Prayer for the Sermon on April 18, 2010 "TO THOSE WHO CONQUER"

God of grace and glory we are ever aware if your presence when we sing our hymns of praise. We breathe your loving and powerful Spirit into us and haven’t the least idea of its power. Help us to recognize that in us you are spiritual TNT. When we let down the barriers that distance us from you and connect with your presence we are ignited. You are the fuel that keeps us moving forward. We can dare to live your word without burning out. We can burst forth in mission to the world sharing the best of ourselves, which is the Christ in us. We can proclaim the truth of your goodness which renews broken hearts and infuses meaning in our lives. We can accept your forgiveness which restores all souls. We can boast of your love which enlivens our spirits. We are exploding with gratitude today. THANK YOU GOD in the name of the Christ. Amen.
OFFERTORY THOUGHT
John of Patmos says to the church at Smyrna: “I know your affliction and your poverty even though you are rich.” The churches in the first century were not giant edifices or cathedrals of great import. The church was people gathered together wherever and they were not always safe. Their wealth is not tangible. They are rich in grace, and the love of The Christ. For their ultimate faithfulness, through their affliction, the promise of the first and the last, the alpha and the Omega is: “I will give you the crown of life.”

Prayer for the Sermon January 10, 2010 "FIRST JOHN"

Glorious God as Luke’s story of Jesus unfolds in the weeks to come, help us to see our place in the ongoing ever unfolding story. Let us see through timeless lenses how the lives of those who encountered Jesus, intersect with ours. As we visualize Jesus at the shore of the Jordan River waiting to be baptized with the rest, let us stand with him in the cue, pondering the path of repentance before we, with him are washed clean. This day was Jesus’ day of discovery, when you revealed to him his purpose and called him your Son, the Beloved. We pray that you will open the clouded places of doubt, insecurity, or resistance in our own minds. Reveal to each one of us our truest and best purpose as those who have chosen to follow Jesus along the path of faith. It is in Jesus’ name that we pray. Amen.

OFFERTORY THOUGHT FOR JANUARY 10, 2010
To exist is to be real, to be alive; to subsist is to remain alive or viable; to consist is to be made up of diverse parts; to resist is to fight against someone doing something; to desist is to stop doing something, to cease, perhaps, from existing, subsisting, consisting or resisting. John the Baptist existed, subsisting on Locusts. His baptism consisted of water and repentance. He resisted King Herod’s authority and was forced to desist from baptizing and preaching the good news. Let us give thanks and persist in preaching the good news.