The World Council of Churches suggests that prayer is at the heart of the ecumenical movement. The ecumenical prayer cycle is designed to encourage people to pray for every region of the world by focusing on a specific region each week of the year. This week's focus is This week we pray for So What? There are many ways your congregation could encourage participation in the ecumenical cycle of prayer, including prominently displaying a visual reminder on your Read More …
Prayer
Prayer of Dedication for Sunday, August 12 (#0819)
God of unexpected provision and unending love we place before You our offerings and our lives. Multiply what we bring and change who we are for the sake of advancing Your realm. Open before us the possibilities of ministry and guide our community of faith in the way of Jesus. Amen. Read More …
Prayer of Consecration/Blessing for Sunday, August 5 (#0812)
God of new beginnings, we approach your table desiring an enduring connection with you. In the blessing of this bread and this cup, bring the way of Jesus into focus. Enlarge our view of the abundant life. Remind us of the call to follow, and strengthen us to travel that path. May our hunger be fully satisfied with the extravagant provision of the Bread of Life in whose name we pray. Amen. Read More …
Review of Kneeling with Giants (#0757)
Meet the Author Gary Neal Hansen is an ordained Presbyterian (PCUSA) minister who earned a Ph.D. from Princeton Theological Seminary in 1998. He joined the faculty of the University of Dubuque Theological Seminary in 1999, and currently serves as assistant professor of church history and the chair of the history and theology division. Hansen has published articles in several journals including the Princeton Seminary Bulletin, Teaching Theology & Religion, and Presbyterian Read More …
Just Going Through the Motions (#0710)
Thom Rainer, President & CEO of LifeWay Christian Resources, recently shared several statistics from Brad Waggoner's The Shape of the Faith to Come (2008), including "47 percent of Protestant churchgoers admitted to just 'going through the motions' often during the singing and prayer portions of worship services." So What? How might your congregational leadership begin a conversation about this matter? What is an appropriate response to the statistic that roughly half of those Read More …
Prayers of the People – A Different Approach (#0547)
At Naples United Church of Christ the pastoral prayer follows the same basic pattern each week: Pastor provides a prayer focus and invites people to pray Time of silent prayer Pastor offers the prayers of the people Musical response Yesterday, we chose to do things differently. The Rev. Catherine O'Connell, Associate Pastor, and I co-wrote then co-led the prayers of the people, which included a congregational response. The pattern we used was: Pastor provides a prayer focus Read More …
I’ll Pray for You (#0517)
What do you think the speaker intends when speaking these four simple words to you: “I'll pray for you"? Intends to be supportive, and will follow through by praying on my behalf Intends to be supportive, but has no genuine intent to follow through and actually pray Intends to be dismissive, but knows that this "church speak" is a nicer way to transition or end the conversation So What? I am not among the most faithful or frequent pray-ers, and readily acknowledge this Read More …
From Social Media to Silence (#0512)
Each year a theme is selected for the Catholic Church’s World Social Communications Day: 2011: “Truth, Proclamation and Authenticity of Life in the Digital Age" 2012: “Silence and Word: Path of Evangelization” So What? While many found the pope's message this year to be progressive and thoughtful, next year's topic is the sort that could have been selected for any of the prior years in the day's forty-five year history. However, according to a Catholic News Agency Read More …
Review of Mysteries of the Jesus Prayer (#0435)
Meet the Author Norris J. Chumley, Ph.D. is a bestselling author, an Emmy-Award-winning executive producer/director, and professor. He serves as Executive Producer and Director of Media for the Columbia University Institute for Religion, Culture and Public Life and as Chairman of the Board of Manhattan Neighborhood Network, the nation’s original and largest public access television system. Chumley has created and produced hundreds of commercials, made-for-television Read More …
Should Christians Adopt a Terrorist for Prayer? (#0294)
Katie Glaeser's recent post on the CNN Belief Blog about this topic captured my attention. Until I read it, I had never pondered the possibility of adopting a terrorist for prayer. It is simply one of those things that I suspect many people would never consider unless they were prompted to do so. In the article, Glaeser tells the story of Adopt a Terrorist For Prayer (ATFP), which was founded in 2008. According to Bruce Thomas, ATFP's founder and a former military Read More …