PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE: NACCC 2020 ANNUAL MEETING

Dr. John Tamilio III, Pastor of the Congregational Church of Canton

Sunday, June 28 2020

 

Holy God of all Creation —

the One who fashioned seas and stars,

who breathed life into all that walks and crawls, swims and flies,

the artist of all that is inert and still,

of rainbows and sunsets and the colors that shroud each season,

God of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and our God —

 

We come before you this day, as the gathered body of

the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches

lifting our hearts and spirits up to you in prayer.

 

We are grateful, O God, that we are heirs of a tradition of faithful followers

who braved the vast unknown 400 years ago to bring your Gospel to these shores.

They embarked from Western Europe to worship you as their collective conscience led them

and to escape a political milieu that dictated doctrine and practice stringently.

These hallmarks of the faith, of autonomy and covenant, are still alive today —

they are part of the foundation of our National Association.

 

Lord, we face a world that is precarious in its own stead.

We continue to battle the COVID-19 pandemic, so ubiquitous that

we could not meet in person on the southern coast of Maine this year.

We are also a nation in the grips of horrific racial unrest.

For far too long, O Lord, our black siblings have been denied their basic, human rights.

Although the Emancipation Proclamation was written over 157 years ago

and the Civil Rights Act became law fifty-six years ago this coming week,

the road to justice is long and arduous, ever unfolding before us.

Give us the strength and courage to face these trying times.

Empower us to be witnesses to your peace, love, and truth.

 

We lift up our prayers this afternoon for our global leaders and

elected officials in our country: at the local, state, and national levels.

Give them the wisdom they need to foster peace and to honor the

dignity and world of all your children: of every race, ethnicity, gender, and ability.

 

We offer supplications for those engaged in mission work here and across the globe.

Grant them faith, empathy, and resolve for carrying out their sacred work.

 

We pray for preachers, teachers, and evangelists in our National Association

so that they may continue to share the Good News of Christ’s Gospel:

encouraging others to accept Christ as their Lord and Savior and

to live their lives in accordance with his teachings.

 

There are so many others, O God — the names of those with whom we celebrate

pivotal moments in their lives: birthdays, anniversaries, times of healing, an increase in faith;

and there are those struggling with a sundry of ailments or have suffered losses

during this past year who we hold in our prayers of concern and intercession.

 

During this moment of silence, we lift these names up to you, O God,

knowing that you hear and hold all that we present to you from the confines of our hearts…

 

Moment of Silent Prayer

 

Holy God of all Creation,

Holy God Incarnate in Jesus Christ,

Holy God who is the Living Breath of the Holy Spirit —

 

We bring before you prayers spoken and unspoken

in the name of your Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ;

the One in whose name we rejoice to pray.

 

Amen.