CCU Good Friday Prayers 3 21 2008
Pastoral Prayer
God of grace and mercy, our hearts are heavy as we gather to remember the death of Jesus. Our minds strain to keep the perspective that his death served a purpose in revealing your work of saving all that you have made. We will finally praise you for the gift of Easter and the news that new life is victorious over death, but in these moments we ask you to walk beside us as we remember the darkness of Jesus’ suffering, his death on the cross, and his sense of abandonment even from you, his Heavenly Father. May even our grief be a means of praising you for bringing salvation to earth through the events of Good Friday.
Tonight we pray respectfully for those who are separated by the message of Jesus’ crucifixion; for those who do not believe the Gospel of Christ, those who practice other faiths, those who have not heard the story of Jesus, those who have lost faith, those who have left the church, those who are enemies of Christ and persecute those who follow him. We pray that hearts and minds will be opened to hear Jesus’ saving message.
On this Good Friday, we wonder how good it is when we have been at war for five years with almost 4000 U.S. service men and women perished, over 30,000 injured, and countless Iraqi men, women, and children dead. We pray for the many people on earth who are suffering from repression and oppression that peace and justice will prevail. On this Good Friday, we pray for warfare to cease, that food and shelter be available to all, that all may live in justice and peace.
We pray for the church of Jesus Christ throughout the world, that our witness and service will be centered on the love of Christ and that we will be known for our unity in spirit. Receive our songs, our prayers, our remembering, and our silence tonight—a small response to your great love for the world. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
Benediction
Saved by the power of the cross,
By Christ who descended even into hell,
By the knowledge of God’s life-giving love,
Let us go forth in thanksgiving.
Let us be blessed by the hope that comes from knowing Christ’ death led to our life.
Easter’s joy will soon arrive.
Thanks be to God!