O Christ, you are the Beloved,
the embodiment of God’s covenant and
the aspiration of our lives. In heaven and on earth
there is no one like you. The sun and moon worship you,
the stars sing your praise, the oceans and the deserts
give you glory. You are our God and we worship you.
We celebrate
the water and the love
that make us yours;
truly we would be lost and
wandering, had you not claimed us.
By your grace, we turn and return
to your path. By your grace,
you call us beloved
and plant us like seeds
to become a harvest of the Spirit.
In all things, through the seasons of our lives
and the seasons of your work, O Most Holy God,
we pray that you keep us secure in the knowledge of your love.
And we pray with love and longing for this world:
Blessed and beloved are those who mourn.
We pray for the people of Paris; for those who have fled Baga; for Leelah Alcorn and those mourning a lack of acceptance; for the regrets and the losses in our own lives that bring us to our knees in heartache.
Let there be love. Let there be comfort.
Blessed and beloved are those who despair.
We pray for the stresses and strains that deplete our hope and undermine our trust in your faithfulness, O God; we pray for those who feel forgotten, especially refugees and veterans of wars; we pray for those who struggle to make ends meet; we pray for this wilderness season in which our world is living.
Let there be imagination. Let there be community.
Blessed and beloved are those who dream.
We pray for the activists of #BlackLivesMatter who believe deeply in a more just world; for politicians and protestors alike who work for change in Palestine & Israel; for those across Europe who march & hold vigil against the PEGIDA movement; for the renewal of dreams that we make each year at New Year’s and for the renewal of joy that comes with the reminder of our baptisms.
Let there be reconciliation. Let there be hope.
Blessed and beloved, O God,
are each and all by your unlimited heart.
Wash over us, we pray, until our fears and doubts
no longer hinder the soaring of our voices
in praise and the outreach of our lives
in love. By your grace,
Amen.