Saturday, February 9, 2013

General Payer for Transfiguration Sunday C



O Lord of hosts, our Sun and Shield, how blessed we are to be in Your house this morning, privileged to come before You in prayer, knowing that we can expect favor and honor and all good things for we come to You in Jesus’ name:

We thank and praise You that You are the God of kept promises.  You kept Your promise to the patriarchs and brought Your people into the Promised Land.  Let Your faithfulness be our confidence and hope.  When our sins and failures undermine our life with You, let the promises of forgiveness and peace that we have in Your Son Jesus Christ restore us.

At the death of Your servant Moses You did not leave Your people without leadership but raised up Joshua to go before them.  Continue to raise up workers for Your harvest field.  Bless the church’s schools and those who are preparing to serve Your people in the Public Ministry so that Your mighty, saving works would be told forth from generation to generation.  Especially do we ask Your blessing upon Jim as he begins a short-term mission trip in Mexico that he would be a blessing to others.  

We thank You that You have made us a part of Your household of faith through Holy Baptism and kept us a part of it through preaching and Holy Communion.  Lead us to treasure these precious means of grace all the days of our lives.  Grant repentance to those who disregard public worship and return them to our midst.  Let the joys and sorrows of our brothers and sisters in Christ be our own.  Heal those who are ill, especially Dolores, Tom, Ted, Logan, Robert, Bernice, Randy, and Nicole.  Comfort those who mourn.  Help those who are in any need and use us to be Your hands of mercy and Your voice of care and concern.  Send rain upon this dry land and bless Grace as she celebrates a birthday and remembers her mother’s birthday.    

When we are tempted to hesitancy and doubt, grant us confidence and hope—especially as we bear witness to You and testify to our great high priest Jesus Christ who has offered up the “once-for-all” sacrifice of His own life for the world.  The exodus of His death and resurrection has led us from a land of darkness and death into the glorious light of a new life with You.  Make us faithful confessors of this saving truth.

On this Transfiguration Sunday we thank You for the faithful testimony of the Holy Apostles.  Through their eyes we behold Your majestic glory that shines forth through the human flesh of Your Son and rejoice in the promise that is there in the presence of Moses and Elijah:  that death is not the end for Your people but the beginning of a life lived in Your glorious presence.  Grant us faith to listen to Jesus’ words and so guide us on the journey to heaven. 

Into Your hands we commend all for whom we pray, trusting in Your mercy, through Jesus Christ our Lord in whose name we bring these prayers to You this morning.  Amen.

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