Opening Prayers/Prayers of Adoration on Thanksgiving
From Psalm 22
I will tell of your name to all people;
in the midst of the congregation I will praise you:
You who fear the Lord, praise him!
All the ends of the earth shall remember
and turn to the Lord,
and all the families of the nations
shall worship before you.
For kingship belongs to the Lord,
and he rules over the nations.
It shall be told of the Lord to the coming generation;
they shall come and proclaim his righteousness to a people yet unborn,
that he has done it.
Selections from Psalm 22:22-31 (ESV)
Adapted from Psalm 95:1-2 & Psalm 124:8
Come, let us sing to God;
let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!
Let us come into God’s presence with thanksgiving;
let us make a joyful noise with songs of praise!
Where does our help come from?
Our help is in the name of God, who made heaven and earth.
Adapted from Ephesians 1
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 children
through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will.
In him we have redemption through his blood,
the forgiveness of our sins, 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 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
to the praise of his glory.
Selections from Ephesians 1:3-14 (adapted with minor wording changes from ESV)
(Prayer of Adoration)
Most Holy God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit:
We celebrate Your presence
and rejoice in Your light that shines
in our lives and our world.
Thank You for Your sustaining presence in the past year;
… that we’re even here is a work of Your grace.
Thank You for strength when we were weak.
Thank You for peace amidst our turmoil.
Thank You for comfort in our anxious moments.
Thank You for wisdom when we’ve been confused,
and for guidance when we were lost.
(Prayer of Confession)
As an old year passes and a new one comes,
full of promise, hope and potential,
we pray that your Holy Light will shine on all nations,
all people and all of creation
leading us in love, peace and joy.
O God, Giver of all good, and Fountain of all mercies, in whom are all the springs of our life; all glory, thanks and praise be unto thee for thine unfailing goodness; for thy faithfulness which is from one generation to another; for thy mercies which are new every morning, fresh every moment, and more than we can number.
We thank thee for seedtime and harvest, and summer and winter, and nights and days throughout the year; for food and clothing’, and shelter; for health and reason; for childhood and age, youth and manhood; for thy fatherly hand ever upon us in sickness and in health, in joy and in sorrow, in life and in death; for friends, kindred, and benefactors; for home and country; for thy church and for thy gospel.
Yea, Lord, because there is nothing for which we may not bless and thank thee, therefore we do pay our vows now in the presence of all thy people, humbly beseeching thee to accept this our service, which we offer in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Book of Common Order
O God, Giver of all good, and Fountain of all mercies, in whom are all the springs of our life; all glory, thanks and praise be unto you for your unfailing goodness; for your faithfulness which is from one generation to another; for your mercies which are new every morning, fresh every moment, and more than we can number.
We thank you for seedtime and harvest, and summer and winter, and nights and days throughout the year; for food and clothing’, and shelter; for health and healthy minds; for childhood and age, youth and maturity; for thy fatherly hand ever upon us in sickness and in health, in joy and in sorrow, in life and in death; for friends, family, and those who support us; for home and country; for your church and for your gospel.
Yea, Lord, because there is nothing for which we may not bless and thank you, therefore we do pay our vows now in the presence of all thy people, humbly beseeching you to accept this our service, which we offer in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Book of Common Order, Language Modernized by Stuart Strachan Jr.
Lord of All Creation … Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer:
With Thanksgiving close upon us, we’re reminded again
of the gifts You have given us by Your grace and mercy:
children and grand-children,
parents, grandparents and family.
A place to call “home” and people to call “friends”
… and those who call us “friend’.
You give us life itself … as well as Eternal Life in Your Son. Jesus;
filling our days with labor and hope,
and our nights with rest and protection.
So, with grateful hearts we pray:
Lord in Your mercy – Hear our Prayer.
Lord—You are good and You are strong.
You are faithful and You are loving.
All that we have comes from Your hands:
Hands that …
hold us when we are weak,
heal us when we’re wounded,
protect us when we’re threatened,
guide us when we’re lost,
feed us when we are hungry,
work with us when we labor in Your kingdom.
So … we can with confidence trust all to Your hands.
Into You hands we place those we love and care about
who are ill or injured … in need of healing.
Into Your hands we give those who grieve and mourn.
Into Your hands we give those of us who have too little,
as well as those of us who have too much.
Into Your hands we surrender our nation—and pray for wisdom, courage, grace and compassion for our national and local leaders.
Into You hands we lay the desperate, the despondent and the depressed—
give them hope, Lord;
and then enable them to realize that hope.
In Your hands we entrust the church—
struggling to live the balance of grace and truth,
compassionate caring and convicting declaration.
Into You hands we surrender all.
All to You, Lord, we surrender;
all to You we freely give;
We will ever love and trust You,
in Your presence daily live.
We surrender all, we surrender all,
all to thee, our blessed Savior,
we surrender all.
All to You, Lord, we surrender;
Lord, we give ourselves to You;
worldly pleasures all forsaken;
take us, Jesus, take us now.
We surrender all, we surrender all,
all to thee, our blessed Savior,
we surrender all.
This we pray, in Your name, Jesus,
Wilderness Prayer
God of the Ages
Our Deliverer and Provider
We bow in humility before your grace
You feed us with the divine
Your word
Your body
You quench our thirst with living water
A stream in the desert
You guide our feet through snares and snakes
You free us from slavery to sin and self and shame and death
You lead us the long way to holiness and home
Grow in us wholehearted allegiance
that our blessing and devotion may never waver
that we may always recognize and trust your desire to do us good
Amen
Wilderness Prayer © 2017 by Lisa Ann Moss Degrenia, www.revlisad.com