Prayers of the People | Lent 5C | March 13th, 2016

/

Prayers of the People

Lent 5C

March 13th, 2016

God of all Goodness and Graciousness,
how we long for your presence,
how we yearn for this Lenten journey to come to an end,
that we might hurry up and feel the warmth of Easter upon our faces.
How much longer must we be in this wilderness?
How much longer must we endure?
And yet, we are humbly reminded,
that our wilderness does not match the intensity
nor the depth of Jesus' wilderness.
You call us to march with Jesus to the cross.
But we rest in the painful and hopeful truth
that only Christ is called to take the final step.
Yes, we are called to take up our crosses,
but the ultimate cross of salvation rests solely upon the shoulders
of our Lord and Savior, your Son.

Give us courage to follow our Savior
and to, at the same time, be reminded that we are not him,
nor should we try.

And yet,
we have a specific mission,
a specific purpose,
and we ask that you give us courage to lean into that purpose.

Though we are not called to die like Christ,
we are called to live like him.
Help us that we might touch the marginalized of society.
Calm our fears when we shy away from the ministry that you are calling us to do.
Embrace us in our frailty that we might be bold in mission
and imaginative in our care for one another as you care for us.

Hear us, Precious Savior,
as we cry out to you for solace and comfort.
     We pray, especially, this day for those among us in need of hope.
     We pray for those who have recently lost a job or are unable to find another.
     We pray for those who struggle with depression.
     We pray for those who have had suicidal thoughts and pray that they might be reminded how           precious they are to you and to us.
     We pray for those who wrestle with addiction's fierce grip.
     We pray for those who have been hurt by the church.
     We pray for those within the Church who seek to welcome others.
     We pray for the members of this congregation who are healing from surgery.
     We pray for all those on our hearts and minds,
          either out loud or silently...

Good and Gracious God,
     we have no hope unless we rest in your loving embrace.
     Carry us onward as we follow you to the cross.
     Hear our prayers and attend to us as we follow as faithfully as we can.
     Follow through on your promise to do new things among us
          for we are so desperately in need of your Gospel,
               for your Good News to all of Creation!
This we pray in your holy and perfect name.  Amen.

/ / Comment
, ,
, , , , ,

Stephen Fearing

Stephen was born in 1988 in Cookeville, TN, where his parents met whilst attending Tennessee Tech. Shortly after, they moved to Dalton, Georgia where they put down roots and joined First Presbyterian Church, the faith family that taught Stephen that he was first and foremost a beloved child of God. It was this community that taught Stephen that it was OK to have questions and doubts and that nothing he could do could every possibly separate him from the love of God. In 1995, his sister, Sarah Kate, joined the family and Stephen began his journey as a life-long musician. Since then, he has found a love of music and has found this gift particularly fitting for his call to ministry. Among the instruments that he enjoys are piano, trumpet, guitar, and handbells. Stephen has always had a love of singing and congregation song. An avid member of the marching band, Stephen was the drum major of his high school's marching band. In 2006, Stephen began his tenure at Presbyterian College in Clinton, SC where he majored in Religion and minored in History. While attending PC, Stephen continued to explore his love of music by participating in the Wind Ensemble, Jazz Band, Jazz Combo, Jazz Trio, as well as playing in the PC Handbell ensemble and playing mandolin and banjo PC's very own bluegrass/rock group, Hosegrass, of which Stephen was a founding member (Hosegrass even released their own CD!). In 2010, Stephen moved from Clinton to Atlanta to attend Columbia Theological Seminary to pursue God's call on his life to be a pastor in the PC(USA). During this time, Stephen worked at Trinity Presbyterian Church, Silver Creek Presbyterian Church, Central Presbyterian Church, and Westminster Presbyterian Church. For three years, Stephen served as the Choir Director of Columbia Theological Seminary's choir and also served as the Interim Music Director at Westminster Presbyterian Church. In 2014, Stephen graduated from Columbia with a Masters of Divinity and a Masters of Arts in Practical Theology with an emphasis in liturgy, music, and worship. In July of 2014, Stephen was installed an ordained as Teaching Elder at Shelter Island Presbyterian Church in Shelter Island, NY. Later that year, Stephen married the love of his life, Tricia, and they share their home on Shelter Island with their Golden Doodle, Elsie, and their calico cat, Audrey. In addition to his work with the people who are Shelter Island Presbyterian Church, Stephen currently serves as a commission from Long Island Presbytery to the Synod of the Northeast and, beginning in January of 2016, will moderate the Synod's missions team.