Sailing Into Uncharted Seas

This past Sunday here at Mount Hebron Presbyterian we had to cancel our service in the sanctuary and try something online instead. An online sermon can be found here, and written version here.

This is a new way of doing things for all of us. We do not know what the coming weeks will bring, but we do know we can not carry on meeting together as we have in the past. We will do our best to keep everybody updated on developments here at church.

One thing that can bind us all together is our prayers. With that in mind, I share this 'adapted' prayer from “Christianity Today” writer Daniel Darling.

“Heavenly Father, we acknowledge our dependence upon You. This virus has reminded us of our frailty. We have subdued much of the earth with our innovation and creative acts, but we are reminded in this moment how frail and powerless we really are. So we repent of our self-sufficiency and hubris.

Lord, we lament the fallen nature of our world, which mars the beauty of your created order. COVID-19 comes to steal and destroy, to work its way through human bodies and spread its sickness across communities and nations and the world. We, like Your Son, weep and rage at sickness and death. And yet we know that it was Jesus whose death and resurrection defeated this final foe. We long for the day You resurrect our bodies and restore this world.

As we endure this new normal in our lives, we pray earnestly for the medical doctors, nurses, and health care professionals who are putting their lives on the line for their neighbors. May You give them strength and physical immunity during this time, so they can help push back against this virus.

We pray for the scientists, disease experts, and epidemiologists who are working on vaccines and testing mechanisms. Lord, we thank You for gifting them with knowledge and wisdom we don’t have. We pray for their endurance, for breakthroughs, and for resources.

We pray for those working in our supermarkets, dealing with unprecedented demand, anxious customers and their own health concerns. Teach us not to hoard, but to share, to look beyond our personal needs and consider the needs of the most vulnerable among us.

Lord, You are the Great Physician, so we pray for healing for the victims of COVID-19. Lord, You are the Creator, with power over the creation, so we pray that the chaos created by COVID-19 may come to an end. Spirit of God, You are the Comforter, so please comfort all troubled souls.

Move in the hearts of our public officials. As you have instructed us in Your Word, we pray for our leaders, the president, Congress, governors, mayors, and local officials. We pray You will guide them with wisdom and strength and discernment.

We pray for the people in our nation and the nations of the world to be humbled and turn to You in repentance and faith. We know You are the Prince of peace, Lord of lords, the King of kings. We praise You for Your goodness and Your mercy. And we ask this all in the name of Jesus, our Lord. Amen.”

For some music, “He's Always Been Faithful”, by Sara Groves.