Prayer

Guiding Light,

Wise Men from the east, upon hearing of the birth of the King, set out and followed a star to the place where Jesus laid by his mother.  Overcome with great joy, they did him homage and offered gifts of thanksgiving. So often in our lives, we too, are given signs and wonders, but sometimes miss the opportunities to follow your Guiding Light. Help us to be more aware of the signs and wonders around us, there to guide us through life, so that we too can experience great joy and thanksgiving. We ask this in your name, the Light of the world, Amen.

Prayer

God of Courage,

As we walk through life attempting to do good and be good in the world, we often find that our attempts lack total success.  However, when we allow ourselves to be guided by you, we receive courage to continue striving, learning from what did not quite work, and moving forward in trying again.  Remind us that failure is not fatal; rather, it is just part of the journey to success. Grant us the courage to remain on the journey, learning what you are teaching us through past mistakes. Amen.

Prayer

Gracious God,

As a ministry united, we believe you have called each of us to serve as your hands and feet to a world in need. Such an incredible mission should inspire us each day! For if what we call “heaven” is the place where your will is done, then a most humbling thought follows: we have been invited and empowered by you, to bring some measure of heaven to earth as we work to restore wholeness in the lives we encounter. For our own sake and for the sake of all those we have the privilege of serving—our patients and families, neighbors and colleagues, and our surrounding communities—may heaven come down, in and through us, with your grace to sustain us, today! Amen.

Prayer

God of truth,

Today’s forms of media make it so easy to spread gossip and slander in ways that tear down rather than build up a trusting community. We who are called to live in your truth should know better, and yet sometimes we are just as susceptible to believing rumors and hearsay, without taking time to vet the information we hear and share. Heal us of such tendencies, which threaten our value of integrity. Lead us instead to build a culture that champions truth-telling and is slow to draw conclusions based on little or misleading information. Amen.

Prayer

God our strength,

For all those who are especially vulnerable today, we ask you to strengthen them in mind, body, and spirit. May we serve them faithfully by expressing your own heart of compassion towards them. In addition to the highest quality care we can offer, help us come alongside and support them with all that they need to conquer the hardships they face—resources and planning, but also the promise of our accompaniment. Amen.

Prayer

Personal God,

It is an astonishing and sometimes frightful thought, to imagine that you know us better than we know ourselves. We are sometimes more comfortable talking about you than we are facing you directly, in prayer and in worship or in the eyes of a neighbor in need. Humbly we ask to be delivered from a form of religion that puts any obstacle in the way of our knowing you in the way you desire, even seemingly good things. As those who are called to extend your own compassion to others today, help us to know you better that we might share your healing presence more fully with all those in need. Amen.

Prayer

Merciful God,

Our recognition of New Year’s Day tends to overshadow the just as wondrous gift that comes to us in each new dawn of each new day. As we celebrate this special moment of new beginnings together, help us at the same time to cultivate reverence and joy for tomorrow’s new beginning and each day thereafter. Empower us to celebrate the gifts we otherwise take for granted, especially the gifts of each other. Amen.