Prayers 5 13 2012
*Welcome! Happy Mother’s Day!
*ABSW—Friday, Keaton Lectures, 7:00 and Saturday, Commencement, 2:00 at Allen Temple, Oakland, Rev. Lauran Bethell will be speaking at both events
*Next Sunday is Bay to Breakers; prepare to arrive at church early
*FCBC Golf Tournament, Monday, June 11, Metropolitan Golf Links, Oakland; see Butch Chan or Joel Jang; benefits summer programs
Prayer Concerns
*Rev. George Tooze, President of MMBB, friend and colleague for 40 years; facing life-threatening cancer
Recognition of Mothers
Let’s have some fun in recognizing the mothers on this day. Here are 10 things that our mothers taught us:
1. When we were fighting as siblings, my mama taught me to appreciate a job well done: “If you’re going to kill each other, do it outside; I just finished cleaning.”
2. My mama taught me religion: “You better pray that will come out of the carpet.”
3. My mama taught me logic: “Because I said so, that’s why.”
4. My mama taught me irony: “Keep laughing and I’ll give you something to cry about.”
5. My mama taught me osmosis: “Shut your mouth and eat your supper!”
6. My mama taught me contortionism: “Will you look at the dirt on the back of your neck!”
7. My mama taught me about the weather: “It looks as if a tornado swept through your room.”
8. My mama taught me about the circle of life: “I brought you into this world and I can take you out.”
9. My mama taught me about envy: “There are millions of less fortunate children in this world who don’t have wonderful parents like you do.”
10. My mama taught me about anticipation: “Just wait until your father comes home.”
In all seriousness,
My mama taught me God’s love: “I don’t like the things you do but I’ll never stop loving you.”
I want you to have 1 minute of silence to remember the people from your past—mothers, fathers, teachers, coaches, friends, caregivers—who have made it possible for you to reach this point in your life. (I minute) These are the people who have made sacrifices on your behalf and who have given you countless gifts, the voices of wisdom and steadfast encouragement to nurture you to be you today.
Pass out flowers to all the women in worship.
Prayer of God’s People
God of all creation, we are ever thankful that you are near to us in prayer. Grace us with your presence that we might be still and know that you are God. In these moments of prayer, we offer our gratitude for our families and friends and friends who are family. Especially on this day, we thank you for the women in our lives: our mothers, grandmothers, godmothers, aunts and sisters. We thank you for the teachers and mentors and youth leaders; for club leaders and Sunday school teachers and choir directors. For all the women in our lives who have nurtured us and loved us, strengthened and sustained us, for the women we name in our hearts, we thank you. Make us worthy of their faithful love and belief in us, we pray; and help us to so love others.
As we look forward to the Day of Pentecost, we pray for the life and ministry of this faithful church community that has remained focused and determined to minister in Chinatown and the wider Bay Area against all odds and obstacles. Continue Lord to grant us strength and fortitude to bravely and effectively preach and share Jesus Christ with others who are in need of hearing Good News. We pray for our candidate Visal Sok and his wife, Lindsey as they prepare for their visit to our church next month. If it is your will for Visal and for us as a church to covenant together for ministry, we pray for that positive outcome.
Thank you, Lord for the summer ministries that are about to begin: basketball and softball teams that will help our youth to play hard and play fair, our Day Camp for teaching our community children stories from the Bible and at the same time raise up another generation of leaders serving as counselors, for Youth Camp when youth are challenged and invited to accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, for all that we do to be your disciples in this warring and difficult world that is badly in need of hope and peace.
And in our daily living, we pray for those who are in need of your special attention. Be with George Tooze and his wife Connie at this most unsettling time of facing the life-threatening disease of cancer. Comfort them and grant them strength to not be discouraged but have the hope of miracles to happen.
We pray in the name of the one who taught us what a life of love looks like, Jesus the Christ, who taught us to say when we pray, “Our Father…”
Benediction
In Christ, we are no longer servants but friends.
In Christ, there are no longer Jews and Gentiles.
Let us leap over boundaries to reach out to those who seek the Good News of Jesus Christ.
Amen.