____________________________________________________

 

Call to Worship (based on Psalm 41)

L: Happy are those who consider the poor; the LORD delivers them in the day of trouble. 
P: The LORD protects them and keeps them alive; they are called happy in the land.
L: As for me, I said, "O LORD, be gracious to me; heal me, for I have sinned against you." 
P: O LORD, be gracious to me, and raise me up
L: You have upheld me because of my integrity, and set me in your presence forever. 
ALL: Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. Amen and Amen.

 

Call to Worship (based on Mark 2:1-12)
   
L: As we gather today in this sanctuary
P: We come into your Presence with Thanksgiving
L: You are the God who makes us whole and complete
P: May we be as faithful as the friends of the paralytic
L: May we lift up all those among us who are ill and ailing
P: Lord hear our prayers and heal our land.

 

Prayer of Confession (Isaiah / Mark passages)
from the Graz worship book

L: Eternal and all-powerful God, you put away nothing of what you have created, and you forget the sins of those who repent. Create and awake in us a new and contrite heart, that we may regret our sins, recognize our wickedness, and receive from you, God of all mercy, full pardon and peace, through Jesus Christ, our Lord, Amen.

L: Let us seek the forgiveness of God and of each other for the divisions that have hindered Christian witness: Lord we have sinned against you and against each other.

C: Lord, have mercy.

L: O Christ, our divisions are contrary to your will and have impeded our common witness to you.

C: Christ have mercy.

L: Lord, we have not loved you enough in our brothers and sisters, created in your image, but different from us.

C: Lord, have mercy.

L: Creator God, let us no longer live beside each other as strangers. Satisfy the longings of our hearts, grant our rightful requests, and unite us soon in one holy church through your Son Jesus Christ who with you in the communion of the Holy Spirit lives and reigns eternally.

brief silence followed by the pardon

 

Prayer For Providence (2 Corinthians 1:18-22)

(adapted from a Letter by St. Francis de Sales on the occasion of the death of his younger sister)

Almighty God and Father,
     In our shared humanity, our hearts fear more than ever before in this world filled with anxiety, strife, and uncertainty.
     For those who doubt and fear that evil is greater than good we pray for the grace to take the side of your divine Providence. May we always believe that it does all well, and disposes all things for the best.
     And for all of us we pray for wisdom and justice, for courage and hope. May we know that, even if everything is taken from us, your divine Providence means that You will never take Yourself from us, so long as we do not will it.
     Enlighten our minds, encourage our hearts, and enliven our souls that we might know your presence, grow in love, and bring new hope to our world.    AMEN.

 

Prayer for Healing (use with Mark 2:1-12)

    Lord God, heavenly Father, we ask you to have mercy on all those among our community of faith who are afflicted with illness and pain. Preserve their life, o Lord, and, if a way can be found in your eternal purposes, grant them relief from pains and healing from this illness.   Comfort them with the assurance of your love and presence and with the forgiveness of all their sins through the grace of your dear Son and our  Savior, Jesus Christ.

    Keep us all in your great love. Grant us those gifts of body and soul that we can bear. Finally, bring as out of this life of trials to the heavenly mansions of our eternal house, which have been prepared for us through the Work of our Savior and which have been promised to us by the Word of your truth. We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.

A Prayer for Service and Justice (Mark 2; highlighting the theme of caring for others as the four friends cared for the paralytic)

O Lord, open my eyes that I may see the needs of others;
open my ears that I may hear their cries;
open my heart so that they need not be without succor;
let me not be afraid to defend the week because of the anger of the strong,
nor afraid to defend the poor because of the anger of the rich.
Show me where love and hope and faith are needed,
and use me to bring them to those places.
And so open my eyes and my ears
that I may this coming day be able to do some work of peace for thee. Amen.

 

Closing Prayer (in unison):

Almighty God, gracious Lord who is slow to anger and quick to forgive the sins of your children, we give you praise for the gift of the blessed gospel. For the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection from the dead and life eternal in Christ, we thank you, loving Father.

Continue, O God, to raise up faithful leaders among us, so that we may carry on the caring ministry in the footsteps of our Lord Jesus. Hear our prayer which we ask in the name of your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, through all eternity. Amen.