Morning Prayer Friday, 13 November 29020

Welcome to Friday morning, almost halfway through November.
Let us greet the day in prayer.

Creator God, we thank you for today and its promise of renewal, its significant hope. May we take up your invitation to live as people of hope, to greet everyone we meet today, online or in the real world, with a joyful smile and words of hope.

Amen

Today is the UK Day of Prayer, supported by the Evangelical Alliance.
In response to the ongoing crisis and the second wave of the pandemic
we are asked to spend some time today in prayer.
We enjoy the blessing of freedom to worship and pray whenever and wherever we are
and we should make use of that blessing.
The Alliance website has lots of ideas for offering your community to God.
I’m going to walk through my neighbourhood today
praying for homeless, jobless, vulnerable and fearful people,
bereaved and lonely individuals, families and children.
I will lift to God those working in mental health, social care and working on vaccines.
I will remember everyone in leadership or government,
making decisions about containing the virus or allocating remedies.

Merciful God, heal our land, extend your Kingdom in our day. In Jesus name I pray.

Amen

This is also the YMCA International Week of Prayer.
The theme this year is Rays of Hope, based on 1 Peter 1: 3–6:

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy, by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, he gave us new birth into a living hope, the hope of an inheritance, reserved in heaven for you, imperishable, which nothing can destroy or spoil or fade. Because you put your faith in God, you are under the protection of his power until the salvation now in readiness is revealed at the end of time.

Living Hope, as Peter describes, urges us to move beyond optimism to conviction.
Viewing life through the lens of hope, we expect to make a difference in this world.
This is our way of life, not just a good idea.
We can bring the wastelands of our life in community to God for healing.

We take our blessing today from the YMCA:

Supporting God, we offer ourselves to you today. We go as hopeful believers, people proclaiming good news that Christ is the Living Hope, inspiring lives of hope amid despair.

Amen

Prayer resources can be found at

https://www.ymca.int/week-of-prayer/

https://www.eauk.org/what-we-do/prayer-centre/uk-day-of-prayer-november-13th-2020

Cheryl Montgomery