A Service of Prayers before the General Election - December 10th 2010

Not actually a sermon...!

Prayers of Hope and Reconciliation

Ahead of the General Election on December 12th
Tuesday 10th December 2019, 7pm

A space to meet God in worship, prayer and silence

 Welcome to this informal service of prayer and worship.

Our opening song: Servant King (No. 66 Brown hymn book)

From heaven you came, helpless babe,
Entered our world, your glory veiled;
Not to be served but to serve,
And give your life that we might live.
This is our God, the Servant King,
He calls us now to follow him,
To bring our lives as a daily offering
Of worship to the Servant King.

There in the garden of tears,
My heavy load he chose to bear;
His heart with sorrow was torn,
'Yet not my will but yours,' he said.
This is our God, the Servant King,
He calls us now to follow him,
To bring our lives as a daily offering
Of worship to the Servant King.

Come, see his hands and his feet,
The scars that speak of sacrifice,
Hands that flung stars into space
To cruel nails surrendered.
This is our God, the Servant King,
He calls us now to follow him,
To bring our lives as a daily offering
Of worship to the Servant King.

So let us learn how to serve,
And in our lives enthrone him;
Each other's needs to prefer,
For it is Christ we're serving.
This is our God, the Servant King,
He calls us now to follow him,
To bring our lives as a daily offering
Of worship to the Servant King.

Introduction
This informal time of worship came to mind a few weeks ago as I reflected on our nation and everything which has led to the general election on Thursday.

The need for prayer, reflection and time with God seems crucial today with so much uncertainty around us, so this time isn’t intended to be political but aims to bring all that is going on before God.

These are what could be called, ‘interesting times.’ There are uncertainties all around us, financially, economically, in our workplaces, for our nation, Europe, in our communities and with our neighbours, both near and far.

Despite all this, there are some things we can be very certain about. Our God, our steadfast rock, our saviour in Jesus Christ.

In Him there is hope, light, truth and love.

So this service is a time for us to bring before God all our fears, our hopes, our grief and our joys.

We can be assured that God, through the Holy Spirit and our Saviour Jesus Christ, is alongside us at all times, through every time of life, through every pain and every joy.

First of all, some short readings from the Bible,

A reading from Jeremiah, chapter 29

¹¹For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope. ¹² Then when you call upon me and come and pray to me, I will hear you. ¹³ When you search for me, you will find me; if you seek me with all your heart, ¹⁴ I will let you find me, says the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, says the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.

A Reading from the Paul’s letter to the Romans, ch 13

⁸ Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. ⁹The commandments, ‘You shall not commit adultery; You shall not murder; You shall not steal; You shall not covet’; and any other commandment, are summed up in this word, ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’ ¹⁰Love does no wrong to a neighbour; therefore, love is the fulfilling of the law.

¹¹ Besides this, you know what time it is, how it is now the moment for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we became believers; ¹²the night is far gone, the day is near. Let us then lay aside the works of darkness and put on the armour of light; ¹³let us live honourably as in the day, not in revelling and drunkenness, not in debauchery and licentiousness, not in quarrelling and jealousy. ¹⁴Instead, put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.

Prayer and Reflection

The Bishop of Oxford, Steven Croft, recently suggested how we might pray leading up to an election. These ideas have been adapted and we’ll use them to guide our prayers, reflection and silence. (link at the end of this post)

The prayers are in six movements: praise, lament, thanksgiving, intercession, discernment and stillness.

Each will be introduced, there will be some verses from the psalms, a short prayer and then some silence for reflection

Praise

Intro: Our prayers must always begin with the praise of God: we cannot rightly pray until we have brought to mind the greatness and the sovereignty and the majesty of God. We cannot pray for our human politics until we have them in the right perspective in the context of God, our creator and redeemer.

Psalm 46, verses 1 to 3.:      God is our refuge and our strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change, though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea; though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble with its tumult.

Let us pray:  Gracious God, we pray that when we meet you in worship, we may be filled with hope and joy. As we praise you, may we catch a fresh vision of eternity and God’s majesty, sovereignty and love. Amen.

Lament

Intro: Despite being 3000 years old, the Psalms still feel relevant, they reflect our lives, the joys and thankfulness, but also the times of lament and sorrow. It feels like, today, there is much to lament, often unspoken, but Jesus says, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” We are in sorrow for the pain and turmoil in the world and perhaps reasonable people of every political party would hold some of these laments in common.”

          By bringing our sorrows to God, God will share the burden and we can be freed to see a way ahead. These are some laments which you may recognise:

“I lament and grieve hate speech and death threats, especially towards women.”
“I lament and grieve the murdered MP, Jo Cox.”
“I lament and grieve the racism, antisemitism and Islamophobia which is insinuating itself into politics and society, both left and right.”
“I lament the plight of the earth and climate change.”
“I lament at inequalities in our nation and long for the poorest to be protected and wrongs to be set right.”
“I lament that truth and knowledge are everyday casualties of political life on all sides of the debate.”

Psalm 12, verses 1-2: Help O Lord for there is no longer anyone who is godly; the faithful have disappeared from humankind. They utter lies to each other; with flattering lips and a double heart they speak.

Let us pray:  Lord, we pray your kingdom to come with so much still to be set right in your creation. We name our laments as prayer without laying blame, we acknowledge the wrongs we have done and bring all injustice before you, God. We are angry, and we weep, and we carry that anger and sorrow into the rest of our prayer and our lives. Amen.

Song: Brother, Sister, Let me serve you (No.33 brown hymn book)

Brother, sister let me serve you.
Let me be as Christ to you;
Pray that I may have the grace to
Let you be my servant too.

We are pilgrims on a journey,
And companions on the road;
We are here to help each other
Walk the mile and bear the load.

I will hold the Christ light for you
In the night-time of your fear;
I will hold my hand out to you,
Speak the peace you long to hear.

I will weep when you are weeping;
When you laugh I'll laugh with you;
I will share your joy and sorrow
till we've seen this journey through.

When we sing to God in heaven
We shall find such harmony,
Born of all we've known together
Of Christ's love and agony.

Brother, sister let me serve you.

Let me be as Christ to you;
Pray that I may have the grace to
Let you be my servant too.

Thanksgiving

Intro: It’s important to remember that even when we despair, there is so much more to give thanks for:
- For politicians and people of goodwill on every side of the political debate who give their whole lives in the cause of good leadership and government.
- For good local MP’s and candidates.
- For dedicated civil servants.
- For the rule of law which is respected.
- For sincere and open debate whenever it happens.
- For the privilege of living in a democracy.
- For the resources our nation can apply to good government here and elsewhere.
- For the leadership we are still able to offer to the world.
Yes, our situation is serious, but we must not swallow the lie in our prayers or our lives that we are without hope and a future.

Psalm 92, verses 1-2:          It is good to give thanks to the LORD, to sing praises to your name, O Most High; to declare your steadfast love in the morning and your faithfulness by night.

Let us pray:  Heavenly father, we give thanks for all that is good in the world. For honesty, courage and perseverance. For love, grace and charity. For humility, forgiveness and love. For kindness and unspoken heroes. We thank you for all the good people around us, the helpers, the givers and sharers. May you bless and strengthen them lord, in thankfulness for your love, mercy and saving power. Amen.

Intercession

Intro: All of life is prayer. When we pray, we intercede with God, with all which troubles our hearts. Whether it is praise, lament or giving thanks.

Psalm 90, verses 13 to 14: Turn, O LORD! How long? Have compassion on your servants! Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, so that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.

Let us pray:  Loving God, thank you for always being there, for hearing our prayers, our sorrows and joys, for helping us see hope and light in the darkness.
We pray for all parliamentary candidates and parties, that people will ask questions, listen to each other and vote. We pray as well for our parliament and government to be elected this week, that they will lead with integrity, honesty and in the best interests of all people. Amen.

Discernment

Intro: No one, no party and no politician is perfect. So, democracy is often about compromise and choosing the least worst option. This is discernment, is there a call for me to answer? Am I called to speak up about truth or justice, should I comfort, encourage and challenge? Should I change my mind? Where are the wise voices? How can we be wise as serpents yet innocent as doves?

Psalm 94: Verse 16;           Who rises up for me against the wicked? Who stands up for me against the evildoers?

Isaiah, chapter 6, verse 8:     Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?”
And I said, “Here am I. Send me!”

Let us pray: God of Wisdom, we pray for informed and responsible choices, for your will be done. We pray for a way forward for our country and for politicians of wisdom and character who can listen and find good, practical pathways forward. We pray for moderation, kindness and mutual respect in all political debate at every level. Amen

Stillness

Intro:           The final step is to come back to the beginning. The work of prayer must end in stillness, in peace and trust before God, in reorientation and rest.

Psalm 46 verse 10:                       Be still and know that I am God. I am exalted among the nations. I am exalted in the earth. The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge.

Let us pray:  Help us pray Lord, and when words are far off, let us pray in silence, as we root our minds on you Lord, in praise, in lament and thanksgiving, in intercession, in hearing God’s voice and finally in stillness, confidence, love, hope and peace. Amen.

A reading from Matthew chapter 5, verses 1-12

Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, ² and he began to teach them.

He said:

³ “Blessed are the poor in spirit,
    for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
⁴ Blessed are those who mourn,
    for they will be comforted.
⁵ Blessed are the meek,
    for they will inherit the earth.
⁶ Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
    for they will be filled.
⁷ Blessed are the merciful,
    for they will be shown mercy.
⁸ Blessed are the pure in heart,
    for they will see God.
⁹ Blessed are the peacemakers,
    for they will be called children of God.
¹⁰ Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
    for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

¹¹ “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. ¹² Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

We pray together, as Jesus taught us;

The Lord’s Prayer

Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done;
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power and the glory,
for ever and ever.
Amen.

Please stand

Closing Song: Christ be our light

Longing for light, we wait in darkness.
Longing for truth, we turn to you.
Make us your own, your holy people,
light for the world to see.
Christ, be our light!
Shine in our hearts.
Shine through the darkness.
Christ, be our light!
Shine in your church gathered today.

Longing for peace, our world is troubled.
Longing for hope, many despair.
Your word alone has power to save us.
Make us your living voice.    

Christ, be our light!       

Longing for food, many are hungry.
Longing for water, many still thirst.
Make us your bread, broken for others,
shared until all are fed.

Christ, be our light!

 
Longing for shelter, many are homeless.
Longing for warmth, many are cold.
Make us your building, sheltering others,
walls made of living stone.

Christ, be our light!

Many the gifts, many the people,
many the hearts that yearn to belong.
Let us be servants to one another,
making your kingdom come.

Christ, be our light!

Closing Prayer

Almighty God,
you have given us grace to bring our prayers to you,
and you promise that when two or three gather together in your name
you will grant their requests.
Fulfil now, Lord, our desires and prayers,
as may be best for us.
Grant us in this world knowledge of your truth,
and in the world to come life everlasting. Amen.

Chrysostom's Prayer (modified), based on Matthew 18:19-20

END
https://blogs.oxford.anglican.org/how-to-pray-for-this-general-election/