Bring the prayer requests from Trash And Treasure Sale.
Hello! I’m so glad you’re all here today! And a very happy May to each of you.
So yesterday we had our big Trash & Treasure rummage sale here at the church. And it was great. Lots of people came to help out as we welcomed hundreds of people into our building. They came to buy all sorts of things and, with that money, we’re able to help people all over the world. And one thing that we do, as people wait in line, is we offer them some coffee, a bottle of water, and we offer to pray for them too.
And here are the prayers we collected yesterday. We asked people to write on these cards what they wanted to pray about – and we’ll later hear all those prayer requests in today’s worship service. But one thing jumped out at me. Linda O. told me that, as she talked to people, some of them asked what a prayer is. They wanted to participate – but they weren’t sure what to say.
Now prayer is, simply, talking to God. God loves you and God wants to hear from you. God wants to know about your day, the people that you met, that cool things that happened to you, and the things that didn’t work out so well. So prayer is talking. It’s a conversation. And even though it might feel like you’re talking to yourself, God is listening.
So let’s try to create a prayer right now – all of us – okay? And I want us to create something we can do at home – so it’s pretty simple. First, we’ll say hello to God. How do you start your prayer? Dear God. Hi God. ETc. (Write it down). Second, we’ll say something we’re thankful for – something we’re glad for. What’s something you’re glad for? Health. The sky. Something colorful. Something we got. Third, we’re going to pray for something we need or something someone else needs, like if someone is sick, or if someone lost something, or if someone is suffering. What’s something or someone we could pray for? Polluting earth. A friend who is unhappy. Etc. And then we end the prayer by talking about Jesus – we say “In Jesus’s name” or “through Jesus,” Amen. Great! So we crafted our prayer, together. So let’s pray and I’m going to read our prayer together.
Pray the prayer.
So remember that prayer is just talking to God – and we do that because God loves us, cares for us, and – through prayer – we connect with God and we learn a little bit more just what God has in mind for us.
Thank you for coming up here and I’ll see you next week!
Each week, I share a reflection for all children of God. The written manuscript serves as a springboard for what I do. This is from Christ Lutheran Church’s Worship on Sixth Sunday of Easter, 5/01/2016.