Prayers for Sunday, Sept. 4th

Prayers written by Valerie Andersen; Led by Terry Clark and Valerie Andersen

God of Light, the first and most important decision of discipleship was Your’s:  You came as body and as Word.  We praise your for your Son, our Savior.  We praise you for the Holy Spirit, who intercedes and who comforts us.  Thank you for your goodness.

In the midst of our lives, when chaos threatens to overwhelm and conquer us, Word of the Lord come to us.  In the midst of our questions, doubts, and fears, Word of the Lord come to us.

Take away the obstacles that prevent us from placing ourselves entirely in Your hands.  May our ears hear and our hearts listen to your words of challenge, comfort, and discipline.

Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.

God of Creation, You have given us free will; yet our worldly thoughts and desires bring evil and destruction.  May we choose to surrender to You, consciously giving ourselves over to your will for us.

Open our eyes to see ourselves as clay.  Form our hearts.  Transform our minds.  Conform our will to yours.   We are in your hands.  May our lives evidence your handiwork.

Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.

God of Truth, move in our lives so that our faith in you will make us bold to speak and to act in love for those with little or no voice - the unborn; children - old and young; the emotionally, mentally, and physically ill; those left out, left behind, and left alone.  May we advocate in your name and intercede in both prayer and practice.

Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.

God of Grace, we pray especially for:

Special Intercessions

Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.

God of Salvation, Your journey took you to the cross.  Placing our needs before yours, you endured worldly Death for our sakes, counting our salvation as worth the cost.  The cost of discipleship with us was your life.  Help us to pay the cost of our discipleship with you by the sacrifice of our own worldly lives.

Open our eyes to those things we hold more dear than You.  What idols do we hold close to our hearts that keep us from seeking you and your will first?

Give us courage.  Give us strength.  Give us faith to pay the cost of following you.  Discipleship is not an afterthought.  It is a way of life.  In the face of competing loyalties, help us to make you our primary allegiance.

Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.

May we count the cost of following you and accept it.  Loosen our grip on that which will not satisfy.  Then we may receive our compensation - a life led by, beside and wrapped in You.

And all God’s people said,

AMEN.

Prayers from Sunday, August 21st

Prayers written and lead by Rachelle Moreno

Let's bow our heads and come to our Lord in prayer.

Heavenly Father, first and foremost, we give you thanks for loving us unconditionally.  We give thanks for the grace you give us that we can extend to those in our lives.  We thank you that you forgive us even though we do not obey and trust you with our whole heart.  We thank you for those hearts who hear your calling to support those who have lost their homes in the Louisiana floods - give them courage to restart and the means to do so.Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Father, please help repair what we have broken in our relationships when we just completely mess up and do not live out your word in our lives.  Teach us and help us to undo the damage we cause due to our sins and because of our disobedience to you.  We thank you especially for the Holy Spirit that lives in our hearts to help guide and lead us to opportunities to share your love with others - that they may see.  Let us give glory to you by strengthening us to act immediately and work diligently, seeing ALL people as if we were looking through your eyes Father, and seeing the pain that lingers in each and every person.  Let your power wok in their lives.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

We pray for those who point us in the right direction in our lives; those such as our pastors, teachers, and leaders who tirelessly teach the many ministries here at St. Andrews that help us all grow in faith.  Thank you for those who serve our community.  We pray for our veterans, firefighters, and offers - those who serve to protect us and keep us safe.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

We pray for our rulers, those who govern our country.  We pray that our candidates that are put in office are ones that have Christian values and morals to help bring a much needed change to our world.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Father, we continue to pray for the hour between services that allows us to be in your word more through study time.  We pray for our Good Shepherd ministry, New Life Ministry, H2H and High School Youth.  We pray for our mission teams training this winter to go spread the good news in Ghana, Thailand and Hong Kong.  We pray for Tao and Tia as they minister to the Hmong Community.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

We pray for those who have life-threatening health battles, and those affected by violence in our community.  We pray for the homeless, those battling addictions, those in violent relationships, and those suffering Mental Health issues.  Protect them all.  We pray that we may be a light in this dark world and extend love and mercy to them even when they may be out of our comfort zone.  We pray for members of our congregation - especially those on our hearts at this time.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Father, we know there is power in prayer so we thank you for allowing us to bring all these prayers and petitions before you today.  We ask diligently that you go to battle for us against the forces of evil that attack our hearts and minds.  We humbly ask in your Son's precious name, and all God's people said, Amen.

Prayers for Sunday, August 28th

Written and led by Bruce Kleinert

Heavenly Father, 
Good morning.  We give you thanks for Your unconditional love that nourish, supports, and feeds us each day.  We praise you for the gift of You son, who died for our sins.  We thank You for the presence of the Holy Spirit, who guides, leads, comforts and motivates us; for Your Church throughout the world and those who are persecuted and willing to die for it.  We thank you for the means of grace in baptism and communion, for the lives of all your faithful children everywhere, and for the assurance in the life to come.  Help us to live each day in the promises of your Word.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Thank you Jesus that you care for us.  Lord, there are many people in need.  Bless the work of those who bring water to the thirsty, and relief to those who are hurting.  We ask for you to provide for the needs of those hit by fire, wind, rain, and floods.  We ask for you to be with those who have other concerns and problems in their lives.  We ask that you give wisdom and strength to our doctors and nurses who bring healing.  Give comfort and peace to family members of those who are ill.  Lord we bring before you those whom we name in our hearts.  Give them the assurance of your presence, the comfort form all fears, and the hope in the life to come.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Father, help us to remember that you put us here on earth at this time and in this place for the purpose of loving you and loving others.  When we feel overwhelmed, tired or discouraged, give us the perseverance to be faithful and true to you.  Help us to reflect your love and your forgiveness to each person we meet.  Give us the strength to be genuine and to detest what is evil.  Help us to love and serve like your Son who loved and served us.  Help us to build up one another, always caring, always encouraging, and always helping each other to be the unique person you created them to be.  Help us to rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep and live in harmony with one another.  Give us the humility of your Son Jesus Christ as we serve and love others.  
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

The power of prayer lies in the Savior who promises to hear our prayers and to work in every circumstance for the good of those who belong to him. T o him we pray and give the glory in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

Prayers for Sunday, July 31st

Prayers written by Holly Andersen, using the Lord's Prayer

Good, gracious, steadfast and faithful God - 

Hallowed be Thy name...
Father in heaven, we lift up your name.  We praise you for you are gracious, loving, just and righteous.  You are holy.  May the words of our mouths be words of truth, words that glorify, build up and encourage so that through our praise those who do not know you would come to know your glory.  Hallowed be Thy name, we pray,
Alleluia.

Your Kingdom come...Your will be done...
What does your Kingdom look like? We see so much in our world that is far from what you would have for your creation.  Images of violence; sounds of war. Lord, help us to seek your Kingdom, to be bold in our prayers, words, hearts, minds, and action.  Give us your courage and hope when we are overcome and overwhelmed by what we alone cannot fix.  Teach us how to follow you into places and relationships where we can bring the reality of your grace.  Your Kingdom come, Your will be done, we pray,
Alleluia.

Give us today our daily bread...
God you are the great provider.  You give us all that we need.  May we accept that blessing with open hearts and hands.  May we use those gifts and blessings to be rich toward you and as you would have us, be rich to this world around us.  May we know that our daily bread is provided by so many people in our city, state, nation and world and may we hold them up to you.  Give us our daily bread, we pray, 
Alleluia.

Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us...
Jesus Christ our Savior, you know the destructive power of sin and how it leads to death and separation from you.  You have taught us the power and promise of forgiveness through your life, your death and resurrection.  Help us to forgive, rid us of our apathy, show us the peace and hope that can come through reconciliation.  We pray for the people of our city who live daily in hate, for our nation that lives daily in deep seeded racism, for our world terrorized by men and women filled with hatred and fear.  Lead us to peace through forgiveness.  Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive, we pray,
Alleluia.

Lead us not into temptation...
Lord we are alike only in that we face temptation everyday.  You have created each of us as individuals and so we are all tempted in different ways.  We pray for freedom from temptation into anger, hatred, addiction, hopelessness, depression, despair, self-righteousness, doubt, worry, lust, self-love, greed and selfishness.  Give us courage, strength and your grace.  Lead us not into temptation, we pray,
Alleluia.

We pray in the name of Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.
Amen.

Prayers for Sunday, July 31st

Prayers written by Holly Andersen, using the Lord's Prayer

Good, gracious, steadfast and faithful God - 

Hallowed be Thy name...
Father in heaven, we lift up your name.  We praise you for you are gracious, loving, just and righteous.  You are holy.  May the words of our mouths be words of truth, words that glorify, build up and encourage so that through our praise those who do not know you would come to know your glory.  Hallowed be Thy name, we pray,
Alleluia.

Your Kingdom come...Your will be done...
What does your Kingdom look like? We see so much in our world that is far from what you would have for your creation.  Images of violence; sounds of war. Lord, help us to seek your Kingdom, to be bold in our prayers, words, hearts, minds, and action.  Give us your courage and hope when we are overcome and overwhelmed by what we alone cannot fix.  Teach us how to follow you into places and relationships where we can bring the reality of your grace.  Your Kingdom come, Your will be done, we pray,
Alleluia.

Give us today our daily bread...
God you are the great provider.  You give us all that we need.  May we accept that blessing with open hearts and hands.  May we use those gifts and blessings to be rich toward you and as you would have us, be rich to this world around us.  May we know that our daily bread is provided by so many people in our city, state, nation and world and may we hold them up to you.  Give us our daily bread, we pray, 
Alleluia.

Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us...
Jesus Christ our Savior, you know the destructive power of sin and how it leads to death and separation from you.  You have taught us the power and promise of forgiveness through your life, your death and resurrection.  Help us to forgive, rid us of our apathy, show us the peace and hope that can come through reconciliation.  We pray for the people of our city who live daily in hate, for our nation that lives daily in deep seeded racism, for our world terrorized by men and women filled with hatred and fear.  Lead us to peace through forgiveness.  Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive, we pray,
Alleluia.

Lead us not into temptation...
Lord we are alike only in that we face temptation everyday.  You have created each of us as individuals and so we are all tempted in different ways.  We pray for freedom from temptation into anger, hatred, addiction, hopelessness, depression, despair, self-righteousness, doubt, worry, lust, self-love, greed and selfishness.  Give us courage, strength and your grace.  Lead us not into temptation, we pray,
Alleluia.

We pray in the name of Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.
Amen.

Prayers for Sunday, July 24th

Written by Holly Andersen

Let us pray,
Heavenly and gracious Father, we come before you today in worship through prayer.  We thank you for this day and that you have brought us - young and old, healthy and sick, full of joy and full of sorrow, saint and sinner - together into one body and community of faith.  Thank you that you supply our every need.  Continue to teach us to pray: to pray that your name would be glorified, your Kingdom come, daily bread provided, our sins forgiven as we forgive and temptation overcome.  
We pray, Lord have mercy.

Jesus Christ, Savior and Son, we thank you for the life we have through your death and resurrection.  We thank you for the grace, mercy, and forgiveness we know because we know you.  Continue to be our Shepherd as we ask, seek, and knock in our daily lives.  Give us open ears, minds, eyes, hearts and hands as we engage and live in this community.  May we trust in you, knowing that to follow your lead is what we are called to do as disciples.
We pray, Lord have mercy.

Holy Spirit, guide and sanctifier, we thank you that you are always working in and through our hearts.  As we read the words of Scripture you open our minds and hearts to understand our Heavenly Father's will.  We thank you for the strength you give us to follow, to speak, and to love.  May your healing power be upon those in pain: the sick, lonely, depressed, anxious, forgotten, hopeless, addicted and despairing.  We especially pray for those who are on our hearts and minds...  Hold, heal, and restore them.  Come into our world, bring peace and restoration through Christ, our Savior.
We pray, Lord have mercy.

Father, Son, and Spirit, in your name we pray.  Amen.

Prayers from Sunday, July 17th - Combined Worship

Thank you to Laura Moore who wrote and led our prayers for our 

combined Worship service this past Sunday.

Dearest Heavenly Father, we gather together today to praise you.  We are so thankful that you are our shepherd.  Help us to follow you each day, every day in all that we say and do.

The Lord is our shepherd - We shall not be in want.

We praise you Lord for gathering together the many children and volunteers for Vacation Bible School.  We ask you to bless and nurture the seeds of faith that were planted this past week.  We pray that each child who walked into this church will come to love you with all of their heart, mind, soul and strength.

The Lord is our shepherd - We shall not be in want.

We give you praise for the selfless dedications of the St. Andrews staff and the VBS volunteers.  Renew them; fill them with energy and love so that they can continue to serve others in your name.

The Lord is our shepherd - We shall not be in want.

Mighty God, please watch over Brianna Kleinert and the others serving with The Sending Place in Ecuador.  Empower them and your missionaries throughout the world to effectively evangelize and make disciples of Christ.

The Lord is our shepherd - We shall not be in want.

O Lord, help us to realize that time with You in quiet is priceless.  It’s where we can hear from You best, be the most honest before You, and enjoy he most blessings of Your presence.  Help us to find our identity and satisfaction in you God rather than in temporary things.

The Lord is our shepherd - We shall not be in want.

Each time we turn on the news Lord, we are inundated with the evil in this world.  There is violence in our streets.  We pray for the families who have lost loved ones this past week to violence in Dallas, in France and throughout the world.  Grant them peace and comfort them in their time of mourning. 

The Lord is our shepherd - We shall not be in want.

Bless and protect those who serve.  Help our politicians, our police officers and our military to lead with honor, respect, wisdom, compassion and godliness.

The Lord is our shepherd - We shall not be in want.

Help us to make choices based upon the fear of God, not the fear of man.  Help us to spread your love to this hurting world.  Give us grace and faith to trust You for great things.

The Lord is our shepherd - We shall not be in want.

Amen.