Tag: thank-you-for

Thank you. For work


View of the sunrise on my commute to work

 
REFLECTION
The kingdom of heaven came near to Peter and Andrew at their place of work, fishing in the Sea of Galilee (Matt 4:18-20).  Pray for the kingdom of heaven to come near to us at our place of work too.

Litany of Labor

Let us pray to the Lord of all creation,
from whom comes life and work and purpose.

Almighty God,
when you formed us lovingly out of the dust of the earth,
you breathed into us the breath of life
and gave us work and purpose for living.
You placed Adam in the garden of Eden to till and keep it.
Through our work, you made us co-creators with you,
shaping the world in which we live.
You gave dignity to our labor by sending your Son to labor with us.
By our labor, you enrich the world.
By our labor, we enjoy the fruits of creation.
By our labor, we find direction and purpose.
By our labor, our families are made secure.

For providing varieties of work and for blessing us by our labor:
We give you thanks, O Lord.

For those who plow the field and those who make the plow;
for farmers and farm workers, for steelworkers and machinists;
for those who work with their hands and those who move the earth:
We give you thanks, O Lord.

For those who tend the sick and those who seek new cures;
for doctors and nurses, for scientists and technicians;
for those who keep notes and those who transcribe:
We give you thanks, O Lord.

For those who think and those who create;
for inventors and explorers, for artists and musicians;
for those who write books and those who entertain:
We give you thanks, O Lord.

For those who work in offices and those who work in warehouses;
for secretaries and receptionists, for stockers and bookkeepers;
for those who market products and for those who move them:
We give you thanks, O Lord.

For those who inspire our minds and those who motivate us;
for teachers and preachers, for public servants and religious servants;
those who help the poor and those who work with our children:
We give you thanks, O Lord.

For those whose labor is tidiness and cleanliness;
for janitors and sanitary workers, for drycleaners and maids;
for those who produce cleaning products and those who use them:
We give you thanks, O Lord.

For those who sail the waves and those who fly the skies;
for captains and attendants, for astronauts and deep sea divers;
for those who chart and those who navigate:
We give you thanks, O Lord.

You bless us all with skills and gifts for labor.
You provide us opportunities to use them,
for the benefit of others as well as ourselves.

Guard and protect those who labor in the world.
Bless the work of our hands, O Lord.

Look kindly upon the unemployed and the disabled.
Give health to the sick, hope to the bereaved.

Keep us from laboring only for greed.
Make us loving and responsible in all that we do.

Creator Lord, you are the source of all wisdom and purpose,
you are the blessing of those who labor.
Be with us in our labor to guide and govern our world.
Give all men and women work that enhances human dignity
and bonds us to one another.
Give us pride in our work,
a fair return for our labor,
and joy in knowing that our work finds its source in you;
through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen

— written by Rev. Thomas L. Weitzel, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and posted on Liturgy by TLW.
 

From the blog
Circle me, Lord
Work as an offering
In the school of prayer with Brother Lawrence
 

Thank you. For new songs

We will not keep silent

based on Psalm 96

We are people who must sing you,
for the sake of our very lives.
You are a God who must be sung by us,
for the sake of your majesty and honour.

And so we thank you,
for lyrics that push us past our reasons,
for melodies that break open our givens,
for cadences that locate us home, beyond all our safe places,
for tones and tunes that open our lives beyond control
and our futures beyond despair.

We thank you for the long parade of mothers and fathers
who have sung you deep and true;

We thank you for the good company of artists, poets, musicians,
cantors, and instruments that sing for us and with us, toward you.

We are witnesses to your mercy and splendor;
We will not keep silent … ever again.   Amen

 
— by Walter Brueggemann, from his Psalms class on January 20, 1999. Posted on the Gladly Listening blog.

Tip: 12 Song Challenge
It’s not too late to join this international community of songwriters (including Irene Bom), working together to grow in their creative gifts and serve the local church.

Also be inspired by Irene’s Make and do website, a window into her creative projects, including new songs. The index offers easy access to the songs and other creative projects that were featured in the her workshop on the Psalms, held in Lausanne (2022) and Budapest (2024).
 

Thank you. For taste buds

 
In Hidden Art, Edith Schaeffer writes,

“God could have created all food as a bland mixture of proper nutrients: something like wheat-germ, yoghurt and honey in a cake form, or some sort of fruit that would have contained everything necessary to good health. However pleasant the mild flavour might be, we cannot imagine eating just one single flavour all the time, the reason being that we have been created with taste buds, a delicate sense of smell, and a sensitive appreciation of and response to texture and colour.”  (p. 114-115)
 

Invitation to the Banquet

based on Psalm 23 and Matthew 22:1-14

Gracious God,
in love You open wide the doors
and welcome us into Your presence —
saints and sinners alike.
You spread a table before us,
filled with the richest fare —
a feast of love and mercy
for the body and soul.

We come with joy to meet You here,
to eat and drink at Your table,
to taste and see Your goodness,
to celebrate Your grace and mercy in our lives.

May Your Spirit inspire our praise and thanksgiving,
our prayers and petitions
as we worship together in Your presence.

In the name of Jesus Christ, our host and Lord, Amen.

from re:worship

From the blog
A new nature
Winter = long nights
In the school of prayer with St Francis of Assisi
 

Thank you. For fruit


 

Call to Worship Litany

The world is filled with the glory of God, and we say,
Thank you!
The hills and valleys are filled with colour, and we say,
Thank you!
The vines and trees are filled with fruit, and we say,
Thank you!
Our tables are overflowing with food, and we say,
Thank you!
Our life is filled with love of family and friends, and we say,
Thank you!
We fill this house of God with our voices, saying,
Thank you!

May the words of our mouths and the meditations of our hearts
be acceptable to you, O God, as we enter into this service of thanksgiving and praise.
 

~ written by Carol Penner, and posted on Leading in Worship

Carol’s tip: I asked the congregation to say ‘Thank you!’ whenever I raised my hand. This need not be printed or projected.

From the blog  (by Carol Penner)
In times like these
The work of our hands
Company on the road
 

Thank you. For making me me


Mural by Joy Yamusangie (Artist in residence), London St Pancras

 

A follow-up to yesterday’s post …

 

Litany

(inspired by Genesis 1)

In the beginning God created all things
and God saw that they were good.

At our beginning, God created us
unique and irreplaceable
loved by God and wanted by God
known to God and treasured by God
even before he created us.

In all our new beginnings, God creates something new.
So we will seek God
in the freshness of morning
in the laughter of friends
in the colours of creation
and in the warmth of spring-time sunshine.

Lord God, King of Creation,
open our eyes to see your presence
our souls to sense your presence
and our hearts to love your presence
ever here in your creation
and ever beyond it in eternity.
Amen

 
source: wellsprings.org.uk
 

Thank you. For making me

As I was working on this post I discovered that a webpage featuring the lyrics to my song, “Thank you, thank you”, had some curious typos. Also, the verse I wanted to spotlight (“Thank you, Lord, for making me”) isn’t included in the recording.

Please overlook the oversight, and join in this simple song of thanks to the God who made us, loves us, saved us and blesses us in countless ways. Perhaps make it personal and add some verses of your own.
 

A prayer

O my God teach my heart where and how to seek you,
where and how to find you …

You are my God and you are my All
and I have never seen you.

You have made me and remade me,
You have bestowed on me all the good things I possess,
Still I do not know you …

I have not yet done that for which I was made …
Teach me to seek you …

I cannot seek you unless you teach me
or find you unless you show yourself to me.

Let me seek you in my desire,
let me desire you in my seeking.
Let me find you by loving you,
let me love you when I find you.

 
~ written by Anselm of Canterbury (1033-1109), posted on re:worship
 

From the blog
Theme: God makes all things new  [prayer sheet]
First steps
I hear you
 

Thank you. For fruit-bearing trees


Apples ready for harvest  (Photo: Irene Bom)
 

Then God said, ‘Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.’ And it was so.

 

Thanksgiving Litany

For summer’s passing and harvest home —
we thank you!
For autumn’s splendor and winter’s chill —
we thank you!
For seed that has fallen, the promise of spring —
we thank you!

As a part of nature’s wondrous cycle
of new birth, growth, fruitfulness and death
we rejoice in the creation of new life.

May our lives blossom as the apple tree in Spring
May we become fruitful in thought and deed
And may the seed of love that falls to the ground
Linger beyond our time on this earth.

 
~ posted on Third Space blog (excerpt)
 

Thank you. For life


 

In the silence
I receive once more
this gift of my life
from you.
     Hold me in your stillness,
     simplify me,
     and take possession of me,
     my God.

 
by Angela Ashwin,
from The Book of a Thousand Prayers by Angela Ashwin, #613
 

 
From the blog
First love
Who do you work for?
Theme: Spurred on by prayer  [prayer sheet]
 

Thank you. For the sunrise

Benediction

based on Luke 1:78-79

A new day is dawning!
Despite what we see and hear in the world around us,
the sunrise is coming.
When it comes, it will break through the darkness of our world —
darkness caused by violence and death and hunger and despair.
And all those who now sit huddled in the shadows
will be able to rise and walk with confidence in the light.
So go from here with courage and hope,
to love and serve the Lord. Amen.

 
source: re-worship