CALL TO PRAYER: SUNDAY 20th September 2020 Prayer @ 7pm
At present, we are experiencing an extended exit from Lockdown to which there is no immediate end in sight. Allied to this, there are now increased restrictions on our movement. Taken together with our collective memory of the last six months, there is an uncertainty as to the direction to be taken. The impact of this on our personal and collective well-being is a matter of concern within Church and community.
In the Book of Exodus, the people of Israel, personally and collectively, find themselves in a place of wilderness in which the future direction to be taken is unclear. Their collective memory might well suggest to them that they ought to go backwards instead of forwards. To add to their frustration, they find themselves bereft of sustenance in a place that seems deserted and devoid of hope. It is in this moment that ‘the glory of the Lord’ is revealed and the promise of the ‘bread from heaven’ is fulfilled. (Exodus 16: 2-15) It is in the times of our desert experience that we cry out: ‘Bread of heaven, bread of heaven, Feed me till my want is o’er.’ It is in such times that we wait upon the response of the Lord. We pray:
God who provides,
Hear the cry of your people in their distress And answer them in the desert places. Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
God who provides,
Guide your people in barren lands And hold us safe when we are weak. Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
God who provides,
May we receive your gracious gifts in the morning And in the evening discover those gifts renewed. Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
God who provides,
Give direction to us when we were are lost And renew our purpose when we are uncertain. Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
God who provides,
Renew the faith of your people
And equip us to serve you in the place that you have called us to. Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
God who provides,
On this day, may we receive bread from heaven And know the glory of the Lord revealed.
Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.