Richard J. Einerson
Prayers of the People
Seventh Sunday of Eastee or Ascension Day
Acts 1:6-14
Psalm 68:1-10, 32-35
I Peter 4:12-14, 5:6-11
John 17:1-11
Eternal God, we bow with gratitude on this Mother’s Day and Festival of the Christian Home. We give you our deepest thanks for so many blessings.
• We thank you for the nurture which was ours in our homes and families.
• We thank you for parents who helped shape within us a vision for life and a heavenly vision.
• We thank you for families which, though sometimes struggling, continue to work faithfully to create a safe and loving environment for their children.
• We thank you for children and grandchildren who continue to bring us joy, who teach us to see things in life we would otherwise hurriedly pass by, and who with their freshness and spontaneity remind us that life is an interesting and exciting enterprise.
Enable us to provide children and their families support, care, and direction. May we receive each one as one of your “little ones,” Lord Jesus, to whom you so gently bid a welcoming “come unto me.”
We pray also for families which are less traditional. Be with those who are single parents. Be with those of the same gender. Be with those who are multigenerational. Be with those who are working hard to believe in their children and to bring them to belief. Be with those who are trying to instil in their children a vision of a moral and Christian life. Wherever they are trying to give them a vision for a better world and a sense of responsibility in working for the larger kingdom we ask that you give blessing. We pray also for families less fortunate where a pattern of abuse has been the only coping path available for the frustrated. Bring to them healing, hope and a vision of a better life and world. Amen
