Almighty God, at this time of
new beginnings, we come into your throne room with our prayers, our joys, our
sorrows, our hopes and regrets, and place them all before you.
We thank you for the year that
is past, and for all that has happened during the year. As we look back with you, we thank you for
the way that you have supported and sustained each of us during the past twelve
months.
And now we pray for the coming
year.
We start with prayer for the
leaders of your world.
We begin by bringing into your
throne room the men and women who govern the nations of the world, and whose
words and deeds affect each one of us.
So we pray for our queen and her family, calling on you for their health
and well-being, for wisdom and grace in their service of the country and the
commonwealth. We pray for the leaders of
our government and the leaders of European nations. We ask for prudence and insight in coping
with the floods in our country, with plans to work against climate change, and
for compassion in welcoming refugees from the Middle East
Lord in your mercy
Hear our prayer
Almighty God, we pray for peace
and for peacemakers throughout the world.
Especially we pray for the peace of the Middle East, bringing before you
the people of Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan and Palestine. We long for peace between men and women, and
pray for those who work to change attitudes and bring peace. We ask you to stay the hands of those who use
force to advance their opinions.
We commit to your protection
those who have left their homes through warfare and the fear of warfare, and
pray for those who are caring for the displaced in places of refuge. In particular, we pray for agencies we
support, for Shelterbox, Christian Aid and Tearfund, and ask you to keep their
staff safe, and to encourage them as they work for the good of the whole
community.
Lord in your mercy
Hear our prayer
Almighty God, we thank you for
the work of the church in our city and county.
We pray for new beginnings in the many facets of Christian work across
Devon. First we pray for the well-being
in body, mind and spirit of those who lead the church, naming Bishops Robert,
Sarah and Nick before you. We pray for
the ministry of the Cathedral and its staff, as so many people visit it for
services and private devotions. We pray
for your grace on the chaplaincies across the county, in hospitals and
hospices, in shops and schools, in the police and in prisons. We pray for the many small communities across
the county, where there may only be a handful of worshippers each Sunday, and
ask that the Holy Spirit may encourage and renew each follower of Jesus
there.
We bring into your throne room
those who speak for the Christian community, on radio, television, in the press
and on social media, that in this coming year, their words may be inspired by
their living faith, and guided by the Holy Spirit.
Lord in your mercy
Hear our prayer
Finally, Almighty God, we pray
for ourselves and all members of the congregations of St Matthew’s, Matts@5, St
Sidwell’s and St Mark’s. We echo Paul’s joy as we say: Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord
Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual
blessing in Christ
So we ask you,
Lord, for continued blessing as we seek to serve and follow our Lord and Saviour. We pray for those we know who are unwell, who
are sad, and those who are housebound.
We pray for those who have to make difficult decisions. We pray for those who find the winter a time
of financial stress. We pray for those
who will have changes in their lives, whether at work, at school, in their
families or relations. For each of the
people we think of, we ask a Father’s blessing and an outpouring of grace and
joy in spite of their circumstances.
Merciful Father
Accept these prayers for the sake of your
Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen
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