Daily Prayer for Thursday, September 3, 2020

“Take my heart, it is Thine own; it shall be thy royal throne…”        
                                    —-Frances Ridley Havergal, 1874

Preparation for worship
Sit in a relaxed position. Take a slow, deep breath (or 2 or 3 or as many as needed) until you feel your body, mind, and soul begin to relax and rest in the Spirit.  Take time to reflect as you move through this time of worship…

Opening Sentences                                                                     Isaiah 35:4
Be strong; do not fear! God is with us.
The Lord will come to save us.

Prayer                                         Dionysius of the Syrian Jacobite Church, 9th C.
God the Father,
source of Divinity,
good beyond all that is good,
fair beyond all that is fair,
in you is calmness, peace and unity.
Repair the things that divide us from each other
and restore our unity of love
like your divine love.
And as you are above all things,
unite us in goodness and love
that we may be spiritually one,
with you and with each other,
through your peace which makes all things peaceful
and through the grace, mercy, and tenderness
of your only Son, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Hymn of the Day
Way Maker, by Leeland.  Listen and pray.

Reading of the Day                                                                 1 John 5: 1-12
1 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the parent loves the child. 2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. 3 For the love of God is this, that we obey his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome, 4 for whatever is born of God conquers the world. And this is the victory that conquers the world, our faith. 5 Who is it that conquers the world but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

6 This is the one who came by water and blood, Jesus Christ, not with the water only but with the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one that testifies, for the Spirit is the truth. 7 There are three that testify: 8 the Spirit and the water and the blood, and these three agree. 9 If we receive human testimony, the testimony of God is greater; for this is the testimony of God that he has testified to his Son. 10 Those who believe in the Son of God have the testimony in their hearts. Those who do not believe in God have made him a liar by not believing in the testimony that God has given concerning his Son. 11 And this is the testimony: God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12 Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.

Prayers for self and others
Please pray today for those who are being affected by COVID 19 and by its side effects in our world. Please pray for Mark Sabala, working with Covid patients as a nurse, Marcy Szeliga, working as a case investigator and contact tracer, for Sylvia Washer, for Jeanette and her family who’ve been heavily impacted, and for all who have been recently diagnosed with- or are recovering from- the virus.  Pray for your own family today, whether they’re close by or far away.  As we hear of more friends who are directly affected, or who are working in high risk places, we will list them here.  Use this time to lift your joys, concerns, and hopes to God.

Benediction
Love one another; serve the Lord;
live peaceably with all.
Amen.