Prayer & Praise
Collect
O God, who wonderfully created, and yet more wonderfully restored, the dignity of human nature: Grant that we may share the divine life of him who humbled himself to share our humanity, your Son Jesus Christ our Lord; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Jeremiah 31:7-14
For thus says the Lord:
“Sing aloud with gladness for Jacob,
and raise shouts for the chief of the nations;
proclaim, give praise, and say,
‘O Lord, save your people,
the remnant of Israel.’
Behold, I will bring them from the north country
and gather them from the farthest parts of the earth,
among them the blind and the lame,
the pregnant woman and she who is in labor, together;
a great company, they shall return here.
With weeping they shall come,
and with pleas for mercy I will lead them back,
I will make them walk by brooks of water,
in a straight path in which they shall not stumble,
for I am a father to Israel,
and Ephraim is my firstborn.
“Hear the word of the Lord, O nations,
and declare it in the coastlands far away;
say, ‘He who scattered Israel will gather him,
and will keep him as a shepherd keeps his flock.’
For the Lord has ransomed Jacob
and has redeemed him from hands too strong for him.
They shall come and sing aloud on the height of Zion,
and they shall be radiant over the goodness of the Lord,
over the grain, the wine, and the oil,
and over the young of the flock and the herd;
their life shall be like a watered garden,
and they shall languish no more.
Then shall the young women rejoice in the dance,
and the young men and the old shall be merry.
I will turn their mourning into joy;
I will comfort them, and give them gladness for sorrow.
I will feast the soul of the priests with abundance,
and my people shall be satisfied with my goodness,
declares the Lord.”
Psalm 84
How lovely are your dwellings, * O Lord God of hosts!
My soul has a desire and longing to enter into the courts of the Lord; * my heart and my flesh rejoice in the living God.
Indeed, the sparrow has found her a house, and the swallow a nest where she may lay her young, *
even your altars, O Lord of hosts, my King and my God.
Blessed are they who dwell in your house; * they will be always praising you.
Blessed is the one whose strength is in you, * in whose heart are your ways,
Who going through the valley of misery uses it for a well; * indeed, the early rains fill the pools with water.
They will go from strength to strength, * and the God of gods shall be seen by them in Zion.
O Lord God of hosts, hear my prayer; * hearken, O God of Jacob.
Behold, O God, our defender, * and look upon the face of your Anointed.
For one day in your courts * is better than a thousand;
I would rather be a door-keeper in the house of my God * than dwell in the tents of ungodliness.
For the Lord God is a light and defense; *the Lord will give grace and honor, and no good thing shall he withhold from those who live a godly life.
O Lord God of hosts, * blessed is the one who puts his trust in you.
Ephesians 1:3-14
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.
In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory. In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.
Matthew 2:1-12
Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him; and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet:
“‘And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for from you shall come a ruler
who will shepherd my people Israel.’”
Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship him.” After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way.
please remember in prayer
Jlo – my niece and her husband both have covid. My niece is recovering her case was mild. Her husband Aaron is having a tougher time of it. Has a persistent cough and fever. He has new meds today so hopefully he has a breakthrough.
Michael – Ray Garza is in the hospital with Covid 19
Michael – Tom Stipe is in the hospital with kidney failure from sepsis
Captain Kevin – job related difficulties, housing situation, pain everywhere, depression, Please continue praying for me. My GI issues are getting worse. Not sure if the symptoms are related, but I’m also having low back and pelvic floor pain. I’ve lost 26 lbs in the last 5 months, and not because I’m trying. I had been wanting to lose weight, but not this way. Honestly, I’m afraid. There are a few free clinics around here, but most are not taking new patients due to Covid. I’m calling a nurse practitioner tomorrow. A friend recommended her and thinks she’ll only charge $80 for a cash-pay visit (Most are $150). Of course if labs are ordered, I’ll have to pay cash for those as well.
sarahmorgan – would greatly appreciate prayers from this community; my surgery is scheduled for mid-December, I won’t know if I have cancer until after the surgery, and all of the local news says that time will be the height of the pandemic here, so there’s a chance my surgery will be delayed…trusting God is very difficult right now, sigh.
Em – Victoria, homeless with a cat, shelters won’t allow the cat in and the cat is all she has.
Erunner- Our brother in law who is in his early 50’s has learned that his carotid artery is 70% blocked. It appears he will be undergoing surgery. They have also found an issue with his heart. He’s a believer with a gentle and wise spirit.
Please pray for him, his wife, and their three grown children.
London – My brother, a healthcare provider, and SIL tested positive for covid
Raina R.-Please pray for my sister-in-law. She has been having horrible headaches and is recovering from surgery
Em – Would appreciate prayer for my nurse daughter. The company she works for have scheduled her for 11 days straight 12 hour shifts and many of the critical care dialysis patients are covid positive from outside the area… Humanly speaking, this schedule is impossible. .
jtk – I request prayer for our outreach to the university. 25% of those 18-23 have considered suicide in the last 30 days. This is so urgent in my heart and spirit.
Em – Prayer for my daughter on city council would br appreciated, received 24 plus threatening Emails demanding that they disband their police department
Our Phoenix Preacher family, health, healing, joy, peace
Kelly -I have a real need to continue to see my counselor. In addition to the other reasons I see him for I have been having day long panic attacks, on top of the depression and PTSD-C symptoms.
Alissa-My sweet husband has Autism and was let go from his job yesterday.
Patrik -Pray for me, an ER nurse in Indianapolis.
Dan form Georgia- I work in aviation/transportation. We are getting hit HARD as many of you know. I am not even confident when I go into work everyday that it will be my last day (layoff or termination). Also struggling a lot with anxiety.
Chris -My wife started her second career as a nurse this week on the hospital floor that they treat the Covid patients.
Linneia – joint and muscle aches
Nancy – prayer for her discernment of an unexpected opportunity to become a more public advocate for the homeless,
Em – daughter is healing from fracture spine
Linnea – Would you pray for Greg? He was treated for an aggressive brain cancer and thought he was clear, but it has roared back. Please pray for healing and that he and his wife come to know the Lord. Thank you!
Xenia- Pray for the churches of Sri Lanka
Paige – Asking for prayer for a family issue… God knows…. and the silencing of a lying gossip who is spreading slander about me to family members and others. It’s an on going issue that is quite perplexing, and apparently demonic. Twisted, delusional and strange.
cash – depression , PTSD
David H – I could use a prayer. I was diagnosed with Bell’s Palsy . Right side of my face is paralyzed. Prednisone and an antiviral.
Michael – heart aneurysm and a bad valve, bad back and neck issues.
JD – Marshal whose mother told him that she doesn’t love him
Linnea – Jon and Sarah. Please pray that they would know God’s love and would follow Him out of horrible lifestyles to freedom.
Michael, Rick, Joel, Dan, capt. Kevin, Owen – wand to hear from God in their prayer life
JTK- ongoing back issue.
David H – Aunt Ramona has Adenocarcinoma primary lung cancer.
Victor- chronic back pain
Linnea- sister salvation
Paige- 4 boys to be pleasing to God
Holy Father, please help.
Hear our cries, Father. Please pray for us Jesus. Holy Spirit speak for us when we have no words.
Please pray for my father-in-law Jerry. He’s living in an assisted-living facility in Wisconsin and COVID-19 has shown up there. Seven residents have been diagnosed with it. We haven’t been able to visit him in 15-17 months due to the pandemic. My wife is troubled by this. Thanks!
Praying for your father in law and his daughter…these situations are so difficult…
Dan, my 96 yr old mother in law is in a similar situation in SoCal.
I drove there yesterday, broke her out and brought her to my house in NW AZ
I did this also at the beginning of Oct when the lockdownss were unbearable. We will see how long I keep her out.
I pray something will ease up in WI.
Thank you SO much MLD and Michael.
Covid is – IMO – a gift from the devil… Praying for Dan’s wife and her dad, MLD’s attempt to keep his mom safe and so many others not mentioned here, but having Faith tested….
Thanks EM!
Dan
Praying… my mother is in assisted living. Current statistics
113 residents
56 recoveries from Covid
22 deaths from Covid
0 Testing positive today
The staff are heroic..
Thanks Duane for the prayers. My father-in-law has had his first vaccination shot, but of course needs the second shot (a week or more away) to be essentially immune.
Please pray for the repose of the soul of Sir Brian Urquhart, a friend from New York days who has died at 101. A founding member of the United Nations, he was the intelligence officer who tried to prevent the Arnhem campaign in WWII. A lifelong and faithful Anglican, he lived out his faith in managing peace keeping operations around the world.
May I ask for prayer for my daughter and her young family? There are four of them. They all have Covid. My grandsons, a13-year-old and a one-year-old have Covid, as do both her mother and father. I would so appreciate it. Thanks.
Duane, Mike…praying…
Praying for the requests above. Lord, have mercy.
Please continue to pray for my GI issues. Seems to be getting worse. Trying to get in to a clinic or a dr who will charge on a sliding scale. Many just aren’t taking new patients due to Covid.
Duane,
I don’t know if you and others here are military history buffs, but Brian Urquhart was the young intelligence officer who had misgivings about Operation Market Garden based upon the photo recon pictures showing German armor and reports of German armor from the Dutch underground. These units were 2 SS Panzer divisions recovering in the Arnhem area. Here is the Wikipedia on it:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_Urquhart
From the Wiki:
“In the autumn, as the 1st Airborne Corps Intelligence Officer, he assisted with the planning for Operation Market Garden, an ambitious airborne operation designed to seize the Dutch bridges over the rivers barring the Allied advance into northern Germany. He became convinced that the plan was critically flawed, and attempted to persuade his superiors to modify or abort their plans in light of crucial information obtained from aerial reconnaissance and the Dutch resistance. The episode was described by Cornelius Ryan in his book on “Market Garden”, A Bridge Too Far. (In the film version, directed by Richard Attenborough, Urquhart’s character was renamed “Major Fuller”, to avoid confusion with a similarly named British general.) The subsequent failure of the operation and the heavy casualties that resulted vindicated Urquhart’s judgment, but he became deeply depressed by his failure to persuade his superiors to halt the operation and requested a transfer out of the airborne forces.”
CM
Yes, he told me about this. He actually had to seek professional help for depression…It influenced his work in peace keeping for the UN.
Duane,
I would have loved to have met him and chatted with at length about his service in WWII (and afterwards). I am quite the military history buff and I have read quite a lot about Operation Market Garden.
Update: unfortunately the virus is spreading at my father-in-laws assisted living home…he was diagnosed with it last evening when he registered a fever of 101F and they administered a rapid test. Sounds like he’s hanging in there today. I will pray for all the requests listed here the last few days and appreciate the continued prayer for my F.I.L Jerry.
Dan, I’m sorry to hear about your father-in-law. Will continue praying.
Thanks Captain Kevin. I will pray for your need to find a doctor/clinic and the GI issue.
Thank you, Dan.