TheoSpora

God of faith,
     We celebrate the coming of the fall,
     As the leaves change and the weather cools,
          We look to a new year of study and fellowship,
               To new moments of worship, mission and evangelism
     As we pull the coats from our closets,
          We ask that you surround us with your loving presence,
     So that we might see the world afresh and live more deeply in faith.

God of grace,
     We lament with those whose lives have been irrevocably changed by the
     destructive presence of fire;
          We pray with those who lost loved ones as we mark the anniversary of
          September 11th;
               We pray with those who have lost homes, belongings and livelihoods
               with the fires in Boulder;
                    And we pray for those who find it necessary to meet violence with
                    violence,
                         For those who would lift up one Holy book by violently
                         destroying what is holy to others;
As we awaken to this changing world, O Lord, broaden our narrow minds so that we might find meaningful ways of living with our neighbors in ways which reveal your kingdom of heaven on earth.

God of hope,
     We often speak of imagining a world that honors your presence,
          Yet we prefer to believe that our limited ideas about you and your love
           reflect the only reality around us.
               Remind us that you are bigger than our concepts, descriptions and
               beliefs.
                    Enable us to live imaginatively, seeing the world anew through the
                    eyes of a childlike faith;
               So that our lives might be an ever-living thank offering to the grace
               you have shown us.

We ask these things, humbly seeking the guidance you offer in the prayer taught to us by your son…

On this day, O Lord
     We celebrate the journeys that are undertaken by choice,
          and lament with those who are forced to move from their homes
               whether by natural disasters,
                    human oppression, poverty or war;
     Each of our journeys begins with but a step,
          and as we place one foot in front of the other,
               make the steps we take purposeful and light,
                    make them gentle and strong,
     and teach us to walk with one another as a global community of faith;
          finding meaning in the steps we take along
               as well as those which are taken hand in hand with others.

O Rock and Refuge,
     as we anticipate a day of rest from the weariness this world imparts,
          guide our steps so that we might find moments of joy this day.
               enable us to remember that your son often took days of rest
               and honored the Sabbath by remembering you in prayer and
               with thanksgiving;
                    help us honor and remember your presence as we lay our burdens
                    aside in order to breathe and soak up the goodness of your world.

God of peace and justice,
     even as we stretch our legs and enjoy the day before us,
          we remember the miners in Chile,
               we remember those who are affected by renewed violence in Africa,
                    we pray for those who are returning to their homes
                    on the east coast,
                         and we pray for those in our own communities whose
                         next steps are hidden and uncertain;
     open our eyes to the many who labor, but are not rewarded;
          open our ears to the cries of those who have little rest;
               open our hearts in faith so that we might love in ways which
               reveal your hope for this world.
We ask these things, ever mindful of the prayer taught to us by Jesus,
the one we call the Christ...