Most Blessed, Most Beautiful Christ, A Prayer for Thanksgiving

A Prayer for Thanksgiving Services

Long-time TPW contributor Rev. Lisa Degrenia has contributed this prayer of thanksgiving which you can use in your Thanksgiving Day services (or Sunday services around Thanksgiving).

In fact, this prayer is suitable for any time of year. It's never a bad time to give thanks to our Lord.

Prayer: Most Blessed, Most Beautiful Christ

This prayer could be voiced many ways, with or without the scripture that inspired it.

This version is for:

• One voice leading the entire prayer, or

• A different voice leading each stanza of the prayer.

Scripture Reading

So let no one boast about human leaders. For all things are yours, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future—all belong to you, and you belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God.

— 1 Corinthians 3:21-23 (NRSV)

Prayer

Most blessed, most beautiful Christ,
in you we receive all things
The receiving takes growth, so you give us guiding—
saints and sages and scripture
Thank you for the guiding

The receiving takes others, so you give us the world—
nature and neighbors and nations
Thank you for the world

The receiving takes change, so you give us seasons—
life and death and new life
Thank you for the seasons

The receiving takes time, so you give us time-
present and future and forever
Thank you for the time

Most blessed, most beautiful Christ
You give us yourself
And in you, O Christ
We belong
To you and to God and to all
Thank you for the giving

The congregation now offers their own prayers of thanksgiving, concluding with the Lord’s Prayer

Responsive Prayer: Most Blessed, Most Beautiful Christ

This version of the prayer is a call and response, one voice praying the regular print while the congregation prays the bold print. (1 Cor. 3:21-23 may be read before the responsive prayer or not.)

Most blessed, most beautiful Christ,

in you we receive all things

The receiving takes growth, so you give us guiding—
saints and sages and scripture

Thank you for the guiding
in you we receive all things

The receiving takes others, so you give us the world—
nature and neighbors and nations

Thank you for the world
in you we receive all things

The receiving takes change, so you give us seasons—
life and death and new life

Thank you for the seasons
in you we receive all things

The receiving takes time, so you give us time—
present and future and forever

Thank you for the time
in you we receive all things

Most blessed, most beautiful Christ
You give us yourself
And in you, O Christ
We belong
To you and to God and to all

Thank you for the giving
in you we receive all things

The congregation now offers their own prayers of thanksgiving, concluding with the Lord’s Prayer

Most Blessed, Most Beautiful Christ © 2014 Lisa Ann Moss Degrenia, www.revlisad.com