Thanksgiving and intercession 4 February 2018

God, we wait, we watch, we long for you.

Renew our powers, refresh our spirits, restore our well being; for you give new strength to the faint and power to the powerless.

May your church be found working among those who lack resources or rights.

May we seek to care for those who cannot care for themselves. We pray for the lowly and the humiliated. The vulnerable and the left behind

We pray for relief organisations, charities and all who speak out, support and seek to protect the weak, the vulnerable, the persecuted in your world God, be to them a tower of strength.

We pray for the great powers of the world, the strong nations, and mighty governments.

May their power be used properly that the poor are protected, the weak are not exploited, and no one is oppressed

We pray too for multinational corporations who often wield more power than many governments, that in their relentless pursuit of profit they may take those steps of compassion and concern which will benefit them as well as those powerless to stop them.

We give thanks for all who have cared for us in times of weakness;

in our weakness, we have found strength in you and from others, who have uplifted our spirits and given us new hope.

We pray for our friends and families, especially any who are finding life difficult at the moment. We pray for any in our community that may feel neglected or rejected.

We pray for all who are in weakness of body, mind or spirit, all who have come to the end of their tether.

We think of all who are losing their mobility or agility, those who are losing their memories, and all who have lost their grip on reality; of those who no longer trust in anyone, and those who doubt the love of God; we think of all who are caring for loved ones in illness.

We give thanks that Christ is our healer and our companion on the Way; nothing on heaven or earth can separate us from the love of God, not even death. We pray all who have lost loved ones this past week. Enfold them in your love and sustain them in your care.

May we, too, support them in the days, weeks and months to come, that in our actions, your love may be know to them.

All this we pray in and through Jesus Christ our Lord

Amen.