Monday, April 11, 2005

Prayers of the People for Easter 4A

Dearest Lord, Holy Lamb of God, Shepherd of the world, You lead us to respite and relief. You are our provider and sustainer and through Your providence, we will never want for Your Presence. You lead us to fields of plenty and You refresh our souls with the cool clear waters of Your spirit.

Holy Lamb of God, You are the Good Shepherd. We follow You Lord because we know Your voice. We know that You will lead us through the valley of the shadow of death. You are Yourself the Gate – we can only come to the Throne of Grace through You. And You are truly with us -- Emmanuel, God with us -- so we will not fear evil but be comforted. You came to give us life and give it to us abundantly – You have prepared Your table for us and anoint us for service. Anoint us with Your Holy Spirit, help us to devote ourselves to Your good teachings, to worship, to fellowship and to prayer. We eat the food that You have given us, both spiritual and physical and You nourish us.

Holy Lamb of God, today we pray for our sisters and brothers, especially for those who suffer. We pray for the children – those who live in plenty, but also for those who live in want. We pray for all of those who live alone, the homebound and the aged. We pray for those who are absent from us – those who live far away, or are stationed in far places and live in great danger or those who are absent from us even though we share a house with them. We pray for those who grieve and mourn. We pray for those who are imprisoned by addiction or disease.

Holy Lamb of God, we confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done, and by what we have left undone. All of us are like sheep who have gone astray -- We have not loved You with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We are truly sorry and we humbly repent. Forgive us and free us for joyful obedience.

Help us to follow the example of Christ -- He left his petitions in the hands of God, who always judges fairly. Help us to remember that He personally carried away our sins in His own body so we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. Help us to rejoice that we have been healed by His wounds! Once we were wandering like lost sheep -- But now we have turned to Your Shepherd, the Guardian of our souls. All we can say is thank You and pray that Your goodness and mercy will follow us all the days of our lives. These things we pray in the name of your Son, the Holy Lamb of God, who taught us to pray saying…Our Father……

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