Morning Prayer for Monday, 10 May 2021

Invocation

L: Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high

Where knowledge is free

Where the world has not been broken up into fragments

by narrow domestic walls.

All: Into that heaven of freedom, oh Father, let my country awake.

L: Where words come out from the depth of truth

Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection

Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way

into the dreary desert sand of dead habit

Where the mind is led forward by thee into ever-widening thought and action

All: Into that heaven of freedom, oh Father, let my country awake.

(Rabindranath Tagore)

♪ Invocation Song: Adiyum Anthamum (Bhajan)

Meaning: Lord our God, the beginning and the end, the light, we praise You! O Source of all, the Holy One, Oh God incarnate, Oh Almighty with all characteristics, to the utmost height, we spread your glory. (Text & Music: D. N. Premnath)

Prayer

L: O God of peace, we come before you, not alone,

but in the company of one another.

We share our happiness with each other.

All: It becomes greater.

L: We share our troubles with one another.

All: They become similar.

L: We share one another’s griefs and burdens at a time such as this.

All: Their weight becomes possible to bear.

L: We share our work and witness to each other

All: We are inspired and challenged.

L: We share our failures, frustrations and disappointments.

All: We are comforted and strengthened. For in sharing we learn to live in peace; in sharing we learn to love; in sharing we encounter the meaning of life, the mystery of our existence and discover you, through Jesus Christ, our Lord, Amen. (Adapted slightly from a prayer by the Communion of Churches in India)

Psalmody: Psalms 100

L: Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth.

All: Saranam, Saranam, Saranam

L: Worship the Lord with gladness; come into God’s presence with singing.

All: Saranam, Saranam, Saranam

L: Know that the Lord is God. It is God that made us, and we are God’s;

we are God’s people, and the sheep of God’s pasture.

All: Saranam, Saranam, Saranam

L: Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and God’s courts with praise.

Give thanks and bless God’s name.

All: Saranam, Saranam, Saranam

L: For the Lord is good; God’s steadfast love endures forever,

and God’s faithfulness to all generations.

All: Saranam, Saranam, Saranam

(Saranam means Refuge; adopted from “With Many voices: Liturgies in Contexts, (ed.) by Viji Varghese Eapen, ISPCK/CWM)

Scripture Reading: 1 Timothy: 6:11-12

But as for you, man of God, shun all this; pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith; take hold of the eternal life, to which you were called and for which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.

L: Holy wisdom, Holy Word.

All: Thanks be to God.

♪ Al’leeluyaa

Sermon

Rev. Joshua Peter, Executive Secretary, United Evangelical Lutheran Churches in India, (UELCI & LWF National Committee (I))

♪ Margam Satyam Jivam Nive

Prayers of intercession

L: Look with mercy, O Lord, on all who are struggling to breathe today because of COVID-19 pandemic. We pray for those who gasp for oxygen and wait in vain for hospital beds, for those whose mourning is prolonged as they wait for a place to lay their loved ones to rest in burial grounds and crematoriums.

All: Ruach, breath of God, breathe your peace on us

L: We pray for your Church throughout the world, its leaders and all members, as they diligently seek to serve our pandemic-ridden world. Grant them your provision, wisdom and grace in abundance.

All: Ruach, breath of God, breathe your strength on us

L. We pray for the governments of India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Help them to hear the cry ‘I cannot breathe’ from all those who continue to advocate for the rights and freedom of the most neglected. Implant in them the will to do good and what is right. Free them from political compulsions as they exercise their authority.

All: Ruach, breath of God, breathe your courage on us

L: Lord, we pray for your creation as it groans in travail as it continues to be choked by consumerism and capitalism in these countries. We remember all those affected by climate injustice and those who seek to restore the integrity of your creation.

All: Ruach, breath of God, breathe your hope on us

L: Lord, we thankfully remember your faithful departed whose passing away has immersed communities in sadness and shock. We pray for their bereaved families. May they find peace and comfort in the hope opened to us through Christ’s resurrection, which helps us to believe that death and suffering will not have the last say.

All: Ruach, breath of God, breathe your love on us

The Lord’s Prayer (in our many languages)