Prayers from Sunday, May 1, 2016

Heavenly Father,
First and foremost, we come to you with open hearts.  We thank you for this beautiful morning and a wonderful choir that helps us to worship and praise your holy name.  We give you thinks for how you love us unconditionally.  You take what is broken inside our souls and you make it new in each and every one of us.  We thank you for your forgiveness when we disobey you and when we stubbornly do not keep your commandments.  Thank you Jesus for deeming us worthy of love by dying on the cross to pay for our sins.  We are not worthy, not even a little, but you willingly loved us so much that you paid loves ransom so that we may have an everlasting life together in your family.  We can't praise you enough.  We owe you all love and adoration as your name is worthy of our praise.  Thank you for the gift of the Holy Spirit that guides each of us daily to help us make choices that honor your will and give you glory.  Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Lord, we lift up prayers for those nearest to us, our family, our neighbors, our coworkers, that we may be encouragers and extend love and grace to them just as you extend to us even when that may be difficult to do.  Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

We pray for those who point us in the right direction in our lives: those such as teachers, our pastors and deacons, our mentors, our small group members and our veterans.  Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

We pray for our rulers, those who govern our country.  With your blessing Father, let America be a beacon of light and a bastion of hope for our world.  Impart into our nation's leaders the unquenchable thirst for virtue as we lift up the 2016 election.  We pray that truth will be brought into light as we near the voting process.  Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

We pray especially, Father, for those who are without hope in their lives today.  We pray for those with health issues both physically and mentally; we pray for those in broken relationships, those battling addiction, all the homeless here in Stockton and around the world; all your people who hunger and thirst not only for food but for spiritual food and for those who have not heard of your everlasting love yet.  Use us, your people, to be beacons of light in a dark world and give us courage to set ourselves aside and use the gifts and talents you have blessed us with, so that we may be ready to do so when opportunities arise to share the gospel with those in need.  Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Finally Lord, be with our brothers and sisters around the world as they seek to share your hope, grace, and salvation with the many people groups. We especially lift up Ecuador as they suffer and recover from a major earthquake.  The needs will definitely be mighty for the mission team from the Sending Place going in June.  Thank you father that you are the Almighty and you hear every prayer both BIG and SMALL.  All these prayers and petitions we humbly ask, your will and not ours.  We pray in your Son's precious name, and all God's people said, Amen.

Prayers for Sunday, May 15, 2016 – Pentecost Sunday

Written and led by Holly Andersen and Rachel McGehee

Let us pray,
Gracious Spirit, we read in the first chapter of Genesis that when the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and that you, the Spirit of God, were hovering over the waters. You have been at work in the world since the very beginning. We are filled with joy on this day of Pentecost that our Lord Jesus sent you to be our counselor and guide as we walk and live out lives of faith. Gracious Spirit, Shine in our hearts.

The Apostle Paul says in Romans 8:11, “If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.” You, Holy Spirit, have given us life! Not “someday,” but now, right here on this earth, you are living inside our broken bodies. This is too much for us to grasp. Open our hearts and minds to humbly accept the unimaginable power of your life in us. We ask that your Spirit would continually transform us, breaking the power of addictions, greed, racism, apathy, pride, and envy. Gracious Spirit, Shine in our hearts.

In Acts chapter 1 verse 8, we read Jesus’ promises to his disciples, “’But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.’” Lord, you promised your Spirit to your faithful disciples, and with the promise gave a great commission. Your Spirit gives us power to witness your mercy to the whole earth, but like the first disciples starting in Jerusalem, help us share your love first with the people in our own communities. Stockton and its surrounding areas need your healing and mercy so desperately; give us the desire and willingness to first reach out to those living in our homes and on our own streets. Thank you for organizations like the Gospel Center Rescue Mission and the Pregnancy Health Center who share your love in practical ways in our city. We pray for the Christians on our school boards, city council, county offices, state legislature, and federal government, that they would lead with integrity and be quick to share their faith with those around them. We also pray for our brothers and sisters sharing the gospel around the world: give us generosity to support their missions, and soften our hearts to hear your call in each one of us. Gracious Spirit, Shine in our hearts.

Holy Spirit, When we are weak, when we do not know what to say or cannot say it, you help us. Romans 8 verse 26 tells us that in our weakness, when we do not know what we ought to pray, that you intercede for us with groans that words cannot express. You know the situations that leave us without words, the people for whom we can help in no way other than to life them up in prayer... for Mary Hintz, Riley Wells, Connie Rill and all those on our hearts, Gracious Spirit, Shine in our hearts.

Matthew 10, verses 19 and 20 say, Do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say, for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour. For it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.” Father, how incredible it is that your very Spirit speaks through us when we open our mouths to share your word! Spirit of God, take away our fear of speaking your truth to others, and give us confidence to share our faith boldly. May we be looking for moments during our daily lives at school, at work, in our neighborhoods, and with our families to tell others about the hope we have in you. Gracious Spirit, Shine in our hearts. 

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

Prayer Ministry - Seek the Welfare of the City

This past Sunday we discussed prayer walks and Cathy Pauley shared a bit about her experience with prayer on a mission trip to Thailand back in March of 2014.  Let this re-post from what she wrote in 2014 be an encouragement to you as you consider walking and praying in your community:

Our post today is written by Cathy Pauley, a member of our church who recently traveled to Thailand with The Sending Place (a short-term missions sending organization).

Cathy writes:

I have enjoyed watching members at St. Andrews Lutheran Church embrace
relationships. Building relationships and connecting to the community have
been mission themes for more than a year. Rachelle, Marjorie and I
experienced the same when we went to Thailand Feb. 5-18.

The Sending Place sends short-term missionaries to many countries. In my
experience, certain countries are more relationship-eccentric than other
countries. Thailand is definitely one of those countries.

TSP missionaries started forming relationships several years ago, and this
year I really felt connected to the villages, and to Musikee Center -
headquarters of Handclasp, our sponsor, and home to our hosts, Don and Kay
Fox.

We lived at Musikee, where the students and staff of this village inside a
village live. The students attend devotions every night, and they start
their school day in prayer every school day. They also attend weekly worship
service either in their community hall or at a village church. These
students are Christians fairly new to their faith in most cases, but mature
in Spirit. They seemed to connect to the devotions that our team led almost
every night we were there.

Praying with families, staff and individuals in the villages helped us
connect and build relationships that were as much a blessing to our team as
to those we prayed with, and for. When we prayed with villagers, we each had
a Bible verse specific to their need.

We prayed with a widow, whose husband - a Christian since 1989 - passed
away. We watched the family of that man decorate his casket with crosses! 
We prayed with a Buddhist school principal and his wife for Jesus to
come into their hearts. It was very powerful. We prayed for a man battling
with alcohol abuse. His friends keep encouraging him to drink with them and
he is trying to slay that beast. We prayed with his wife and sons. We prayed

with the adult children of an 86-year-old man who is preparing to go Home
(die). He is a Christian who was strong and healthy until five days prior to

us praying. We also prayed over the siblings and closed with singing
"Amazing Grace." We prayed with a father who is raising three children alone
because his wife walked out. His mother-in-law is mean to him. We prayed for
strength for the father and wisdom for the mother. We then prayed over a

very young mother who is quite ill with symptoms similar to Hepatitis A. She
has three children younger than 5. We also prayed for the father and the

children. We attended a Karen Christian wedding and on our way home, we
stopped at the home of a single mom raising four daughters. Her husband is
in prison for eight years for drug-related charges. We prayed for the mom
and children to find peace and stay strong. They are all at-risk because the
village men know she is alone. We also prayed she would be able to feed her
family. (Musikee staff is praying about taking the family in but it is a lot
to add five more people to their meal roster).

My faith journey in Thailand has made me a better listener and prayer
warrior for my friends and family at home. 

Relationships in our community are vital for the community to overcome the
poverty, despair, gangs and violence; but relationships in communities
across the globe are equally as important. We are co-heirs of Christ, not
just in Stockton but across the world!

Blessings, Cathy

Prayers for Sunday, April 3rd

Prayers for Sunday, April 3, 2016 - written and lead by Karl Winter

Divine Heavenly Father,

We join you today in thanksgiving and prayer with gratitude in our hearts. We thank you for another day, another week, another month to spread your love, and give up our lives to you. We as a congregation have many blessings stemming from your mercy that have brought us together today.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

First, O Loving God, we thank you for the community here at St. Andrew’s that supports each other in harmony and unity. Your work is evident in the leaders and teachers here who commit themselves to the progress and productivity of this church. Your benevolence has led us to become a people of repentance and charity.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Abundant Creator, we thank you for the opulence and allure of your Creation, the blossoming and beautiful earth around us. We thank you for the recent rains that have satisfied our thirsty soil, the bright spring sunshine, and the awesome magnificence of the growing and thriving world.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Great Deliverer, we thank you for making us your disciples. By sending us to forgive and bless others, you give us the gift of the Holy Spirit as well as a purpose in our lives. As “Sent Ones,” you have provided us with light, hope, and peace, as well as the opportunity to spread these things throughout the world.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Gracious Leader, we offer you our many petitions with trust and humility. We pray first for the many ministers and leaders of this church and this nation, each with their unique goals and purposes. We pray that you, the Perfect Instructor, will counsel and embolden the leaders of this church to carry out their duties with dignity, drawing the congregation into one association of dedicated believers. We ask that you bless the upcoming election, allowing each candidate and voter to

observe the values and morals of Jesus Christ as they make positive decisions for our nation. Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Forgiving Healer, you do not distance yourself from the pain of your people but in Jesus you bear that pain with all who suffer from sickness, loneliness, oppression, and injustice. With your cleansing love bring healing and strength to those physically and mentally ill, especially those close to our congregation who need soothing and comforting. Look with compassion and revival upon the addicted, homeless, and any who have strayed from your path. Lift them up in body, mind, and spirit, so they may rejoice once again.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Almighty Lord, we pray that you project us from the evil forces in our world today. Please restore the hearts and minds of the corrupt ones that seek to destroy your influence in the world. Please be with the people of Europe and leaders across the world who deal with an increasing terror threat. Help us to be strong, honest, and just in order to promote peace amongst all of humanity. We are sinful and shameful, and you are righteous and pure, and we need your blessing to lead a daily life that reflects your love. Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Heavenly Father, help us to be pure and temperate in all enjoyment, gracious and courteous towards all, and honest and true in all of our dealings, so that the mind of Jesus Christ may be formed in us and all may know that we are his disciples. You have sent us to bless others as your disciples, so help us to be forgiving in our daily vocations. Lord, we humbly trust in your great power, faithfully believing that you will observe our requests and petitions. Into your hands we present all for whom we pray, trusting in your mercy, through Jesus Christ, our Savior.
And all God’s people agreed and said, Amen. 

Prayers from Palm Sunday 2016 at 8:15am

Prayers using verses from Psalm 31, written and lead by Valerie Andersen

A prayer from Psalm 31

Vs. 1: In you, O Lord, do I take refuge: let me never be put to shame; in your righteousness deliver me.
Holy and gracious Father: You are our creator and provider, encourager and protector. We come to you with thankful hearts for rain, for changing seasons, for the joys of life - the new life of Lark John Rehbein - as well as the trials of life - .... May we live boldly knowing You have claimed us as Your own. 

O Protecting God:  Hear our prayer. 

Vs. 3: For you are my rock and my fortress; and for your name’s sake you lead me and guide me;...

Open our eyes, our ears, and our hearts, so that we can see and do that which you have called us to do. Remove the scales of indifference from our eyes and the bindings of fear and ignorance from our hands and feet. Increase our trust in You. Give us courage. Lead and guide us to bring Your love and grace to the unbelieving, the afflicted, disenfranchised, weak and vulnerable, to those we fear or do not understand, whether near to us or far away.

O Servant God:  Hear our prayer.

Vs. 5: Into your hand I commit my spirit; you have redeemed me ...

Dearest Jesus: We are in awe of you. You died for us. As You faithfully heeded the Father’s will, dying for our sakes, may we commit to that same will, losing our broken, worldly selves, for the sake of those around us so that they too will know the blessed assurance of Your love and full promise of Your glory.

O Saving God:  Hear our prayer.

Vs. 9 and 14: Be gracious to me, O Lord, for I am in distress; my eye is wasted with grief; my soul and my body also...But I trust in you, O Lord; I say, “You are my God.”

Heavenly Advocate: We are in pain. Those we love are in pain. Our sin causes physical, emotional, and spiritual torment. We pray especially for ... Help them. Comfort them. They are Yours. 

O Healing God:  Hear our prayer.

Vs. 16: Make your face shine on your servant; save me in your steadfast love!!

O Holy God: May we see your face today. May we reflect your grace, and may our lives encourage others to fall more deeply in love with you.  

And all God’s people say:  Amen.

Prayers from March 6 - 8:15am

Prayers written and led by Cathy Pauley

Dear Gracious Heavenly Father,

O come, let us sing to the Lord; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation! Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!

Lord, as our country prepares to choose the President of the United States of America, be with the candidates and give them strength. We ask that the Holy Spirit be their guide.  As citizens vote, we ask that they pray for a leader who trusts in you, Lord.  We thank you for this great Nation, and we ask that you protect its people here and abroad.

God of protection. Hear our prayer.

Lord, we lift up Deacon Tao as he leads our outreach to the Hmong community.  Lord, we ask that you give him strength and courage to reach out to these beautiful people.  We ask that you place Your Light in the Hmong community, not only in Stockton and the United States, but in Thailand as well.  We ask, Lord, that you open doors for him and his family to find employment and a home.   God of Love, hear our prayer.

Lord, we ask that you protect our service men and women whose selfless service protects our Nation.  We ask that you keep them safe and keep their families safe who wait for their return.  We lift up Chaz Johnson, Bradley Kramer, Daniel Pauley, and Margaret Wilson, and ask that you bless each of them.  We also ask Lord that you shine your Light wherever they are and bring peace, the peace that only you can bring to the world. God of Peace, hear our prayer.

Lord, we ask for spiritual and physical healing to those suffering. We ask that you give comfort to those undergoing treatment that causes pain and discomfort.  Be with those afflicted with cancer including my Pops, Marlene, Gina, John, Paul, and others we name in our heart. God of Healing, hear our prayer.

Lord, we ask that you look with compassion upon all who through addiction have lost their health and freedom. Restore to them the assurance of your unfailing mercy and remove the fears that attack them. God of Compassion, hear our prayer.

Lord, we thank you for the long-time St. Andrews member and office volunteer of by-gone years, Marie Shields, whom you called home last week.  We ask that you give comfort and peace to her family and friends who mourn her death, but rejoice that she no longer is suffering and is with You. God of Mercy, hear our prayer.

Lord, we lift up the “least of these” special people in the Good Shepherd Family Ministry. We ask for strength and compassion for those who volunteer in that program. We thank you Lord, for all those who love them as you have called us to. God, our Shepherd, hear our prayer.

Lord, we lift up Pastor Dan, Bruce, Holly, Tracy, Ann Marie, Brandyee, Newday Preschool staff, our mission and ministry council and all those who serve. We also remember our persecuted Christians throughout the world who suffer for the Gospel. And Lord, bless those who are training with The Sending Place, Rachelle, Jeanne and Brianna. Prepare them Lord to share the Gospel and share your Love in Ukraine and Ecuador.  We also ask for protection for Ann Marie and Mike who are in Costa Rica. God of Ministry, Hear our prayer.

Lord, walk with each of us as we continue our journey through Lent.  We ask that you help us focus on this season of reflection, repentance and preparation for the celebration of the death of resurrection of your son, Jesus Christ. Lord, you have blessed each of us to be a blessing to others.  We thank you, Lord.  And all of God’s people said, “Amen.”

Sunday March 6th Prayers

Prayers lead by Laura Moore on Sunday, March 6, 2016

Adapted from The Battle Plan for Prayer by Stephen and Alex Kendrick

Lord, Your name is great, just as You are great.  And while You are one God- Creator of all, without rival- we praise You that You are more than we realize and everything we need.  Thank you for allowing us to call on You at all times, in all circumstances, and for promising to be our All in All at every moment.  We worship You today Lord God, our Savior, our Sustainer, our Friend, our reason for living.  Lord in Your mercy…Hear our prayer.

Lord, too often and in too many ways we have put ourselves first- above our loyalty to You, above our recognition of sin, above our need for repentance, and above a humble reliance on You for everything.  But where we have worked so hard to build ourselves up, we now see that we actually have been tearing away at what our relationship with You can be.  Today, Lord we come to You with nothing but gratitude, asking You to purge us of pride and help us see things as they really are.  Lord in Your mercy…Hear our prayer.

Lord, sometimes we are overwhelmed with the cares of this life:  the violence in our city, politics, conflicts with others.  Help us to give it all to you Lord.  Help us Lord God to be a godly example in the roles and with the responsibilities that You have entrusted us with.  Lord in Your mercy…Hear our prayer.

Lord, give us a greater heart for the lost- a heart that doesn’t ignore them or work around them, but rather breaks for them.  Hurts for them.  Guard us from even subtly downplaying their need for You or considering their salvation someone else’s job to worry about.  Open our eyes as we travel throughout each day, watching for You to open doors so we can give effective testimony to Your goodness and faithfulness.  Lord in Your mercy…Hear our prayer.

And do battle against our enemy, O Lord, that he would not succeed in blocking the truth from getting through to those who are dying without it, without You.  Thank you for allowing us to be part of this kingdom priority.  Help us to see it as a privilege, not a burden- a willing sacrifice for the incredible sacrifice that You have made for us.  Lord in Your mercy…Hear our prayer.

Lord, we know we are in skillful hands as we pray for You to show us Your will and lead us faithfully into it.  We accept from You specific guidance through Your word to give us “a lamp to our feet and a light to our path” (Ps. 119: 105)-for this moment.  Thank You for being heaven-and-earth beyond us in size and scope (Is. 55: 8-9), yet somehow stooping down to involve Yourself in our details.  Tune our hearts to the desires of Your heart.  Align our minds with Your thoughts.  Guide our path to the center of Your plans.  And help us pray and live in accordance with Your will.  We love you, and we will follow You.  And all God’s people agreed and say, “Amen”.