Prayer For Sunday After Easter
Receive these prayers, O God,
and transform us through them,
that we may have eyes to see and hearts to understand
not only what you do on our behalf,
but what you call us to do
so that your realm will come to fruition in glory. Amen.
Blessed are you,
O God of our Lord Jesus Christ,
in whom we receive the legacy of a living hope,
born again not only from his death
but also from his resurrection.
May we who have received forgiveness of sins
through the Holy Spirit live to set others free,
until, at length, we enter the inheritance
that is imperishable and unfading,
where Christ lives and reigns with you and the same Spirit. Amen.
Open our hearts to your power moving
around us and between us and within us,
until your glory is revealed in our love of both friend and enemy,
in communities transformed by justice and compassion,
and in the healing of all that is broken. Amen.
Creator of the universe,
you made the world in beauty,
and restore all things in glory
through the victory of Jesus Christ.
We pray that, wherever your image is still disfigured
by poverty, sickness, selfishness, war and greed,
the new creation in Jesus Christ may appear in justice, love, and peace,
to the glory of your name. Amen.
Living God,
long ago, faithful women
proclaimed the good news
of Jesus' resurrection,
and the world was changed forever.
Teach us to keep faith with them,
that our witness may be as bold,
our love as deep,
and our faith as true. Amen.
Mighty God,
in whom we know the power of redemption,
you stand among us in the shadows of our time.
As we move through every sorrow and trial of this life,
uphold us with knowledge of the final morning
when, in the glorious presence of your risen Son,
we will share in his resurrection,
redeemed and restored to the fullness of life
and forever freed to be your people. Amen.
Almighty and Eternal God,
As your creation outside these walls is bursting into the new life of Spring,
your creations inside these walls come this morning seeking new life a swell.
We thank you that your mercies are new every day. Our presence here is evidence of that.
We lift our voices in praise of you and ask that you allow all our acts of worship to glorify you this morning. Help us to quiet our minds to hear your voice, your Spirit as you speak to our spirits.
We remember the promises of Easter which we celebrated just last week but somehow that seems so long ago. We confess, God, that we tend to leave the truths of Easter behind too quickly. IT is somehow easier to move on from mourning Jesus' death on the cross than it is to continue to walk faithfully in the path of the resurrection.
Part of that may be our own willfullness, God, and part of it is the fact that we live in a broken world. Lord, we ask for your forgiveness for the part we have played in breaking it. Show us how to help mend your world. Make each of our actions ones that please you, each of our words ones that honor you and each of our lives a reflection of your kingdom.
For the things outside our control, we ask for your intervention. We remember your promise to bind up the brokenhearted, so now we life up all those who are ill whether in body, mind or spirit and ask for you to speed healing and restore strength.
We bring these desires, confessions and praises to you in the name of Jesus Christ. We pray together the prayer He taught his disciples to pray, saying
Our Father who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy Name.
Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done,
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
As we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
and the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.
ALMIGHTY Father, who hast given thine only Son to die for our sins, and to rise again for our justification: Grant us so to put away the leaven of malice and wickedness, that we may alway serve thee in pureness of living and truth; through the merits of the same thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.