Maughan Uniting Church

Week beginning April 6th

“Awesome God, you have given us a freedom which no walls, or iron bars or powers can take away from us.  You have given us the freedom to choose your way of life and this means that we have our own free will to follow a secular path or one that is pleasing and which will honour you.  We have the freedom to compare your truth with what the world states as truth and sometimes it is easy to be deceived.  Help us to know the difference.  We ask that you show us the difference between your truth and that with which we are confronted each day.  Help us with the choices that we have to make in our everyday lives.  

Amen”

“Living God, we live in an age like no other, where the advances in technology are so many and so varied that sometimes it takes our breath away.  New breakthroughs are being made in medicine, in education, in computing, in fact, in all areas of our lives.  We need sometimes to take stock and remember that you are the one who created us and gave us the freedom to use our intellect for good.  Lord, technology has opened up your world and brought it closer by way of the internet, television, airplanes and telephones.  May we never lose the wonder of seeing new things and appreciating new technology, so that we may acknowledge the effort and the hard work put in by those who design and invent. 

Amen”

“Dear One, it doesn’t take much time and effort to develop an awareness and a sensitivity to another person’s needs.  Too often we are caught up in our own concerns and problems to lend a hand to a stranger or to listen to someone who is lonely.  Help us to ‘tune in’ and notice the lives of others so that, no matter how busy we are, we are aware of their concerns.  Merciful God, show us how to be aware of others’ pain, to know when to lend a listening ear, or provide food, or shelter for those that are without either.  Help us to see behind the masks that people put on to hide their grief and pain.  Make us aware of everything around us.  Thank you for your help and guidance.   

Amen”

“Wonderful God, another week is beginning and we don’t know what it will bring.   For some it will stretch out endlessly, particularly if they are in pain or are grieving.  For others it will pass all too quickly as they are caught up in an endless cycle of work.  We need to take each day and treasure it, no matter what it may bring.  Sometimes it is hard for us to get up in the morning, other days we can’t spring out of bed quickly enough.  We complain that there are not enough hours in the day, and yet for some there are too many, but it is a privilege to praise you for what each new day brings.  

Amen”