Evening Prayer Thursday, 29 April 2021
A reading from Psalm 22
25 From you comes the theme of my praise in the great assembly;
before those who fear you I will fulfil my vows.
26 The poor will eat and be satisfied;
those who seek the Lord will praise him –
may your hearts live for ever!
27 All the ends of the earth
will remember and turn to the Lord,
and all the families of the nations
will bow down before him,
28 for dominion belongs to the Lord
and he rules over the nations.
29 All the rich of the earth will feast and worship;
all who go down to the dust will kneel before him –
those who cannot keep themselves alive.
30 Posterity will serve him;
future generations will be told about the Lord.
31 They will proclaim his righteousness,
declaring to a people yet unborn:
He has done it!
Psalm 22: 25–31 NIV®
Dear God, as we come to the end of another day, we come together with all your people
to praise your Holy Name. We praise you, that even in times of greatest difficulty,
you are still working your purpose out, and call upon us to be your willing assistants.
Just as the Book of Acts tells us, when Saul was persecuting the early church and Jesus’ followers were scattered,
‘Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went.’ (Acts 8: 4),
so we, too, must take your good news to those about us who are suffering at the present time.
Help us to recognise where help is needed, and give us the determination to do what we can, to care for those in need.
We give thanks for the work of volunteers in the food banks, in the vaccination centres,
and for the work of all health workers, care workers, and all those providing essential services,
so that those suffering as a result of the pandemic are given what help is available.
In Milton Keynes we pray for the work of Citizens:MK.
We pray that our community, council and police leaders
will make serious commitments at the Accountability Assembly taking place this evening,
and will deliver on these commitments in the coming year.
We pray for your Church of Christ the Cornerstone, a Christian community at the heart of the city.
We pray that we can take full advantage of our position in the centre of Milton Keynes
to bring your love and good news to the people of Milton Keynes.
Heal our brokenness, so that we may bring your healing care to all those about us.
As we rest from this day’s work, and prepare ourselves for a peaceful night of rest,
so that we may be able to tackle the future tasks you call us to do,
may we be able to set aside all the cares of this day, placing them in your hands,
so that you may free us to serve you better in the days to come.
Guard us and shelter us through this night and in the morning we pray for strength to follow you more faithfully.
We ask all these prayers in the name of your Son, Jesus Christ.
Amen
