Epiphany (traditionally known as the Baptism of Christ). It was written by Caela Wood, Pastor at the First Congregational United Church of Christ in Manhattan, Kansas.

Call to Worship

for the first Sunday of Epiphany

(inspired by Matthew 3:13-17, Mark 1:4-11, Luke 3:15-17, 21-22)

The heavens open. The Spirit descends.

Jesus emerges from the water.

And a voice echoes through the blue expanse.

"This is my child, the Beloved, with whom I am well-pleased."

Jesus is named. Claimed.

We come to the water. We remember we are named. Claimed.

Can it be so? What a thing to be named. Claimed.

Let us worship the one who names and claims us still.

~ written by Caela Wood, Pastor at the First Congregational United Church of Christ, Manhattan, Kansas.

Epiphany Blessing

Here is a blessing for the Epiphany season from Jan Richardson’s The Painted Prayerbook website.

Epiphany Blessing

“He is my chosen one, and I am pleased with him.

I have put my Spirit upon him.

He will reveal justice to the nations.” Isaiah 42:1

May the path

that Christ walks

to bring justice

upon the earth,

to bring light

to those who sit

in darkness,

to bring out those

who live in bondage,

to bring new things

to all creation:

may this path

run through our life.

May we be

the road Christ takes.

~ written by Jan L. Richardson, and posted on The Painted Prayerbook. http://paintedprayerbook.com/

Epiphany Prayer: Light in the Darkness

Here’s a prayer of thanksgiving and confession for Epiphany. It was written by Cheryl Lawrie, and posted on [hold this space].

Prayer for Epiphany

We thank you God that you know what it is to be human

Fragile and vulnerable,

searching for ways to stay alive in dangerous and complicated times

We thank you that you know the struggles and temptations

of living in darkness.

And we thank you that you give light to the world.

We confess that sometimes it’s easier to stay in the shadows,

where things can stay hidden,

where people can’t see our cracks and flaws.

Cast your light on our darkness

and forgive us, God of love.

We confess that we have at times brought darkness

into the world by our anger, our selfishness, our violence.

Cast your light on our darkness

and forgive us, God of love.

We confess that we are sometimes skeptical of light

and find it easier to trust its absence.

Cast your light on our darkness

and forgive us, God of love.

And in this silence,

bring the confessions that are on your heart and mind

into the light of God’s love

[silence]

We know in faith that God restores and renews,

and that our sins are forgiven.

Thanks be to God.

~ written by Cheryl Lawrie and posted on [hold this space]. http://holdthisspace.org.au/

Prayer for the First Sunday in the New Year

Here’s an opening prayer for the first Sunday of the year. It was written by Rev. Ian Elston, and posted on the Church of Scotland’s Starters for Sunday website.

 

Opening Prayer

 

Lord of yesterday, today and tomorrow,

we gather here this first Sunday of the New Year,

in a mixture of hope, anticipation, fear, excitement, and expectation.

We do not know what the year holds for us.

there are things we are afraid of:

worries about health and family, job security and finances.

There is much to look forward to –

weddings or anniversaries or baptisms,

holidays to enjoy,

friends to laugh with.

 

Lord God,

the coming year is full of uncertainty and hope.

Whatever the year holds for us, though,

we trust You, and we place every day of this year in your care

knowing that, as in the past, You are with us,

caring for us with constant love.

 

And so Lord, we place ourselves into your keeping

and dedicate our lives to your service

through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Saviour. Amen.  

~ written by Rev. Ian Elston, and posted on the Church of Scotland’s Starters for Sunday website. http://www.churchofscotland.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0005/18473/12_January_2014.pdf

Prayer: To God, the Source of Life

Here’s a prayer of thanksgiving and petition from the Weekly Worship page of the Christian Aid website. (See link below.)

Prayer

Generous God, 
You are the source of all life,

creating and sustaining every living thing. 

You are the source of all food,

material and spiritual,

nourishing us in both body and soul. 

You are the light that goes before us,

shining into the darkness. 

May we be filled with your breath 
Nourished by your food 
Renewed by your living water 
and sustained by your love. 

~ originally posted on the Monthly Prayers page (now Weekly Worship) of the Christian Aid website. https://www.christianaid.org.uk/churches/weekly-worship

Call to Worship: A Community of Faith

Here is a call to worship from Cheryl Lawrie’s [hold this space] website.

Call to Worship

We gather:
a community of faith in God’s subversive world.

We gather to celebrate

that no darkness can extinguish light,

to remember

that love will always be more powerful than death,

and to trust that

peace will always be stronger than violence.

We gather,
people of faith in the light of God’s world.

Welcome to worship.

~ written by Cheryl Lawrie and posted on [hold this space]. http://holdthisspace.org.au/

Prayer: Luke 4: 18-19

Here’s a prayer of confession and commitment, inspired by Isaiah 61:1 and Luke 4:18-19. It appeared on the Monthly Prayers (now Weekly Worship) page of the Christian Aid website.

Prayer

(inspired by Isaiah 61:1, Luke 4:18-19)

'The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,

because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor.

He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives

and recovery of sight to the blind,

to let the oppressed go free,

to proclaim the year of the Lord's favour.' (Luke 4:18-19)

O Christ, you lived as an ordinary man 
not in style but simply, 
yet still you caused uproar, and questions everywhere; 
you drew the expectations of hungry crowds, 
and brought buried conflicts to the light. 

May we,

who are sometimes swayed by the crowd’s approval, 
and who often avoid conflict 
for fear of its cost to us, 
hold fast to the gospel of peace and justice 
and follow faithfully in your way of compassion and solidarity 
with those who are poor and excluded, 
wherever it may lead us. 
Amen.

~ originally posted on the Monthly Prayers page (now Weekly Worship) of the Christian Aid website. https://www.christianaid.org.uk/churches/weekly-worship

Sending: We have been called

Here is a closing commission or sending from Rev Gord’s Worship Offerings blog. It was inspired by Jesus’ words in Luke 4:18-19 (quoting Isaiah 61:1).

 

Sending

(inspired by Isaiah 61:1, Luke 4:18-19)

The Spirit of the Lord is upon us!
We have been called,

we have been anointed,

we have been given a task.

So go out from this place

into the mission field that is the world.
We go carrying Good News to the world:

news about freedom from oppression

and healing for the afflicted.
The time of the Lord's favour is now!
Hallelujah! Amen. 

 

~ posted by Rev Gord on his blog, Worship Offerings. http://worshipofferings.blogspot.ca/

Prayer of Confession: Sharing the Good News

Here’s a prayer of confession, followed by words of assurance, inspired by Isaiah 61:1/Luke 4:18-19. They were written by Rev Gord, and posted on Worship Offerings.

 

Prayer of Confession

 

God, you share with us words of hope, words of Good News.
But sometimes we are unable to hear them

because the source is too familiar.
You call us to share the Good News with those around us.
But sometimes we are unable to share,

because the people know us too well.
You encourage us to send messengers to other places

where they will be heard better.
But we can be jealous,

wanting the Good News to be for us, not them.

In the multitude of ways we can and have subverted

your message of freedom and healing,

in all the ways we have kept the Jubilee year from happening,
we have left the path of true wisdom

and call upon your Grace to lead us back on track. 

...time of silent prayer...

Words of Assurance

 

This is the time of God's favour,

God's grace continues to proclaim

release to the captives,

sight to the blind,

Good News to the poor

and freedom to the oppressed.

 

We live as loved, forgiven and free people

through the grace of God!
Hallelujah! Amen.  

~ posted by Rev Gord on his blog, Worship Offerings. http://worshipofferings.blogspot.ca/

A Prayer for Epiphany

Here’s a prayer for Epiphany from Benjamin Smith, an M.Div. student at Mercer University. It was posted on his daily prayer blog. 

Epiphany Prayer

Eternal God,

You sent Mary on a journey to Egypt

and led Hagar through the desert.

You lit the wilderness way for Moses

and produced manna for his family.

Send us into this new year

with fire to see by, bread to live by,

and family to travel with,

as we follow your voice in the world.

Where you go, O Lord, we will go;

and where we lodge, you will lodge,

for we are your people,
and you are our God.  Amen. 

~ Benjamin, an M.Div student at Mercer University. Posted on his daily prayer blog. http://moonhat.blogspot.com/

Epiphany Prayer: Christ of the Four Directions

Here’s a prayer for the forth Sunday after Epiphany Sunday from the Christian Aid website. It was adapted from “Invocation to the Christ of the Four Directions” (South, West, North, East), written by Suzanne Fageol.

 

Prayer for Epiphany:

Christ of the Four Directions

Christ of the East,
Christ of the South,
Christ of the West,
Christ of the North:

We turn our hearts to you
hoping and praying for
peace and life
to dispel the shadows
of war and death.

We turn our faces to you
trusting and believing for
love and grace
to shine upon us and
to radiate to all.

We turn our lives to you
even if we know only in part
what we will one day know fully
even as we are fully known.
And now may faith hope and love,
love most of all,
abide in us as we journey together through this year. Amen.

~ adapted from “Invocation to the Christ of the Four Directions” written by Suzanne Fageol. Posted on the Monthly Prayers page (now Weekly Worship) of the Christian Aid website. https://www.christianaid.org.uk/churches/weekly-worship

Epiphany Prayer: Christ of the North

Here’s a prayer for the third Sunday after Epiphany Sunday from the Christian Aid website. It was adapted from “Invocation to the Christ of the Four Directions” (South, West, North, East), written by Suzanne Fageol.

 

Prayer for Epiphany:

Christ of the North

 

O Christ of the North:

You, who bore the pain of Calvary,
You, who blessed the ones who cursed you,
You, who lay in the tomb, who in your rising, 

fulfilled the expectations and prophecies of the ancestors,
You, who in your ascending, 

gave the promise of a new covenant for us all,
In the dark cold of winter, 

begin the quiet cycle of birth again in our hearts as we tell your story.

As we journey through our own winters
O Christ of the North:

Keep vigil with us as we bear the harsh, cold times of our lives.
Wrap us in cloaks of clarity and strength 

when the strong, north winds of challenge blow around us.
Help us to remember to call upon your many blessings 

for our endurance and creativity.
Keep us in honesty and truth 

with the remembrance of your faithfulness even unto crucifixion.

O Christ of the North, guardian of us all,
we call upon you. Amen.

~ adapted from “Invocation to the Christ of the Four Directions” written by Suzanne Fageol. Posted on the Monthly Prayers page (now Weekly Worship) of the Christian Aid website. https://www.christianaid.org.uk/churches/weekly-worship

Epiphany Prayer: Christ of the West

Here’s a prayer for the second Sunday after Epiphany Sunday from the Christian Aid website. It was adapted from “Invocation to the Christ of the Four Directions” (South, West, North, East), written by Suzanne Fageol.

Epiphany Prayer:

Christ of the West

We call upon the Christ of the West:

You, who saw the harvest bounty of your mission,
You, who reaped the wisdom of the Spirit,
You, who sat in thanksgiving with your friends,
You, who were betrayed at the price of your body and your blood,
You, who prayed alone in the garden 

contemplating that which could not be altered,
You, who understood that transfiguration comes 

through the gateway of death,
You, who bore your death for us all.

As sunset and twilight come upon us,
O Christ of the West:

Comfort us with your knowledge of the darkness.
Lead us, in silence and solitude, to see that which we must allow to die in us.
Teach us to pray, 'Your Kingdom come, Your will be done.' 

Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts 

and give us the pure water of righteousness 

to quench our everlasting thirst.

O Christ of the West, protector of our souls,
we call upon you. Amen. 

~ adapted from “Invocation to the Christ of the Four Directions” written by Suzanne Fageol. Posted on the Monthly Prayers page (now Weekly Worship) of the Christian Aid website. https://www.christianaid.org.uk/churches/weekly-worship